Autumn in the South West

Alastair BegleyLandscape Short Link

Having recently upgraded my camera to a Fuji X-E3 I have been trying to get to know my new camera by making the most of Autumn. A few weekends ago we spent a very sunny weekend in south Devon, while the sun didn’t inspire too many landscape photos, I managed to get a few photos that I was pleased with. Back closer to home in Bristol we were lucky to have some high tides which coincided with sunset and also with some fairly good weather. It was great to get out and capture some of the classic photos of Bristol, I will have to have another go when there is slightly less of a breeze and when sunset is later in the evening so that it doesn’t coincide with rush hour.

Three days in the Lairig Ghru

Alastair BegleyScotland, Walking Short Link

We had planned an Autumn trip up to Scotland with the hope that we would get an Indian summer and enjoy some nice settled weather with some of autumnal colours. Unfortunately this was not the case, so our plans were changed to head to the east because it had by far the best weather forecast for the whole of Scotland. After much debating on the way up we elected to spend two nights out in the Cairngorms staying in Bothies, which are old buildings in remote valleys which were originally built by the estate, but are no longer used. A change in the weather forecast yet again changed our plan, but somehow the weather forecast getting worse meant that we planned an extra night out… Neither of us had been to Scotland in the autumn before, and the array of colours that were on show in the valleys were spectacular. Unfortunately in the mountains the was not quite the same display of colours. Day 1 – Walk in to Corrour After a disorganised morning packing our bags (which were far too small) we were eventually ready to set off. To. Read the full article…

Weekend in North Wales

Alastair BegleyNorth Wales, Scrambling, Walking Short Link

I spent last weekend catching up with friends from University in North Wales. Thankfully we were treated to some excellent weather on Saturday. As were were a large group we decided to stick to grade 1 scrambling ground so that we could stay together as a group. We elected to avoid the classics which we have all done before, and we headed around to the back side of the Carneddau to climb the Llech Ddu spur which is a *** grade 1 scramble. The walk up towards the black ladders was lovely and very warm in the morning sun, and were soon at the start of the steep climb up to the start of the scrambling, and into the cold wind. The scramble was brilliant, there were outstanding views out towards Anglesey and there was just the right balance of interest to keep everyone engaged without terrifying anyone. After the scramble we walked over to Carnedd Llewelyn, before descending back down to the hut we were staying in. After an enjoyable evening with chilli and games we awoke to a less favourable forecast on the Sunday. So we enjoyed a mostly dry. Read the full article…