End of 18

The last month of 2018 was a very eventful time for me and it made me think about my priorities and which way my live is suppose to go in 2019. One of the things I looked at was my photography or rather the lack off. I have been looking at all my different groups I am a member off and decided that it would be beneficial for myself to leave most of them so that I can concentrate more on my photography. 

However, while leaving groups on one hand I decided to re-start what was suppose to be a travel blog which I started way back in 2015. My goal for 2019 is to do one photography trip a month and write a bit of a blog about it. This is suppose to be for my own enjoyment first but I hope that other people will find it interesting and fun too. 

My start trip was in December 2018, and I went to Llyn Idwal / Llyn Ogwen. This is a location which I know inside out and have visited over and over again, especially when I have not done much photography for a while. Its always helps me to find my photography mojo again as the location gives me all the inspiration for photography that I need to get going again. 

Llyn Idwal is a small lake that is part of the Glyderau mountains of Snowdonia. According to legend its named after Prince Idwal Foel, gandson of King Rhodri Mawr or wales, who has been murdered by being drowned in the lake. How true that story is could be debated as facts claim the prince died in a battle. But the story sure gives the place a magical feel. 

Below are the three shots I like the most out of the 4 day stay in the area. The first shot shows the waterfall, which is right at the beginning of the walk up to Llyn Idwal. It was shot very early in the morning and I attempted to get the moon which was visible just above the falls. Although I got the shot it was not as inspiring as this one was without the moon in the shot. 

The next shot shows Llyn Ogwen, with its Boathouse at the end and Y-Garn mountain in the background. We had to climb over a wall to get to that location and although that was not much of a problem, the problem was to get back up the wall as it suddenly was much higher (dont ask). It was a bit fun to get back over. 

Lastly, a shot along the shore of Llyn Idwal. Its not really a shot I have done before but found the different composition very interesting. The two people walking at the end of the image gives scale to the location.

Well, I hope you enjoy these shots and my little write up about the place and why I took the images. I will endeavour to post one post every month, with my fave images from each trip.

Please get in touch and give me feedback on the images or what I am talking about to help me make the new blog more interesting and informative. Any feedback is greatly appreciated.

Half way mark

June, and already its half way through the year. Where on earth has the time gone ? I have to say sometimes I feel like the time is just wasting away without me making the best use of it. But I guess we all feel like that sometimes.

The first trip in June was back to Anglesey, visiting some of the sites I have not had the pleasure of visiting before.

Parking at Cemlyn Bay, Anglesey

Cemlyn Bay

Cemlyn Bay

Church Bay, Anglesey

Coastal Walk, Church Bay, Anglesey

Critters around Cefni Reservoir, Llangefni, Anglesey

Boats at Cefni Reservoir, Llangefni, Anglesey

At the end of June I had the pleasure of visiting the Llyn Peninsular for a couple of days. First stop was Dinas Dinelle.

Parking at Dinas Dinelle

Shot from the Hill Fort at Dinas Dinelle

Sunset at Dinas Dinelle Beach

After Dinas Dinelle I visited the habour at Trefor on the Lleyn Peninsular. 

Sunrise over Trefor Habour

Trefor Habour and Yr Eifl Quarry

Trefor Pier

Yr Eifl Quarry, Panorama

Month of travels

Its been to long since I have written a blog and it is hard to think back of what I have been doing to be honest. With the weather getting better I am trying to make good use of Velma ( campervan ) and try to get out and about as much as I possible can. May especially is a month where I try to be home as little as I possibly can. 

At the beginning of May I visited Bala as I knew of a wonderful place to park, right by the edge of the lake. I intended to say overnight in order to get a sunset shot as well as a sunrise shot over the lake with the existing jetty as foreground interest. ( link to the parking place   https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@52.87492,-3.631791,3a,75y,272.97h,69.26t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sKk4TVtR_-tnEhQZaThsEiA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!6m1!1e1?hl=en ). 

However, as soon as I parked up a man came over complaining that overnight parking wasnt allowed and for me to move on. I was not impressed as I just paid the fee for parking there. I stayed till sundown though in order to get some shots, felt however intimidated and to scared to stay the night although my parking ticket was valid till 12pm. Here are some shots I took. 

I so would have liked to stay longer but was worried about the man coming back in the middle of the night moving me on. I am really not sure what the problem is with staying on the car park overnight as I am not doing any harm, making noises or leaving rubbish behind. But well. The rules are the rules I guess. 

Mid May I went to one of my fave places on Wales. I revisited Anglesey in order to get some of the shots I had in the planning. A set of shots I wanted to get was the Menai Bridge and the Britannia Bridge at night and all lit up. It was hard going shooting that night as it was rather windy and raining. I had to keep stopping and cleaning my lens otherwise water bunnies would have ruined the shots. But I think I managed quite well considering. I found the Menai Bridge much more photogenic then the Britannia Bridge though. 

After the shots of the two Bridges I spent a couple of days at Red Wharf Bay. That was a lovely stay over. No one bothered you are had any issues with you staying overnight at the car park. I was also lucky that the weather improved considerably and I did manage to get some interesting shots of the boats and the coastal area. Scooby also loved it there as there was no restrictions against letting the dog on the beach. I think we both were in heaven lol. 

The end of May saw my birthday and as every year I booked a week holiday. I had planned to visit a place I never really been to in Wales. The Brecon Beacons always held a bit of a fascination for me, probably because its a bit further out then I normally travel and I never been to it. So for at least 5 days I was going to explore the area that used to be known as Brecknockshire, starting off with Buith Wells. 

After Buith Wells I followed the A470 down to a small village called Talgarth. Such a lovely place and so much to see. The views were just amazing and after a good exploration I found a lovely woodland walk with some really nice waterfalls. 

After Tregarth I at last come to Brecon itself. What a lovely place what was to visit. So much to see, starting with the church and ending with the canal. I walked along the canal a couple of times at various times during the day just to soak up the different atmosphere, but it will take time processing them all. I took so many images during my holiday in the Brecon Beacon that I hardly know where to start.  

I spent one night on the car park just outside the Storey Arms Education center, intending to climb Pen-Y-Fan and although I attempted it twice I did give it up as a bad attempt. My feet just didnt want to play fair during them two days and I so felt like Ariel, the little mermaid who not only lost her speach but also suffers pain with every step just so she can fish herself a prince. Ok.. no prince for me but conquering a mountain wasnt worth the pain I was feeling. I again got some nice pictures from my leisurely walks but not been able to process them yet. 

On my way along the A470 I also stopped off at the Brecon Reservoir and the Cantref Reservoir. I did not spent the night at either place as I did not feel that I would be able to get any better images at any other time, ie. sunrise or sunset. So I carried on.  

I did stop the night at the Garwnant Visitor center though, or rather in a layby just outside. Some lovely walks to be had in that area with clearly marked paths, which is always a bonus for me who can get lost in her back garden. 

After Garwnant I drove a bit further out and leaving the A470 I visited my last stop of my holiday. The waterfall center at Pontneddfechan has been a goal of mine to visit for a while. It was a lovely place and the waterfalls were just amazing. But what really amazed me that the long walks I took to see the waterfalls were not all there was. Apparently there was some other walks and more waterfalls to be seen, but as I had run out of time it will have to wait for a revisit. 

As mentioned, May has seen some awesome travelling and these images are only a very small example of what I have actually seen and visited. I had a wonderful time, especially as Velma behaved herself and nothing went majorly wrong. The Brecon Beacons certainly are a place that needs to be re-visited in the near future as I only have seen such a small part of it. 

I hope you are all keeping well. Kind greetings... Char xx

April’s Adventures

April was a very good month for me in regards to photography. I managed two separate trips each to locations I had planned to visit for a long time. My first short break was at the beginning of the month. I visited a place called Porth-Wen on Anglesey, Wales. 

Porth Wen lies on the north coast of Anglesey, a few miles west of Amlwch and are the remains of a brickwork.  It was opened at the turn of the last century to make refractory bricks for use in the steel industry.  Despite the good quality brick and tiles produced, transport was always a major problem for the works. All raw materials and products had to be transported by sea. A small quay was built for the loading and unloading of ships.  However the position of the works meant that as well as the effects of tides, a heavy swell was often encountered. The small vessels were often battered while at the quayside - hitting the rocky seabed caused much damage to the craft. Many owners refused to risk their ships mooring there.The bricks were exported by sea from the works' own harbour.  The whole operation closed down at the start of the first world war and most of it has slowly rusted away ever since.

I first heard about the site a few years back but never had the opportunity to find it until recently. It was a lovely location to visit and photograph despite the very hazy / foggy start of the shoot. 

 

During the evening the haze / fog lifted though and the shoot became less difficult as the paths were clearer to make out.

 

The next morning I walked the coastal path for a while in order to get a different angle on Porth-Wen.

The views were absolutely fantastic but it was a shame that the sunrise I had hoped for did not happen. 

My second trip of the month took to to a totally different are of Wales. I wanted to re-visit Tintern Abbey for a very long time. I already been once way back in 2008. I thought a revisit was well overdue. However, before stopping off for a couple of days at Tintern I visited Monmouth for a day. Totally lovely place, especially the walk along the river Wye. 

Again, I had a hazy start, but it was all good as I really enjoyed the walk and the amazing views across the river. 

The Wye Bridge was a lovely subject to photograph that early in the morning. 

I stumbled across this lovely church in the middle of no-where while walking along the Wye river. St. Peter's Church is a Church of England parish church at Dixton on the banks of the River Wye, about 1 mile (1.6 km) north-east of Monmouth, Wales. The church is a Grade II* listed building.

Some very lovely ladies I met during my walk along the river pointed me to another very photogenic location in Monmouth - Duke of Beaufort Bridge

The Ross and Monmouth Railway line opened in 1873 terminating at Monmouth Mayhill railway station. A further single line and three-span bridge of almost 300 feet was constructed to join the two Monmouth railway stations, opening on 1 May 1874. It consists of 3 spans of steel-lattice girders on paired steel tubular piers with squared rubble abutments. The main span is 46 metres long and the shorter spans are 18 metres each. It was built by Edward Finch of Chepstow.

The line between Monmouth Troy and Mayhill was closed on 6 January 1964. The R&MR Duke of Beaufort Bridge remains in use as a footpath.

I stayed in Monmouth only a day and a night but I managed to take many images during my stay there.

I moved onto Tintern the next day, but by then the weather had worsened quite a bit. Despite the drizzle I managed however to get some interesting shots of Tintern.

Tintern Abbey (Welsh: Abaty Tyndyrn) was founded by Walter de Clare, Lord of Chepstow, on 9 May 1131. It is situated in the village of Tintern in Monmouthshire, on the Welsh bank of the River Wye which forms the border between Monmouthshire in Wales and Gloucestershire in England. It was only the second Cistercian foundation in Britain, and the first in Wales.The village of Tintern adjoins the abbey ruins, which are Grade I listed from 29 September 2000.

The two trips in April sure was a lovely experience and a learning curve in regards of my photography and my staying in Velma. I am looking forward to my next trips.