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Blog Entries by Geograph Users

Public footpath from Sydenham across Thame Park

77 months ago
Footbridge on path from Thame Park to Sydenham
Footpath, stiles and bridges in Thame Park are well maintained, giving a pleasant walk through open parkland grazed by sheep. In August 2017 a small section of the official route near Manor Farm, Sydenham, was overgrown but there was an easy bypass on tracks. Access at the Thame end is onto a busy B-road with no pavement. You can see this trip plotted on a map on the Geo-trips page Link .
geo-trip walk geographing trip report

First-bagging in the National Nature Reserve of Cairnsmore of Fleet

130 months ago
Across the Cairnsmore of Fleet National Nature Reserve
Ever since seeing them from the ridge during a cold February walk with a friend on Cairnsmore of Fleet in 2009 Photo, a group of 8 unGeographed squares in the valleys to the east had been winking at me. I’d rather assumed (wrongly) that they must have been protected by some sort of access restrictions into the National Nature Reserve, but a call to the warden at the Dromore Visitor Centre confirmed that those sorts of archaic conditions genuinely only affect us poor souls in England...
geographing trip report geotrip

A visit to the top of Dunstall Castle

131 months ago
On top of Dunstall Castle
Ever since I was a small child I have been familiar with Dunstall Castle, as a child I imagined it was the ruined remains a real medieval castle. Photo Later I discovered it was in fact a sham castle, or a 'folly', one of a number built around Croome Court and its parkland for the 6th Earl of Coventry. Dunstall Castle was designed by Robert Adam in 1766/7. Over the years of neglect it had crumbled and lost its central turret. In 2009, along with the Panorama Tower Photo and...
geographing trip report folly

If you're visiting London

132 months ago
Busking on the beach below Gabriel's Wharf, SE1
London! Despite living there in the 1960s we decided we'd like to live in different parts of the country (together!). We began our ramble round Britain, living, working or studying in Photo Norwich, Photo York, Photo Perth and Photo Warwick for the last 28 years. In the sixties I found London increasingly oppressive but now when I visit I thoroughly enjoy it; it's easy to get around; it's a pleasure to just walk, there's so much to see. And photograph. On a...
geographing trip report london barbican visiting city geographing trips

Looking for the Gunpowder mills

139 months ago
Gatehouse by the gate
Saturday 12th May was another of those days my wife went off to a dog fun day. I came along to keep her company as it was somewhere different. I had checked out the map of the area and it looked quite fruitful in the number of pillboxes there could be. So after getting to our destination of Chilworth I thought it was time for a walk round on my own, while my wife and dog enjoyed their day. First problem I encountered was I had left my map behind, had the GPS but no map of the places I wanted...
walk chilworth historic gunpowder mills geographing trip report

Barradale Circular, Islay

140 months ago
I was excited as I set off on the day's plan C. Plan A had been abandoned as it was just too photogenic a day to go to a certain village on Islay which I won't mention for fear of insulting the hundreds of folks (!) who read these blogs! Plan B had been abandoned after driving 15 miles to Ardbeg in the thickening cloud which turned into heavy rain and which was no doubt a retribution for rejecting Plan A. So Plan C had to be put into operation. But first to devise Plan C as it wasn't in...
barradale circular islay geographing trip report

Giur-bheinn Circular, Islay

140 months ago
As always, I had scrutinised the weather forecast for days before deciding to head up Giùr-bheinn on Wednesday, 18th April 2012. As always, the forecast was not quite accurate, but at least I didn't end up getting drenched as our church party did on their walk on the same day on the Rhinns (my symapthies to them of course!) Giùr-bheinn is a fascinating, if diminutive, mountain. Viewed from the east, as it generally is, it appears as a gentle mound, hardly noticeable in mountain terms. From...
giùr-bheinn geographing trip report islay

Storakaig to the Sound of Islay

141 months ago
It wasn't the first time it had happened. XC Weather had got it wrong before. 8% cloud at 10 am had really meant 80% on at least one other occasion. Feeling slightly hard done to, and exchanging my favoured polariser filter for a regular skylight filter, I decided to go for it anyway. Those squares on the east coast of Islay had been waiting long enough! The poor lighting meant at least I got further quicker, stopping only to take the requisite photos, and rarely for any additional 'bonus'...
storakaig sound of islay geographing trip report

Circular Walk to and from Ardbeg, via Solam, Loch Uigeadail and Tighnaspeur, Islay

142 months ago
The walk started from the phone box at Ardbeg, along the track to Airigh nam Beist and then northwest to Solam, rather than northeast to Loch Iarnan as on a previous walk. Solam is known as the plague village on Islay because it is where plague victims were banished to keep them away from healthy Islay residents Photo. I have yet to find the carved faces, flat stone and wishing well mentioned by Armin Grewe in his blog: LinkExternal link....
loch uigeadail geographing trip report islay tighnaspeur

Ballimartin to Killinallan - linear, cross-country walk

142 months ago
This was a much anticipated walk. I'd poured over the map so many times in preparation for the trip that I was beginning to think maybe I didn't need to bring it with us. Oh, such foolish thinking! We'd gone about 10 yards before Linda asked, "Right which way is it now, Becky?" and I had to admit I wasn't sure. It's one thing geographing on your own when, if you get lost/stuck in a bog/want to take a detour/take longer than anticipated etc, you've only yourself to blame, but when you've got...
ballimartin islay killinallan geographing trip report

Margadale Circular, Islay

142 months ago
The forecast was looking good for Monday 6th February so, with renewed vigour after a lethargic start to 2012, I poured over the Explorer OS map for North Islay and looked for green squares and figured out how to make a circular walk out of them. Delighted at the prospect of a good long walk in the rarely seen sunshine, I drove northwards, basking in the sun's warmth - until I reached Ballygrant, where suddenly the earth was plunged into a cloudy abyss. "Could this possibly be the same...
geographing trip report margadale circular islay

More Industrial Meanderings

146 months ago
Claymills Victorian Pumping station - warming the outdoor exhibits
I realise that I haven't blogged since my description of an epic day in London at the end of August. However, apart from two weeks out of the country, I have been plugging away and it is now time to bring you up to speed. The weekend of 24 and 25 September found me on duty at Claymills Victorian Pumping Station and I used the opportunity to add to my collection of photographs of this large and spectacular site - Photo Photo Photo Photo. I even got a PotY...
geographing trip report industrial archaeology steam engine windmill landscape park

Another Day in London - Docklands Explorer

148 months ago
Royal Victoria Dock
Following on from a very successful trip in July, our gang of four asked Richard Albanese Photo if he could arrange a trip to Docklands to see what little was left that might interest keen industrial archaeologists. Richard planned it all in about three days flat and we met up just after 10:15 0n 28-8-11 at the former London Hydraulic Power Station at Wapping, now a pleasant cafe with machinery among the tables Photo Photo Photo. After a coffee we had a...
industrial archaeology london docklands hydraulic power geographing trip report

A day trip to London

149 months ago
Steam Tug Portwey
Having discovered that the steam tug Portwey Photo was offering public trips on the Thames, I booked four places and our party departed Worcester at 0730 to catch the 1100 sailing. Portwey is a twin screw coal fired tug and a ride was a very special experience. This was heightened by the trip under Tower Bridge Photo and past HMS Belfast Photo. After two hours or so we disembarked and saw a couple of items of interest on the Isle of Dogs Photo Photo and...
geographing trip report industrial archaeology steam engine steam ship

Danbury Ridge Nature Trail

150 months ago
Nature Trail Map
I had visited the Danbury Ridge Nature Reserves on a few occasions, and attempted to follow the Nature Trail. I quite enjoyed loosing the trail and getting lost, but thought it might be an interesting project to try and complete the trail in sequence and record it in geographs so that anyone visiting for the first time could find their way round. Getting to the start It might be helpful to print out a map of the walkPhoto. The entrance is off Runsell Lane, Danbury, just opposite...
geographing trip report nature reserve essex

Another salutary tale

150 months ago
Made-up ground north of Newport Pagnell Road
I was working my way along a lane, an urban fringe rat run to the south of Northampton, when I spotted this unmistakeable heap. To get a better view I stepped up on to a roadside bank. Click. In stepping off the bank, which was steeper than I thought, I lost my footing. Gravity and momentum did the rest and I hit the road. Literally. With the heel of my left hand and my left knee, taking the skin off both. Ow! Looking on the bright side, I didn't smash the camera, I didn't smash my watch or...
pain stupidity trip report hitting the road

A salutary tale

150 months ago
Cribach Bay from the SE
Briefly, the tale behind the taking of this picture near Aberporth. It was, as you can see, a lovely, sunny day, and after an hour or so, I'd had enough of sitting on the beach (a common enough affliction amongst Geographers, I'd wager.) So I thought I'd 'just have a look around the corner, over there, dear' and see where that took me. Well, after 20 minutes scrambling along the rocks at low tide, I'd rounded the corner into SN2552, as the Research Establishment boundary fence doesn't come...
geographing trip report

Taking the tablet

151 months ago
Footpath by Frogmore Creek
Resistance melted away. Thrift went out of the window. I blew my pocket money on an iPad2, didn't I? Photo (spot the Apple store). So I had to put it through its paces in the service of Geograph - with mixed results. I visit south Devon from time to time. Sometimes I rediscover places I knew in my teens but more often I'm discovering places I didn't know existed when it was home in the 1950s Photo. Geographing is ticklish: not only have some distinguished contributors crawled...
tablet ipad mobile internet first south devon geographing trip report

Chris and Ashley's Brum Bash

154 months ago
City of Birmingham
On Saturday 19 February I met up With Ashley Dace Link to explore some of the industrial history and steam engines of Birmingham. As I have been visiting, studying in or working in Birmingham variously since 1977, it seemed reasonable that I act as local tour guide and interpreter of technology. The weather was dreadful but forecast to improve in the afternoon, so we started indoors at the Thinktank museum at Millennium Point Photo that replaced...
geographing trip report industrial archaeology steam engines canals

Big game of the steam variety in Greater Manchester

154 months ago
Ena Mill, Atherton
On Sunday 23 January 2011 I went with a couple of friends to take some photographs and see some decent stationary steam engines in the Greater Manchester area. We had a quick journey from the West Midlands via the M6 and were soon in Wigan where we parked up near the Pier area Photo. The former heritage centre is now closed and the signage is faded. We were to start at Trencherfield Mill but as we were early we concentrated on a few photographs of items in the vicinity -...
trip report steam engines mill colliery industrial archaeology

Industrial Heritage - Saturday 29th January

155 months ago
Derby Industrial Museum - grasshopper beam engine
Derby Industrial Museum is to close for an unspecified period at the end of March 2011 and this date was quite possibly the penultimate chance to see the grasshopper beam engine in motion. I went with a friend who has been doing this for much longer than me and who is much better at interacting with the various people we meet out and about. After wrestling with Derby's roads we eventually got a parking space nearby and put the maximum two hours on the pay and display. The buildings and...
geographing trip report industrial archaeology steam

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