Lytham. Lunch And A Brisk Walk.

Rain, rain go away and come again another day. Up here in this part of North West England we have had an unwelcome visitor in the shape of storm Gareth. While its effects around where I live have not been too bad I know that it has caused quite a large amount of flooding, damage to buildings and travel disruption for others. Set against that a few weeks of deathly grey skies and incessant rain is getting off lightly. Now I’ve nothing against Gareths, I know that there are some very pleasant and interesting ones out there. Storm Gareth however is another matter.

Because of this I had been putting off trips in the hope that at some point the weather would improve and the skies would turn blue once more. This Sunday past held out that promise so I grabbed a camera and headed out to the coast. A favourite location for me is Lytham, on the Lancashire coast a little to the south of Blackpool and St. Annes. It has an old world charm with tree lined streets and a selection of small, family owned businesses, including some very fine eating establishments. I took in one of my favourites this time around, The Lytham Kitchen, my lunch is the featured image. I opted for the soup and sandwich combo, the home made mushroom & tarragon soup was magnificent, just the thing for a day that had turned cool and very breezy. I coupled them with excellent egg mayo & bacon sandwiches, Ahh, I’ll start the diet tomorrow…….

17-03-19 LYTHAM. Clifton Square In The Sunshine.

LYTHAM. Clifton Square in the sunshine. The Square is a popular meeting place and features in many of the events held in Lytham through the year.

17-03-19 LYTHAM. Henry Street - Late Duck Lane.

LYTHAM. Henry Street, late Duck Lane, personally I would have kept Duck Lane.

17-03-19 LYTHAM. Lowther Gardens. The Cockler Statue.

LYTHAM. The Cockler statue in the popular Lowther Gardens, it celebrates the towns fishing history.

17-03-19 LYTHAM. Lowther Gardens. The Lowther Pavilion Theatre.

LYTHAM. The Lowther Pavilion in Lowther Gardens. The only purpose built performance venue in the area, opened in the early 1920’s

17-03-19 LYTHAM. The Windmill On The Green.

LYTHAM. The Windmill on the Green. The Green overlooks the shore and is the setting for events held through the year, such as the Vintage Car show and the 1940’s weekend. Open air concerts are also a feature of the Green. The Windmill dates from the early 18 hundreds and was presented to the town by the local Squire in the 1930’s. The building houses a museum which is open through the summer months.

LYTHAM. The Promenade, a popular stretch for a walk or to take in the sun.

LYTHAM. Lions heads guard the benches on the promenade.

LYTHAM INFORMATION

LYTHAM WINDMILL

THE LYTHAM KITCHEN

LYTHAM PAVILION THEATRE

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Scotland. Nine Memories.

My late father was Scots so naturally I have an attachment great affection for the country and have been visiting since forever.

It would be impossible/stupid to try and describe all the place has to offer in one post so I’ll just use a selection of nine images chosen from a hard drive that’s bursting at the seams with Scottish imagery. There’s no theme to the choice, apart from all being taken in Scotland (obvs), they just brought back memories or there was something about the shot that either appealed at the time or struck me later, you know that thing that you didn’t notice because you were so engrossed in getting the shot it only catches your eye later when you sit back and look at them again in a more relaxed frame of mind.

The headline image is of a rainbow spanning the waters of Loch Rannoch, it was taken on the first day of that year’s holiday, a nice good omen for the fortnight’s break ahead.

Enough words, to the photos.

19/08/14 EDINBURGH. Publicity Can Be Dangerous.

EDINBURGH. Walking around Edinburgh when the Festival and the Fringe are in progress you can somethimes come across the most unusual and startling sights. The Fringe production ‘Riptide’ earns some dead good publicity amongst the tourists on the Royal Mile.

CROMARTY. Sitting at the head of the Black Isle is the small port of Cromarty, facing across the Cromarty Firth. The Firth is a maintenance base for the North Sea oile rigs and it’s not unusual to sea one of these engineering monsters towering over the gentle folds of the surrounding landscape.

28/08/14 SCOTLAND. The Black Isle. Munlochy Clooty Well.

THE BLACK ISLE. A tree at the Munlochy Clootie Well. The tradition is to dip a cloth, a cloot, in the nearby well and then tie it to a nearby tree while making a wish. Some people get carried away by the odd atmosphere around the well.

DUNKELD. A favourite place which I’ve used as a base for touring around Scotland, it sits on the A9, the main north south road and well as A roads that give easy acess to the east and west. The nearby railway station means you can be into Edinburgh, Glasgow or Inverness with ease. In the semi ruined cathedral, part of the nave still serves as the parish church, is the grave of the Count Roehenstart, grandson of Bonnie Prince Charlie who died in a carriage accident while touring through the area in the 1850’s.

CORGARFF CASTLE. This fascinating castle, dating from the 16th century sits on the lonely Lecht Road which leads from Strathdon to the town of Tomintoul. After a checkered history, it was burnt down in a dispute in the 1570’s, it was rebuilt as a military instillation after the Jacobite uprisings, it was at this time that the castle gainedn it’s impressive star shaped defensive wall. open to the public and worth a visit.

200811 LOGIERAIT Farmers Market Ceilegh Band

LOGIERAIT. A little to south of Pitlochry on the A9 is the village of Logierait where they hold a monthly Farmers Market. A ceilidh band busks for local charities among the stalls of local produce and local gossip.

270510 GLASGOW The Botanic Gardens The Kibble Palace, the glass corridor2

GLASGOW. The Botanic Gardens. This is the interior of the Kibble Palace, a magical sequence of glasshouses origonally built by the Victorian entrepreneur John Kibble at his house on Loch Long. In the 1870’s it was sold to the Glasgow Botanic Gardens. It was comprehensively restored in the early 2000’s and hold a collection of tropical and subtropical plants.

DUNKELD. A personal favourite is The Hermitage; once the pleasure grounds of the Dukes of Atholl. This is Ossians Hall a folly built to overlook the falls of Linn on the River Braan. A sequence of walks leads through the Hermitage to give breathtaking views of the surrounding countryside.

SCOTTISH TOURISM

THE CLOOTIE WELL

GLASGOW BOTANIC GARDENS

THE HERMITAGE DUNKELD

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Chester. Coffee And A Cheese Toastie.

The weather’s been frightful and far from delightful.

Here in my stretch of North West England there’s been a run of far too many grim, grey, rain spattered days. The sort where you spend far too much time looking out of the window in the hope of finding that elusive sliver of blue in the clouds, a faint sign that better weather is on the way.

After a week or so of playing hide and seek with freezing rain showers, getting the camera gear together only having to sit and wait for another rain squall to take the hint and disappear, I decided to get out of the house no matter what. I decided to play it safe – ish with a train trip to Chester. If the weather was good there would be walks to be had down by the river or around the city’s impressive walls. Or if bad then it would be the city’s Rows to walk through, the market, the Cathedral etc. You get my drift.

On the day it wasn’t warm and it wasn’t really dry but I got out and took a few shots. I also had a coffee and a cheese Toastie at the Barrista Coffee Co place on the bus station while I did a bit of people watching.

CHESTER. The bus station forecourt seen from the Barrista Coffee Co cafe.

CHESTER. Northgate Street busy with the Saturday shoppers and tourists hustle and bustle underneath the famous clock on the walls which still encircle the city.

CHESTER. Chester is famous for The Rows, a clutch of streets in the city centre that are a Victorian recreation of the origonal medieval two tier shopping streets. This is a view from the upper level of the Rows on Bridge Street. Great places to stop, look down and watch the tooing and froing down below.

CHESTER. it would take some effort to go hungry or thirsty in Chester, it doesn’t lack places to eat and drink.

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Manchester. 2019 The Year of The Pig.

The year of the Pig is upon us so to celebrate I took myself off to Manchester to watch the annual Dragon Parade. It starts in front of the town hall on Albert Square and then snakes it’s way to the city’s Chinatown area, a network of streets and alleyways sandwiched between. Portland Street and Mosley Street. Holding a parade in Manchester in February can be seen as pushing your luck but after a couple of years that were damp to say the least, while cold the sun shone and the crowds came.

If you have never been I really recommend the event. The crowds, the vibrancy and the atmosphere all combine to make it and unforgettable day. The evening always ends with a firework display launched from the surrounding rooftops, a spectacular and noisy finale, which most people ignore and the fun continues into the night, the stalls lining the streets only closing when completely sold out.

Enough of me, the photo can do the talking now.

10/02/19 MANCHESTER. Faulkner Street Dragon.

MANCHESTER. Faulkner Street and the Dragon chases the sun.

10/02/19 MANCHESTER. Nicholas Street. Selfie Time.

MANCHESTER. Nicholas Street. Street selfie during the Chinese New Year celebrations.

10/02/19 MANCHESTER. Princess Street. Animals on Parade.

MANCHESTER. Princess Street. Cartoon characters parade past for the Chinese New Year celebrations.

10/02/19 MANCHESTER. Nicholas Street. Crowds.

MANCHESTER. Chinese New Year. Crowds on Nicholas Street.

10/02/19 MANCHESTER Nicholas Street The Chinese Arch.

MANCHESTER. Chinese New Year, the Chinese Arch on Nicholas Street.

10/02/19 MANCHESTER Nicholas Street Souvenirs.

MANCHESTER. Chinese New Year. Souvenire stalls line Nicholas Street as part of the New Year celebrations.

10/02/19 MANCHESTER. Nicholas Street Chips.

MANCHESTER. Chips to go on Nicholas Street for the Chinese New Year celebrations.

10/02/19 MANCHESTER. George Street. Thai Restaurant.

MANCHESTER. Chinese New Year. Thai restaurant on George Street.

10/02/19 MANCHESTER. Faulkner Street Firewooks.

MANCHESTER. Faulkner Street and as always the Dragon Parade climaxes with the traditional firework display.

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Chorley. Snowdrops In Astley Park.

The Seasons are turning warm, the days are getting slowly longer and the sun is becoming less shy about being seen out and about. Today started a bit on the grim side with a slow fog lazing about but by the mid morning it had largely burnt away so I decided to make a break for it before the weather closed in again.

I decided to head for the market town of Chorley, about an hour’s drive away, sometimes less if the traffic is behaving itself. When I drive to Chorley I generally leave the car in Astley Park, it’s just off the town centre and it makes for a pleasant walk. The main path is straight and clear from the front of the house, see the headline shot, but there are also paths that wander through the woodlands, over bridges and past burbling streams. These would have been used as an elegant diversion for the occupants of the house through the years.

As is the way with these things, ownership of the house passed through different families, either by marriage or a family line dying out. The Charnocks, Brookes and Townley-Parkers all owned the house at one time, eventually it passed into the care of the council in the 1920’s It’s open now at weekends and contains a fantastically impressive plasterwork ceiling as well as a gallery and exhibition space.

The impressive frontage with it’s lion capped doorway dates from the 1660’s, being built onto the original timber frames house. Alas it was a bit of a rushed job and became slightly detached, the floor of the long gallery now has an impressive set of bumps and hollows as you promenade along it. I’ve also heard that it may be haunted….

On a lighter note the old stable block has a really good cafe.

14/02/19 CHORLEY. Astley Hall Snowdrops.

CHORLEY. Snowdrops in Astley Park.

One treat of today is that the snowdrops, Galanthus Nivalis, as my late father’s gardening books tell me are now out in profusion and they added that striking burst of white whenever the sun broke through the clouds that were cartwheeling across the sky. A pleasant bonus on a crisp day, I might try and catch them again before they fade.

CHORLEY. Snowdrops in Astley Park.

14/02/19 CHORLEY. Astley Park. The Hall. Walled Garden.

CHORLEY. Astley Hall in Astley Park. The Walled garden and recentley restored greenhouse.

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Birmingham. The Jewellery Quarter, Waiting For A Tram.

I took a trip down to Birmingham a few days ago. It’s a city I enjoy visiting though as yet I’ve barely begun to scratch the surface of the place. I’d had a good look around, finding places I had visited before and seeing what changes had happened since my last time there.

I had been using the trams system to speed up getting around, the West Midland Metro, currently it links Birmingham with Wolverhampton with extensions to the system underway or planned.

I was on my way back to the city when I broke my journey at the Jewellery Quarter, the cities famed area for all that glitters and glistens. After a little bit of window shopping, all I can afford at this time of year! I headed back towards the tram station. It was while I was waiting I noticed that the light was beginning to take on that glow that happened when the natural light and the street light start to hit a sort of balance, plus a light fog began to form as the temperature slid down and night time slid in by the back door.

I took this shot just as my tram into the city rumbled into the platform, stations of any kind always have a romance to them for me. Those hints of travel, of other people’s journeys. This was added to as a train pulled into the adjacent rail platforms, full of people being about their business on a cold Saturday evening in January.

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https://westmidlandsmetro.com/

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MANCHESTER. A Christmas Market Evening.

November is briskly working it’s way through and the season of the Christmas & Continental Markets is here. A few days ago I was making my way back home from a trip up to Rochdale and I decided to break my journey at Manchester and have a quick look around the Christmas Markets. It was a Saturday evening so I knew that it was going to be busy and I wasn’t disappointed. It was busy, busy busy. Not a problem though, the markets are running through until December so I have plenty time to have some more visits.

Enough words, here’s some photos.

17/11/18 MANCHESTER. Albert Square. Burgers To Go.

MANCHESTER. Albert Square, business is brisk on the burger stall.

MANCHESTER. St. Annes Square. Filling up on a Saturday evening at the Christmas Market.

17/11/18 MANCHESTER. The Old Wellington & Sinclair's Oyster Bar

MANCHESTER. The evening crowds keeping warm in the cold at The old Wellington and Sinclairs Oyster Bar. These old, half timbered building have stood at a few sites around the city centre in their time. Being largely held together by wooden dowels hammered into their beams they can be taken apart in kit form.