There and Back

Norfolk is a county that we have not explored to any great degree, and this was a very cursory look around the area we were staying in. We stayed in Clippesby, a small village within the Great Yarmouth Borough Council area, and located on the B1152 and surrounded by the Norfolk Broads. Besides water everywhere, the other thing you become aware of is the huge number of windmills / windpumps, which seem to be everywhere. They do make a great photo at times. Here a couple of evening images of windmills beside the Broads. Very peaceful, and what a place to spend the night in your barge. These windmills come in a range of shapes and sizes. This one reminding me of a skeleton windmill. Then there are boats of all shapes and sizes. The Broads attracts more than 7 million visitors a year. All sorts of activities such as boating, cycling, canoeing, fishing, walking and wildlife-watching are ways visitors, and those living here, enjoy the area. As fo...

Nature is amazing, just as you think it won't happen - it does! Along came this amazing baby - Emily.  Just a few days old and using her lungs, Emily starts to make her mark in the world. One very proud mum looking adoringly at the little bundle she has brought into this world.. Proud Nana has a chance to hold her first granddaughter. Home

More explorations today of the coast just below St Davids, and some of the natural wonders that greeted us as we reached St Nons Bay before moving just a little to Caerfai Bay St Nons Bay with the profusion of yellow gorse.  Common gorse can be seen in all kinds of habitats, from heaths and coastal grasslands to towns and gardens. It generally flowers from January to June (although it may flower sporadically throughout the year), while its close relatives - Western gorse and Dwarf gorse - flower from July to November. It provides shelter and food for many insects and birds, such as Dartford warblers, Stonechats and Yellowhammers.  A mass of Lackey moth caterpillars.  The webs of Lackey caterpillars are a common site amongst many low growing deciduous trees such as blackthorn, hawthorn and apple. Over a hundred caterpillars may be seen in a single web and if undisturbed may be seen sitting on the outside during the day.  Even when recentl...

A visit today to the area above St Davids called Dinas Island peninsula, passing Fishguard on the way. Another stunning coastline, rather sparsely populated generally. The port of Fishguard on a rather foggy day. What do you expect on the Welsh coast! Actually we have had amazing weather, so no complaints there. The town is situated at the back of a north facing bay known as Fishguard Bay (Welsh: Bae Abergwaun) which offers protection from waves generated by prevailing westerly winds. It has a relatively mild climate due to its coastal position. The winds coming from the west or south-west have a determining influence on temperature and precipitation.  Wildlife around Fishguard is rich with a wide variety of colourful wild flowers and sea mammals including the grey seal, porpoises and dolphins. The local birdlife include Eurasian curlew, common redshank and sanderling regularly foraging in the lower Fishguard Harbour and European stonechat, great cormorant and nor...

St Anne`s Head protrudes from the bottom of Pembrokeshire - if you excuse the expression! This was the area we had decided to explore today, starting on the left side at Westdale Bay and making our way along the coast in an anti-clockwise direction. As with most bays and inlets, there was hardly another soul about. Westdale Bay - not a soul in sight. Wheatear sitting by the fence. Around the area of Frenchman's Bay with the beautiful rock formations. Wonderful rock formation at St Anne`s Point St. Ann’s Head Lighthouse was built in 1844 to guide shipping bound for Milford Haven, replacing two leading lights established in 1714. Trinity House approved in principal a private application to build a coal-fired light at St. Ann's Head in the second half of the 17th century to guide Milford-bound shipping; it was to be supported by voluntary payment of dues. However, the owners extracted dues illegally from shipowners and the ...

Solva is another pretty little village with a beautiful mooring for boats, being just off the coast in the mouth of the estuary of the River Solva. The village itself we did not explore but opted for a walk up to the top of the headlands (the Gribin) for the magnificent views. We were fortunate again to have a beautiful day for our walk. So, some images of the area, starting with a couple of boats and, in the background, the lime kilns. Built in the late 18th or early 19th Century, of the original 12 lime kilns, seven remain. Lime, brought in by sea from Milford Haven, was used to enrich the poor local soil. These lime kilns - at the foot of the Gribin - were the last to be used, in 1900. Boats at anchor in the estuary. Thrush in a bush by the pathway, singing his little heart out! Nearing the top of The Gribin and looking toward the sea. And a similar view. The looking down toward the town and the harbour. Along the pathwa...