It’s the end of summer. The evenings are drawing in and the early mornings have that familiar autumnal chill and earthy smell. A perfect time to scan back through photo files and remember the warm, colourful months that are beginning…
Goats and greens in Abergavenny
I’ve learnt two new facts about Abergavenny this summer. Firstly, it was famous for it’s wig-making industry back in the 18thC. These highly styled, rather pompous-looking periwigs were popular with professional and well-heeled men and were made of goat hair.…
In search of Arctic treasures…..
‘They’re still in flower’ he remarked confidently yesterday afternoon as he scanned the dark fists of rock on the northern slopes of Cader Idris. This was the eighth time this year that Rhys Gwynn, the local National Park warden, had…
Spring awakening in Laugharne
Summertime began, officially, on March 30th this year. The run up had been quiet, misty. The gardens at Llanerchaeron still felt sleepy during that last week in March, although the National Trust volunteers were busily preparing for Easter, between their…
Trefor Quarry; the curling connection
And so the curling finals are over at the Sochi Winter Olympics. It was mesmerising while it lasted; the smooth, low glide of the competitors as they released their stones into a slow waltz, the back-of- the-mouth grind of granite…
Cefn Ila – a place of mist and memories
Middle Banky Meadow, the Rookery, Old Camp, Parsons Batch, William White’s Wood, The Warrants, Kiln Meadow, Fir Tree Field….. The Cefn Ila estate, just to the west of Usk, has been chopped about and continually changed hands since the early…
Gardens: places of myth and magic
‘People can say what they like about us, but it’s our work that counts. That’s what’s important to us and we want people to see it at its best’. Ronald Pennell was talking about the importance of using decent photographs…
Uncommon Ground: Land Art in Britain comes to Cardiff
Kicking my heels in Cardiff last week I decided to escape the madness and musak of Queen Street at Christmas and headed off to the National Museum of Wales www.museumwales.ac.uk for a couple of hours. There are rich pickings in…
Crabapples and Cointreau – a perfect New Year combination.
Clearing the car this morning I found a handful of crabapples that I’d picked up from the ground in Poor Man’s Wood, Llandovery, a few weeks ago and left in my coat pocket. The tiny yellow globes were wizened but…