Outdoor Discoveries

What originally was a news section for the rest of the website soon became a place for me to write about human-powered wanderings in the countryside. Photography inspires me to get out there, mostly on foot these days, though cycling got me started. Musings on the wider context of outdoor activity complete the picture, so I hope that there is something of interest in all that you find here. Thank you for coming!

A “They’re On You!” Moment

15th January 2011

With the deluges that have fallen over Wales, Cumbria, the North Pennines and Scotland, today wouldn’t have made for a pleasurable day’s walking. Last weekend though, things were very different and I took myself to Wales for a hike from Roman Bridge to Pen y Pass. The ground was waterlogged in many places then so it leaves nothing to the imagination to realise how easy it would be for rivers to rise with heavy rain falling on the hills like it has been doing today. Thoughts of visiting the castles at Beaumaris and Caernarfon may be entering my head but I reckon that I’ll leave things to settle a little before any other Welsh outing after what came the way. Macclesfield may not have fared too badly but you only have to hear of railway line closures to realise how hard a time other places are having.

Conwy Castle and Estuary, Conwy, Wales

With regard to last weekend’s hike, my usual practice of saying more in a little while applies here too, but one happenstance really stands out in my memory so I’ll recall it here. Whether it was due to my being tired at the end of the walk or my being distracted by the need to catch a bus, I managed to stuff my head torch into my trousers pocket only to let it fall from my brain that I’d done so; daylight was failing while I took a little longer than I’d intended, so the extra lighting was a big help. The item itself is a Petzl LED affair but it did nothing to make its presence known to me when I went looking for it again until it finally dawned on me where it might have gone. It’s a reminder both of how smaller some things are getting because my older Petzl would be nowhere near as compact with its need for rather old-fashioned oblong 3LR12 batteries to provide its power. Next time, I think that I’ll make a conscious note of where the newer lamp is being put to curtail any subsequent head scratching.

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