I will not be deleting this blog, it will just lie dormant, maybe some day I will start contributing to it again……

Mike

Moel Famau (English: Mothers Mountain is the highest hill within the Clwydian Range on the border between Denbighshire and Flintshire in North Wales. The hill, which also gives its name to the Moel Famau country park, has been classed as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty since 1985. It is also surrounded by several well-preserved Iron-Age hill forts.

The park, which covers an area over 8 km², is managed by Denbighshire Countryside Service which is responsible for the heather moorland, dry stone walls and access paths, and provides information and facilities for visitors. The area is home to wildlife such as Red Grouse, European Stonechat and Eurasian Curlew. The Forestry Enterprise manage the neighbouring forest as a sustainable conifer plantation for timber production and tourism.

Numerous well-maintained trails of varying difficulty can be used to reach the summit at 554 m (1,818 ft). Two of the most popular, easiest paths start from the southern car parks within Bwlch Penbarras between Moel Famau and Foel Fenlli about 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) from the summit. The northern route begins from the Iron-Age hill fort at Moel Arthur. A footpath to the top of Moel Famau also begins from the village of Cilcain.

Much of the North West of England and Wales can be seen from the summit of Moel Famau. This includes parts of Cheshire, Merseyside, Denbighshire and Flintshire. On clear days, Snowdonia can be seen to the west, the Irish Sea to the north, and to the East Liverpool, Chester, Winter Hill, and the Blackpool Tower.

On top of the hill sits the Jubilee Tower, which was built to commemorate the golden jubilee of George III in 1810, was designed by Thomas Harrison of Chester. It was designed like an Egyptian obelisk with three tiers. Although the foundation stone was laid in 1810 by George Kenyon, 2nd Baron Kenyon, the tower was never completed due to a lack of funds. In 1862, a major storm brought down the incomplete tower. The remaining upper part of the structure was demolished for safety reasons leaving just the base. Most of the rubble was removed from the site; smaller stonework was reused by local farmers for dry stone walls.

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One of the great things about living in Prestatyn is the long sandy beaches which stretch for miles along the coast. Yet, just behind us are the hills that mark the end of the Clwydian Range (Welsh: Bryniau Clwyd) which is a series of hills and mountains in north east Wales that runs from Llandegla in the south to Prestatyn in the north. The range is designated as an area of outstanding natural beauty.

The summits of these hills provide extensive views across north Wales, to the high peaks of Snowdonia, eastwards across the Cheshire Plain, Peak District and towards Manchester and Liverpool to the northeast. The AONB is to be extended to include the Dee Valley around Llangollen and Horseshoe Pass.

Sitting on top of the hill at Prestatyn is a triangulation station, which has known coordinates and elevation. These stations are grouped together to form a network for triangulation. Positions of all land boundaries, roads, railways, bridges and other infrastructure can be accurately located by using the network. Although many stations are no longer required for surveying purposes, they remain useful to hikers as navigational aids when hill-walking.

The process of placing trig points on top of prominent hills and mountains began in 1935 to assist in the accurate retriangulation of Great Britain. In low-lying or flat areas some trig points may be only a few metres above sea level. When all the trig points were in place, it was possible, in clear weather, to see at least two other trig points from any one trig point. Careful measurements of the angles between the lines-of-sight of the other trig points then allowed the construction of a system of triangles which could then be referenced back to a single baseline to construct a highly accurate measurement system that covered the entire country.

From this point looking straight towards the right is the town of Rhyl and the outskirts of Prestatyn. The promontory sticking out into the sea is the location of Llandudno and the Great Orme and hidden by the clouds towards the left is the Snowdonia Mountain Range

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I love walking along the beach, especially after a storm. You just don’t know what you are likely to find. This one is a strange one because someone has taken time to prop it up with some stones. I wonder why?

Weston-super-Mare has some great sandy beaches, but venture beyond the signs in this image and you could soon find yourself stuck in thick cloying mud. Owing to the large tidal range in the Bristol Channel, the low tide mark in Weston Bay is about a mile from the seafront and this low tide uncovers areas of thick mud, hence the colloquial name, Weston-super-Mud. These mudflats are very dangerous to walk in, and yet, tourists still continue to walk beyond these signs and end up having to be rescued.

Although not generally known, Weston has the second highest tidal range in the world at a massive 15 meters, and when that tide starts to come in, it comes in fast.

HDR processing was done with Machinery HDR Effects on a bracket of 5 exposures (-2 to +2). Post processing was done in Adobe Photoshop Elements with NIK Color Efex, Detail Extractor and Tonal Contrast

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Bodnant Garden (Welsh: Gardd Bodnant) is a National Trust property near Tal-y-Cafn, in the county borough of Conwy, Wales. Bodnant Garden is situated above the River Conwy and overlooks the Conwy valley towards the Carneddau range of mountains.

The Pin Mill was imported from the Cotswolds in 1938, for use as a garden pavilion on the Canal Terrace.

According to the Domesday Book there was a Church here in 1086.  The Churchyard is circular and some historians have suggested that this points to a burial site even before Christian times. The oldest part of the present Church is at the rear and this was built sometime in the 1200′s.

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Co-incidentally there doesn’t seem to be the same clamour for Spotting Codes like there used to be. I had a couple to give away and where previously they would have been snapped up within hours of saying they were available, this time it was days before they were finally claimed.

So what do you think? Is HDR Spotting in decline?

On the way along the A470 I did a quick detour to photograph the bridge allowing the Gower Road to cross the River Afon. If you follow this route cross the bridge and immediately turn right. About 75 metres on your RHS there’s a sort of dirt lay-by where you can park and walk down to the river. From here you will get a good view of the bridge.

Cross the bridge again and turn right onto the A470 heading for Llanrwst. Look for the sign advertising free parking, where there is also public toilets; the car park will be on your right-hand side. You can’t miss it because the Police Station is also there and sign-posted. Once parked follow the signs to the river walk. You should be walking away from the Police Station. Follow the river path towards the Stone Bridge. There are swans, ducks, gulls in the river and quite a few birds in the woods at the side of the path, so always be aware of the opportunity.

WARNING – WARNING – WARNING

1. Conwy Council has a policy regarding dogs fouling pathways. It’s a shame they don’t enforce it. I’m a dog-lover and it saddens me to see the state of the path. Just be careful where you put your feet.
2. When I visited the river had obviously risen very high and then receded. What looked like dry, stretches of grassy river-bank, were very muddy underfoot.

Don’t be put of by the warnings though, the photo opportunities are too good too miss

Continuing along the path takes you nearer the bridge and on your left-hand side you will see St. Crwst’s Church, which we will be visiting later. The best vantage point I found for the bridge was on the opposite side of the river. However that was for my time of day and year and obviously  it will change as the year goes on. Anyway, climb the steps just before the bridge, cross the river and go down the steps beside the tea-room which will be on your right hand side. be careful crossing the bridge. There isn’t a footpath and you share it with cars.

Whilst you are on this side of the river, head back to the bridge and then cross into the park on the opposite side of the road. There’s a large stone circle worth having a look at.

I don’t think this is an authentic one because it sort of looks out-of-place here, immediately behind where I took the photograph was a children’s play area and the Rugby ground. Cross the bridge, follow the road to your left and after about 200 metres you will come into the small market square. As soon as you enter the square, go to your left and follow the narrow lane, passing the alms houses down to the church-yard. It’s worth the visit; within the Gwydir Chapel wing of the Church (built by the Wynn family), also lies the sarcophagus of Prince Llewelyn – the Prince of Wales.

From the church you can walk back to the Car Park by crossing the market Square and following the main road which goes to the left. However I preferred to walk back along the river it’s so much more scenic. It’s time to leave Llanrwst . Leaving the car-park turn right onto the A470 and follow the signs for Betws-y-Coed. When you get there, drive until you see the stone bridge, which will be on your right hand side. Cross the bridge and follow the road to the left. There is a car-park with public toilets here. £1.00 for two hours parking. It’s not a big var-park so it will probably be busy in the summer time.

You can’t miss it. The river will be dropping over the rocks here and you can either photograph it from the bridge (the safe option) or you can climb over the rocks (the unsafe option). Another warning here. The rocks can get very wet, They’re smooth and there is some moss on them. That makes them slippery. If you choose to climb on the rocks it’s at your own risk. Whatever option you choose it’s worth it.

This is not the famous Swallow Falls, they are another two miles further on from this waterfall. Like all waterfalls the best time to visit is after heavy rainfall or when the snow is melting on the mountains. Then they are at they’re most powerful. There are walks along the riverside and another beautiful church to visit, but I was conscious that it’s winter and you lose the light very quickly at this time of year. I really wanted to get into the more rugged landscape of Snowdonia, so it was time to leave. Cross the bridge again and turn right. You are on the A5 and this will take you back to the A55 and Bangor.

I didn’t stop at the Swallow Falls but if you have time it’s worth the visit. You can park in the lay-by just before the falls and then you have a short walk (25 metres) to the entrance barrier. It’s an unmanned turnstile, £1.00 per person entry fee, but it’s well worth it. Staying on the A5 you will go through some small hamlets before finally breaking out into what I think is an absolutely beautiful stretch of road, with plenty to see and photograph either side of you.

As you travel along the A5 you will eventually see a long lay-by (500 metres at least) on your left hand side. You should also see the start of a lake directly in front of you, but in reality as you get nearer it will be on your right hand side. If you don’t mind the walk park in the lay-by and walk to the lake. I’ll leave it up yo you to decide if you want to do that. There are further car parking spaces along the side of the lake, so you might decide not to use the lay-by.

There are some really good photo opportunities all along this road but I would like to recommend that whatever you do stop when you see the boat shed, which is almost at the end of the lake as you get closer to Bangor.

The A5 starts to bend to the right just past the boat shed but on your left hand side there is a small Pay and Display Car Park. Pull in and stop. Trust me it will be worth it. There are public toilets here if you require them. At the left hand side of the building there is a stone pathway going up the hill, it’s not steep, but it was muddy and a bit slippery. After about 100 metres you will come to an iron gate, with a wooden bridge just beyond.

The scenery here is fantastic so I’ll let the photographs tell you the rest.

The four photographs above were all taken in close proximity to the wooden bridge, so if you are not equipped for walking in the hills you should be OK at this point. However, as always, weather conditions can change suddenly  in the Snowdonia National Park and the decision to venture beyond the car park is at your own risk.

I’d like to leave you with this last image of that Wooden Bridge. I found it great to photograph from all angles and I was really lucky that the light was pretty good.

Well, that about wraps it up. All that remains for me is to tell you how to get back to the A55. It’s simple really. Leave the car park and turn left onto the A5. Follow the A5 through Bethesda heading towards Bangor and you will come to the junction of the A5/A55

I hope you enjoyed this journey with me through a really beautiful part of North Wales. If you like what you have seen and read here today, why not sign-up for regular updates by e-mail. I promise I won’t spam you and I’ll never release your e-mail address to anyone else.

All images in this article were processed using Machinery HDR Effects. Post processing was done with Corel’s PaintShop Pro X4 and in the main consists of cropping and re-sizing for web use. Where applicable I have done additional processing using NIK Color Efex Filters (Glamour Glow, Tonal Contrast or Darken/Lighten Centre).

Before each race on the sand these buggies are prepared and made ready for racing. Sandocross is an annual event held on the beach at Weston-super-Mare.

This image has been created with Machinery HDR Effects from a bracket of 3 RAW images (-2 to +2). Image details ISO 100, f13, camera Samsung GX-10

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