• An early start

    An early start

    It was dry when I left home but by Gribdale Gate, the wind had picked up and it was beginning to spit, and any thoughts of photography had been forgotten. Still, it was pleasant to see Gribdale empty of cars; apart from two early dog walkers. It’s has always been a popular car park as…

  • The ever changing faces of Roseberry trig. point

    The ever changing faces of Roseberry trig. point

    It was given a fresh coat of paint in July if I recall. The stencils appeared soon after the Queen’s death and were left, out of respect. But graffiti artists do not show the same respect. So, weather permitting, the trig. point will be getting spruced up. A lovely clean canvas. Since last week a…

  • Jackson’s Bank

    Jackson’s Bank

    A cold morning with the puddles covering by a skimpy layer of brittle ice, the first of the winter. This is looking down on Greenhow Bottom from the top of Jackson’s Bank. I would love to find out who Jackson was. He is elusive but certainly lived before the first Ordnance Survey was published in 1857.…

  • It’s good to see blue skies after the grey of the last few days

    It’s good to see blue skies after the grey of the last few days

    This is the sands at Redcar. A few years after the turn of the 19th-century Redcar, with the exception of Scarborough, was described as “the most extensively patronised seaside resort on the N.E. coast.” An old Redcar woman, Mrs. Diana Carter, had begun providing the first bathing machines at Redcar in about 1802. Six years…

  • Neil’s Howe

    Neil’s Howe

    It was pleasing to see the Nelson Stone restored to its correct postion. Or should I say the 19th-century boundary stone. One of the last times I was here, in 2017, it had vanished. I learnt later it had unceremoniously been dumped in a nearby pond. That act of vandalism must have taken some doing.…

  • “The autumn rain-rot deeper and wider soaks”

    “The autumn rain-rot deeper and wider soaks”

    This autumnal carpet of dead leaves caught my eyes. The Scots have a word for a “circle of rotted dead leaves round the foot of a tree”: “Rain-rot”. Not to be confused with the modern useage for an equine skin disease. The word seems to have been a favourite of the Victorian English poet William…

  • A bit of a wet morning. This was the best of the dozen or so photos I took.

    A bit of a wet morning. This was the best of the dozen or so photos I took.

    It’s rare to find Osmotherley, or ‘Ossy’ as the village is commonly known, deserted and free of visitors and cars. The name derives from Asmundr, a Scandinavian who settled in a ‘leah‘ here, the Old English word for a clearing. Forget the old myth that Prince Oswy was buried here next to his grieving mother…

  • Concerning the ghost of a man of Ayton in Cleveland

    Concerning the ghost of a man of Ayton in Cleveland

    I’ve been saving this little story up hoping to come across a suitable image to accompany it. It came back to me today, and finding inspiration, I have given up waiting. But first, the featured image is, of course, of Roseberry Topping, “t’ biggest hill i’ all Yorkshur” that overlooks the village of Great Ayton.…

  • Marske Sands, do we want a healthy marine ecology or a free Enterprise Zone?

    Marske Sands, do we want a healthy marine ecology or a free Enterprise Zone?

    “In many respects the most notable feature of any integrated iron and steel works, whether operational or non-operational, a blast furnace is an impressive example of industrial architecture at its best. Located at the northern end of the development, at the boundary between the North Industrial Zone and Coastal Community Zone Redcar Blast Furnace is…

  • Another magicial day

    Another magicial day

    The temperature inversion was not quite as dramatic as yesterday. But tomorrow is looking wet so best appreciate the day. The autumnal colours are particularly good this year with the fallowing of the oaks and beeches. Even the ubiquitous larch is looking splendid. I came across this old use of the word ‘fallow’ the other…

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