Monday, 28 October 2024

Come for a walk with me

 


Yesterday we had clear blue skies and I was already planning a drive out and walk when my friend Pam phoned to suggest the same.  We headed for the Elan Valley (which is where I had planned to go).  Above is the face of the quarried area which is now a car park.  It made me dizzy just to look up.  DO go to the link as it shows an aerial video of the Reservoirs and is fabulous. (Oh and the pouring of the weakest cup of tea, ever!)


Along a bit, which is how it would have looked before it was quarried to build the reservoir dams, and the village in the valley bottom.


Garreg Ddu reservoir which is the one we always walk along.



A Rowan tree still laden with berries.  It's been a good year for them this year.


We rescued this little hairy chap (a moth caterpillar, Fox Moth I think).  Lots of walkers, cyclists and dogs who would otherwise have squashed him.  I hope he stayed in the grass away from the path where we left him.



An attempt to show how steep it was above the pathway.


The bridge across the reservoir, which leads on to the furthest dam at Claerwen.  Parking on the far side there is a lovely 7 mile walk around the Caban Coch dam, which Tam and I did when we first moved here.


Pam wanted to cross the bridge and check out the church, which we did.  I'll put some photos of that up tomorrow.  I have been sadly lacking in church posts this year - having been to many of the local ones worth visiting, and when Keith was so ill, not being able to get away to visit any.  

Yesterday's walk cheered me up no end, and certainly relaxed me.  I sat on the sofa last night, watching Prof. Ronald Hutton's Youtube videos, had a glass of wine and fell asleep for over an hour on the sofa.  I went to bed before 9 and had a really good night's sleep, warmed by Pippi and Lulu :)  Spoke to Danette and a video call with Little Lin (which both cheered me up no end too) and this morning started the day with a video call to Rosie in NZ.  It is so good to have my dearest friends keeping in touch with me and helping me through the early days of widowhood.

I hope you all had a good weekend too, and that Gill has found where her kettle is (and her cat!!) now she has finally moved.

This morning (it is raining steadily now . . .) I will go to Llandod for the groceries I need and take my books back to the Library.  Then quilting this afternoon.  Gabby's quilt top done now but yesterday I noticed two blocks I managed to get round the wrong way . . .

25 comments:

  1. What a lovely walk on a beautiful day and made for some really good photos.

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    1. A sunny day is always uplifting and the fresh air and beautiful views were such a boost to the soul.

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  2. That's a lovely place to walk. I absolutely love quarries. I have driven trucks right down into the bottom of a few. The different colours of the layers where the machines have cut into the sides. It's like snuggling up in the bowels of the earth. I feel at home in a quarry.

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    1. We have a view from our bathroom straight across to the quarry at Llanelwedd where you would love to have done pick ups from in the past I'm sure. Whilst there are better views, it can look lovely with an ethereal mist wreathed around it, and there are always lights on there at night, and diggers out on their pitches from the early hours onwards. I'll try and remember to get a photo and put it in your blog comments. I like the old abandoned quarries which are now a haven for wildlife.

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  3. I better not show Alan that video, he has a fear of heights that makes him nauseas even watching aerial shots. But it's absolutely beautiful. I bet you felt so much better when you got home. Oh, and I'm glad I'm not the only one that rescues little creatures off the path, usually it's worms with me, but there has been the odd caterpillar and tired bee.

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    1. Haha - Pam and I got dizzy just looking up in the quarry car park! I always try and rescue things in peril and in my water bucket (drip overspill from outside tap) I always put something in to rescue insects which have fallen in - this summer it was the end of a spare hose for them to climb up.

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  4. Echoing Sue, it is absolutely beautiful the walk.

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    1. I never tire of that walk. A bit cool in winter though as the Elan Valley is higher up and colder than at home.

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  5. How lovely. Seeing your nice photos cheered me up too x
    Alison in Wales x

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  6. I keep meaning to go back there as we have not been around the lakes in a while, keep meaning to take a picnic along. Your talking about Nantgwyllt Church which is worth checking out, shame they cut all the trees down around it though. The old church is not far from the lower dam under all the water https://thechurchexporer.blogspot.com/2014/06/nantgwyllt-church.html

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    1. There are lots of lovely walks. I'll go in the woods next time. I don't remember Nantgwyllt Church with trees around it - looks very naked there now I have to say. Thanks for the link for the old church, and I'm glad that they rescued bits of it to put in the new one.

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  7. Beautiful countryside! Very good to have noticed the wrong way round quilt blocks before finishing the quilt! Thank you for your blog.

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    1. I also noticed that I had added two whole rows the wrong way round so you can guess me and my stitch ripper were hard at work whilst watching Rivals last night!

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  8. What a gorgeous setting for a lovely walk with a friend! Thanks ever so much for sharing.

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    1. It was good to get out and great to have sunshine. I know I "should" have gardened but the walk did me a power of good. Back to grey skies again now!

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  9. That walk looks just the ticket. Yesterday was glorious here all day too and we had a good walk from home in the afternoon, unlike today when it’s been damping all day, but at least I had yoga this morning and a hair cut this afternoon. and on the way home I had a rummage in Stable Antiques (multiple dealers in an old stables over two floors - but nothing to tempt me this time), Oxfam (bought a skein of colourful sari ribbon), the farm shop for Egremont russets and Cox’s apples, a cauliflower, a quince and lots of other fruit and veg goodies. I made my final visit to Beneficial Health which is closing down this week and everything is reduced so I filled a box and at the till the kind and helpful owner who is retiring took another 20% off as he said I’d been such a good customer. That unexpected discount persuaded me into the florist next door for a bunch of purple anemones (it’s my birthday tomorrow and I fancied a treat even though my garden is full of roses, dahlias, salvias and nerines they are all a bit soggy to cut) and finally to the library to chase up next month’s book group novel which according to my library app has been in transit for the past 10 days. Helpful library assistant ordered another copy for me and fingers crossed one of them will be ready to collect by Friday as it’s book group on Monday. I can just about read 100 pages a day if pushed …. So that’s my day. Lying on the sofa now having prepared our supper - cauliflower cheese with jacket potato is suitably autumnal fare I think. Have a lovely evening BB. Sarah x

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    1. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU SARAH. Have an enjoyable day.

      It was indeed just the ticket. We are meant to be having sunshine this week but it hasn't arrived yet. Stable Antiques sounds my sort of place, I love a good rummage and the setting is perfect too. Sari ribbon is something I can pretty well guarantee would NEVER turn up in charity shops in our neck of the woods.

      I've just eaten the last of the Russets I bought from Breinton Farm shop ten days ago, but now I have the Ashmeads Kernel which hopefully are a bit riper than when I bought them. I picked the last of the apples from the orchard too, deep red Spartans and my heritage Cornish Aromatics.

      Tam and Rosie arrive today and I think we may go to the Garden Centre tomorrow for spring bulbs, to cheer me up as I have been rather down again yesterday and today.

      I have SUCH a stack of books here to read and never enough hours in the day.

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  10. Thank you I enjoyed the walk,ready for my busy day now.

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    1. It was lovely to have your company, over the ether.

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  11. Beautiful walk. I can see why you found it uplifting.

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    1. We are so lucky to have this close by (about 18 miles I think). It's beautiful round there.

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  12. Thank you for taking me on that gorgous walk. Good for you rescuing the caterpillar.

    God bless.

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  13. Beautiful scenery , I always miss Wales this time of year as we had quite a few half terms there.
    It was good to chat x You are doing amazingly deep breaths when the sticky moments come up and say to yourself- this will pass. X Danette

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