Perhaps we should change the title to Summer's almost here. During my recent walk up Moel Famau I heard the Cuckoo sing his song. Yesterday afternoon, when walking the dog near home, I saw around 5 swallows busy flying around catching insects, no doubt hungry after the return flight from their winter holidays in South Africa.
How does the old rhyme go:
The Cuckoo comes in April,
He sings his song in May,
June she lays her eggs,
July they fly away.
Leaving some small unsuspecting bird to rear its young. One of these host birds is the meadow pipit of which there are plenty on the moors and it is probably why I've heard the cuckoo when walking in the hills although it's rarely heard near home now.
Spring is nearly here!
Re: Spring is nearly here!
Looks like you'll have a good crop of plums this year Colin.
That's an impressive Magnolia; it would look nice in your back garden!
Bodnant Gardens in the summer of 2010 is where I first came across Ian Sturrock who I got my first Denbigh plum tree from. I was talking to a gardner there and we got on to the subject of heritage fruit trees, he told me about Ian's work with the Welsh Heritage Fruit Trees and told me that Ian had just delivered there. I caught up with Ian in Conwy and arranged to pick up some trees from his nursery in Bangor that November, I was hooked!
I have got to know Ian quite well since through the North Wales Heritage Orchard Cluster organised by Horticulture Wales.
I shared a desk with him at the Aberystwyth University meeting on 4th March 2020 just prior to lockdown.
We could as a group, discuss fruit trees for hours, that was bliss, pure bliss!
May, what a month so far.
The rain ceaseth not, but cometh in ever increasing doses to drown our worms and floodeth our gardens!
Each morning this month I open the curtains and it's still raining, so: EVERY MORNING I CHECK MY FEET FOR WEBBING BETWEEN THE TOES!
That's an impressive Magnolia; it would look nice in your back garden!
Bodnant Gardens in the summer of 2010 is where I first came across Ian Sturrock who I got my first Denbigh plum tree from. I was talking to a gardner there and we got on to the subject of heritage fruit trees, he told me about Ian's work with the Welsh Heritage Fruit Trees and told me that Ian had just delivered there. I caught up with Ian in Conwy and arranged to pick up some trees from his nursery in Bangor that November, I was hooked!
I have got to know Ian quite well since through the North Wales Heritage Orchard Cluster organised by Horticulture Wales.
I shared a desk with him at the Aberystwyth University meeting on 4th March 2020 just prior to lockdown.
We could as a group, discuss fruit trees for hours, that was bliss, pure bliss!
May, what a month so far.
The rain ceaseth not, but cometh in ever increasing doses to drown our worms and floodeth our gardens!
Each morning this month I open the curtains and it's still raining, so: EVERY MORNING I CHECK MY FEET FOR WEBBING BETWEEN THE TOES!
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roselanekoi
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- Joined: Thu Feb 14, 2008 7:38 pm
Re: Spring is nearly here!
When walking the dog this morning I saw a bird I've never seen before locally, a red kite, what a majestic bird it is with its forked tail.
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roselanekoi
- Posts: 308
- Joined: Thu Feb 14, 2008 7:38 pm
Re: Spring is nearly here!
Had a trip up Cadair Idris last week, the Minffordd path is not the way to go if you don't like steps but the view is excellent.
Cadair Idris or "Idris' Chair" is the natural bowl shape depression to which the name of chair has been attached, Idris was the mythical giant who used to sit there. The main peak behind Llyn Cau is Craig Cwm Amarch some 791m in height whilst the highest point Penygadair is 893m in height and is on the extreme right of the photo. As I said earlier, you need to be reasonably fit to attempt this walk which is around 2.6 miles from the car park at Minffordd to the summit with a lot of steps on the way and it will probably take about 6 hours for the round trip.
- Cadair Idris.jpg (119.94 KiB) Viewed 9708 times
Cadair Idris or "Idris' Chair" is the natural bowl shape depression to which the name of chair has been attached, Idris was the mythical giant who used to sit there. The main peak behind Llyn Cau is Craig Cwm Amarch some 791m in height whilst the highest point Penygadair is 893m in height and is on the extreme right of the photo. As I said earlier, you need to be reasonably fit to attempt this walk which is around 2.6 miles from the car park at Minffordd to the summit with a lot of steps on the way and it will probably take about 6 hours for the round trip.
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roselanekoi
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- Joined: Thu Feb 14, 2008 7:38 pm
Re: Spring is nearly here!
The heather is now in full bloom a sure sign that summer is nearly over, what summer you may ask as the weather's not been great this August. This picture was taken during a walk up Moel Famau.
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Re: Spring is nearly here!
That is some photo of the heather and pines on Moel Famau Colin, picture perfect as they say!
The picture you posted of Cadair Idris has some mixed memories for me, I my brother in-law who was born in Dolgellau had requested that when he died he wanted his ashes scattered on the summit. One of our favourite walks, we have been up there together with the family quite a few times. Sadly he died a few years ago so his family who live in Kent travelled up with his ashes and seven of us made the pilgrimage to the top via the Minffordd path, it's steeper and as you say, an awful lot of steps.
There was an embarassing incident at the top,it's usually very windy up there so when his son tipped the urn of ashes out a sudden gust of wind promptly blew his fathers ashes back over him! He was OK once we dusted him down and bought him a pint in the Gwernan.
The picture you posted of Cadair Idris has some mixed memories for me, I my brother in-law who was born in Dolgellau had requested that when he died he wanted his ashes scattered on the summit. One of our favourite walks, we have been up there together with the family quite a few times. Sadly he died a few years ago so his family who live in Kent travelled up with his ashes and seven of us made the pilgrimage to the top via the Minffordd path, it's steeper and as you say, an awful lot of steps.
There was an embarassing incident at the top,it's usually very windy up there so when his son tipped the urn of ashes out a sudden gust of wind promptly blew his fathers ashes back over him! He was OK once we dusted him down and bought him a pint in the Gwernan.
Re: Spring is nearly here!
Well, another Christmas is over and done with and despite Boris attempting to cancel Christmas this year it happened anyway.
Call me cynical in my old age but;- folk seem to have forgotten that Christmas is celebrating the birth of Christ and not partying and generally having a good time, it,s a holiday (holy day) we celebrate!!!!!!!!!!!
You cannot cancel our religeous history because it's not safe to party.
By the same token, you cannot re-write history either as the black community seem to be bent on doing, by eliminating anything to do with the slave trade in the UK, you cannot excise it from our past by destroying statues, books and references to the slave trade . The slogan; "Black lives matter" is as relevant today as it always was and always should be, BUT IT WON'T CHANGE HISTORY.
By the same token and just as importantly;- ALL lives matter
The point is- ALL history happened and you cannot cherry-pick history to pick out 19th century black slavery and ignore the rest as though it isn't relevant or just not as important.
Slavery has been routinely carried out for over 2,000 years here in Britain, the Romans, infamous for slavery, brutally enslaved us fo 450 years, as did the Norman invaders later
There are local records here in North Wales of a particularly ruthless Norman Baron, Roger de Gray of Ruthin who in the 11th century sold Welsh men as slaves to a fellow Norman Baron in Mold, this inhuman treatment of us British has been carried on ad nausaeum ad infinitum by many invaders.
Over many centuries, many wicked people have carried out wicked barbaric deeds. some withIn our lifetimes too, Joseph Stalin and Adolph Hitler were directly responsible for the murder of over 30 million people between 1936 and 1948, they both enslaved many millions of prisoners and either inhumanely slaughtered them, or worked or starved them to death under the most appalling conditions.
As previously stated, you cannot cherry-pick history, particularly when it comes to enforced slavery.
I would suggest that the people who threw the slave traders statue into the dock at Bristol try tearing down the arch slave trader Stalin's statue in Red Square Moscow; good luck with that one and Putin!
Call me cynical in my old age but;- folk seem to have forgotten that Christmas is celebrating the birth of Christ and not partying and generally having a good time, it,s a holiday (holy day) we celebrate!!!!!!!!!!!
You cannot cancel our religeous history because it's not safe to party.
By the same token, you cannot re-write history either as the black community seem to be bent on doing, by eliminating anything to do with the slave trade in the UK, you cannot excise it from our past by destroying statues, books and references to the slave trade . The slogan; "Black lives matter" is as relevant today as it always was and always should be, BUT IT WON'T CHANGE HISTORY.
By the same token and just as importantly;- ALL lives matter
The point is- ALL history happened and you cannot cherry-pick history to pick out 19th century black slavery and ignore the rest as though it isn't relevant or just not as important.
Slavery has been routinely carried out for over 2,000 years here in Britain, the Romans, infamous for slavery, brutally enslaved us fo 450 years, as did the Norman invaders later
There are local records here in North Wales of a particularly ruthless Norman Baron, Roger de Gray of Ruthin who in the 11th century sold Welsh men as slaves to a fellow Norman Baron in Mold, this inhuman treatment of us British has been carried on ad nausaeum ad infinitum by many invaders.
Over many centuries, many wicked people have carried out wicked barbaric deeds. some withIn our lifetimes too, Joseph Stalin and Adolph Hitler were directly responsible for the murder of over 30 million people between 1936 and 1948, they both enslaved many millions of prisoners and either inhumanely slaughtered them, or worked or starved them to death under the most appalling conditions.
As previously stated, you cannot cherry-pick history, particularly when it comes to enforced slavery.
I would suggest that the people who threw the slave traders statue into the dock at Bristol try tearing down the arch slave trader Stalin's statue in Red Square Moscow; good luck with that one and Putin!
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roselanekoi
- Posts: 308
- Joined: Thu Feb 14, 2008 7:38 pm
Re: Spring is nearly here!
With the sunny weather of the last few days I decided to make my first trip of the year to Snowdonia. I wanted to attempt to climb Moel Siabod a peak of some 872m situated to the south of Capel Curig. After some research on Youtube the easiest route looked to be the path up from the Plas Y Brenin outdoor center so this was my chosen route. This turned out to be a relatively easy gradual path up the north west side of Moel Siabod. You're still climbing up some 670m so quite a bit of effort is required.
The views from the summit on a clear sunny day were amazing and made the climb well worth the effort. Below is a picture of Snowdon taken from the summit.
The views from the summit on a clear sunny day were amazing and made the climb well worth the effort. Below is a picture of Snowdon taken from the summit.
- Snowdon from Moel Siabod.jpg (91.33 KiB) Viewed 8433 times
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roselanekoi
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Re: Spring is nearly here!
It looks like spring is coming a few weeks early this year. The daffodils have started flowering a couple of weeks before St David's Day which is very unusual around home. I've also noticed the Jackdaws are pairing up and have started pulling hair from the ponies backs to reline their nests.
One word of warning, our winter visitors from Scandivania, a flock of fieldfare's, have not left to return back to Scandinavia yet so maybe there's still some winter weather to come.
- Daffodils.jpg (161.72 KiB) Viewed 8030 times
- Bearded Jackdaw.jpg (101.16 KiB) Viewed 8030 times
One word of warning, our winter visitors from Scandivania, a flock of fieldfare's, have not left to return back to Scandinavia yet so maybe there's still some winter weather to come.
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roselanekoi
- Posts: 308
- Joined: Thu Feb 14, 2008 7:38 pm
Re: Spring is nearly here!
After the lovely mild weather of the last few weeks this morning it seemed like winter had returned. I looked out of the bedroom window to see everywhere covered in a light layer of snow. I've been waiting all winter to be able to get out with the camera and take some snow photographs and today was my chance.
The photo below is of Moel Gyw, a hill of some 467m situated roughly half way between Mold and Ruthin.
As is usual at this time of year the snow didn't last long and by tea time it had all disappeared.
The photo below is of Moel Gyw, a hill of some 467m situated roughly half way between Mold and Ruthin.
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As is usual at this time of year the snow didn't last long and by tea time it had all disappeared.