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Captive-bred pheasants—Count down to the shooting season
In the world of shooting and the forthcoming hunting season, the hour has arrived for captive-bred pheasants to be released, ready for the grand start on the 1st October. However, in England, new restrictions are in place this year which require licences for the release of game-birds, including Red-legged Partridges, within a 500m radius of…
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Wharram Percy
In the realm of Scottish history, the Highland Clearances persist as a contentious period, evoking bitter sentiments to this day. The primary catalyst behind these displacements mirrored the fate of Wharram Percy, an abandoned medieval village, where the driving force was the ousting of tenants to make room for sheep. Wharram Percy has earned its…
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And so the Ling season begins
It’s that Ling season. Suddenly, in spite of the damp weather over the last week, the heather blooms have emerged, although they haven’t reached their fullest splendour just yet. Expect more photos of the purple haze to come in the month ahead. Heather, in a wholly natural habitat, gives off a modest display compared to…
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Ernaldsti, never a RUPP
Ernaldsti, that medieval track associated with the Percy family crossing Hutton Moor, down Percy Rigg and over to Ralph Cross, via Westerdale. I suspect that the true line of this historical route over the moor lies concealed within the hollow-way, just a stone’s throw to the right of the modern track, and to the left…
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Robin Hood’s Bay and a method of keeping lobsters all year round
As I rounded the North Cheek along the Cleveland Way, Robin Hood’s Bay, in all its glory, lay before me. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect, as the tide was out, revealing many fingers of rocky scars stretching into the sea. Scores of tourists roamed the exposed rocks, like curious ants exploring their newfound…
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Rediscovering a ford on the River Leven: last captured in 1998
The other day, out of nowhere, I was jolted back to the year 1998 when a long-forgotten photograph emerged out of cyberspace. It shows the ford on the River Leven, nestled gracefully into the grounds of the Friends’ School at Great Ayton. Astonishingly, I have no recollection of ever capturing this moment, and the realisation…
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Trampling hooves and composting dreams — Dealing with Bracken
In the midst of this stifling bracken season, I’ve yet to encounter anyone who harbours any affection for this plant. Sure, it may bring a touch of colour come autumn, but only when it’s dead and devoid of vitality. In the summer, perhaps a stroke of luck might grant you a glimpse of a stonechat…
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Kirkby-in-Cleveland
Or should that be Kirby-in-Cleveland? After all, we have a Kirby Lane, Hall, and Bridge. Villages often feel to me like a last resort for photography, with parked cars cluttering the streets and interesting buildings shielded by being private houses. Yet, churches and pubs stand out as two exceptions, bearing the charm and history of…
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Sticky bobs
Burdock, an awkward and ungainly plant, possesses the virtue of strength, standing tall with its sizeable leaves, making it a favourite subject for landscape painters, often adding depth to shady corners. Yet, it is in our childhood memories that we recall this plant by various names: Bachelor’s buttons, Button sourees, Bcggar’s buttons, Love leaves, Sticklebacks,…
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Snilesworth’s Callanish
In a misty embrace of swirling mizzle, this place of intriguing standing stones has been dubbed as “Snilesworth’s Callanish,” though officially it is known as Stephen Thwaites, an old medieval farmstead. Its enigmatic air whispers tales of times long past. The name was coined by Bill Cowley (1916-1994), better known as the founder of the…
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