I ordered a solar filter for my long lense. It looks something like a very fragile and expensive piece of tinfoil, but works.
Even with that filter, getting the exposure correct can be a bugger. I ended up in manual mode 1/4000 s f29 iso2000. The featured image shows the results, and, yes, those dots in the middle of the sun are sunspots. So we’re ready to go. I’ll probably play around a bit with the film speed to reduce noise, but this is decent enough to work. I’ll use a tripod tomorrow and be at the top of G-deck.
If you don’t adjust the exposure, the sun is completely washed out. Not at all what you want.
I’ve been queuing up a series of walks – mostly about 10 km (6 miles for us colonials), and this is the second.
This started out as a “pub walk” from the house we hired in Wootton Courtenay – and we did get to one, about seven miles in. After several missed turns and places where the map … deviated from the trails on the ground.
This shows our GPS trace overlaid on the most current Ordinance Survey map. These differences made it a bit interesting.
I covered the first part of the hike on an earlier post where we hunted a local pub. So you can read that post for details. We take this walk up at the village of Timberscombe.
Saint Petrock’s church in Timberscombe
We headed uphill on the wrong road, but eventually found our way to where we could see Dunster in the distance.
Dunster’s there, somewhere.
If you get to this carved bird (the buzzard), you’ve gone too far.
Some of the local landmarks have a decidedly sci-fi name. Is Gallox bridge in Gallifrey?
Gallox BridgeInside the Stag.
We stopped in the Stag – which is an excellent pub – and let two sweaty, dirty, and tired hikers enjoy their pints inside. It had a guitar in the corner so if you were a better player than I am, you could entertain the crowds (or if you were a better runner you might escape the disapprobriation.)
The path heads uphill, of course, from the town. It winds its way past St. Leonard’s well (Shades of Blackadder) along a ridge.
St Leonard’s well. Locked, but making the footpath mucky for the last thousand years.
There is an excellent set of views of Minehead from the exposed ridge. The sun is shining on Butlin’s holiday camp.
Minehead.Minehead in the distance
We also wanted to look for this weird feature – seen on google maps.
Unfortunately, it’s nothing special.
I’ve been queuing up a series of walks – mostly about 10 km (6 miles for us colonials), and this is the first.
Dunkery Beacon is the tallest peak in Exmoor. We’d hired a house in Wootton Courtenay which is at the base of the peak, but if you’re driving there are other places to start from. I would probably park at Webber’s post where there is a large parking lot, but no post.
We managed to arrive just after a heat wave; 32-35 is no fun without aircon. It was typical English summer weather; i.e.raining and cold.
The trail proper starts in a lovely grove of trees and then ascends a moderate slope.
Of course we started in the sun, but that was not to last.
Wootton Courtenay is there, somewhere beneath the clouds
We passed the ponies several times – this shot being on the way up.
These preferred Bracken to handouts, which was a relief.
The top is marked by a cairn. We used it to shelter from the wind while eating lunch.
This shows the path up the hill.
We followed a steep descent part way down the hill and made our way through delightfully pretty woods (Rowan and Holly so we were doubly safe from the foul spirits of the undead) to Webber’s post, and back to our house. If I started from Webber’s post I’d go across the hill and up the way we did rather than the other way around.
It’s dull, drizzly, and grey. Here are the first of this year’s spring flowers to brighten things up.
The trick, of course, is to get down where the flower is and shove the lens as close as maybe to it. These are on an eastern exposure of our house and in flower much earlier than most.
The sandhill cranes have returned. We saw the first few birds a couple of weeks ago, but now they are there in flocks. When we drove through today, they were a tad more spread out than usual. These ones (above) were hunting the early wood frogs. I could hear the frogs while I took the pictures.
These were across the street from the others. During the summer this hill is a cotton field, so I’m not sure what critters there are now.
However, there must be something because the flocks were spread out over several fields. These were the closest to the road where there was a convenient place to pull over and take pictures. I used a 600mm sigma lens. I’m not thoroughly happy about the sharpness.
This map shows where to look if you’re interested in seeing them yourselves. Remember they are protected birds. If you continue to Centre there are some half-decent places to eat and the petrol is about 30 cents cheaper than in Atlanta.
The first day of winter was warm and foggy this year. It lent itself to great atmospheric pictures, if you like that sort of thing. It’s the sort of weather where even mundane dirt roads take on a Tolkienesque touch of mystery.
The lake is still out for the winter, but with the rain, back up to a normal pool. There’s a mudbank out there, but most of it is underwater.
You may have noticed that I use many Gilray cartoons to illustrate my regency writing. There are several reasons for this, but mostly because he’s funny, to the point, and full of little details.
There’s a more recent English cartoonist, Giles (Carl Giles), who wrote for the Daily express from 1945 to 1991. The express paid better than the papers which aligned better with his political beliefs, which must have led to some interesting tensions.
I’m going to stick to fair use and only put up a couple examples, but they’re a modern example that is in the same spirit as Gilray’s work.
By the way, I love Grandma.
Many of the cartoons skewer politicians.
The English are very proud of their gardens.
Cuddles and hugs all around.
The Elk Range Trail is a short (3.3 mile) trail in the Centennial Cone county park near Golden Colorado. Getting there is a scenic drive from the city, whether you use the twisty route 6 or the interstate 70, then cut north. Be warned, on weekends mountain biking and hiking pick alternate days (hikers on odd days, bikers on even ones).
We were doing a flying visit and so only had time to do an out and back walk, but the loop with the Travois trail would be even better.
Lookout Mountain is in the distance in this picture from the other car park.
