Christmas Celebrations........ but just a little late

28th January 2014
           I've just got round to editing our annual Christmas visit to the St Nicholas Night street celebrations on  the 6th Dec  in Alcester Warwickshire, the lovely old town where my daughter and family live. We love the atmosphere that this event generates so I've published it for all to enjoy.

A Day Of Contrasts

Thursday 16th January 2014

             It's been a mild winter so far with lots of rain up here in Lancashire, but no way has it been as wet as some of our southern counties which have suffered such bad and distressing flooding.
        We've had a bracing walk today up onto our South Pennine Moors, its a wild and fairly remote area and it's the nearest thing we have to wilderness but it is a wonderful unspoilt area and a site of special scientific interest. The area is covered in blanket bog and in the summer drifts of cotton grass cover the area, in a good year almost like a light snowfall. Today care had to be taken to avoid sinking into the bogs. The ground dries out as you reach the ridge where the grit stone outcrops are exposed this area is named the Dove Stones on the map.

                                        Back of Boulsworth Hill

                                                      Dove Stone Ridge

Today the only sound being carried across the moor was that of the Red Grouse 

              Looking east across the moor into Yorkshire above Hebden Bridge

                           Looking west into Lancashire towards Burnley 

After the last Ice Age the weather became warmer and drier than it is at present and forests covered the upland areas. After a few thousand years the climate changed to the wetter conditions that prevail today. This slowly change the structure of the ground and it became too wet so the forests slowly rotted and the area change into Blanket Bog which still covers the moors today.
    We found evidence of this down below the ridge were the moorland rivers have cut channels through the peat to expose the trees that once covered this area.

              The bark is still recognizable, I'm fairly sure it's the Silver Birch tree

                                Some type of lichen on growing on the peat 

Finally on a lighter note... the Snow Drops in my garden have

almost opened it's at least a month earlier than last year.

  

Happy New Year

Wed. 1st Jan.2014
          I haven't posted for at least 2 months because my years activities just seem to be a repeat theme of the previous years, but we're still out there in the great outdoors recording the changing seasons and natural events.
           I would like to share a picture that our granddaughter Victoria created of her younger cousins for her uncle (our son) for Christmas, its difficult to sing the praises of our grandchildren but we really feel that she has a talent for art.
                The photo isn't evenly lit because I couldn't position it correctly because of the reflection from the glass.

Lasts nights group photo of our friends at the New Years Eve party hosted by Pat & Joe, we all enjoyed the celebrations and hospitality......so from all of us here in Lancashire, England we wish you a Very Happy New Year.