“Cotswold Trail, Clouds” — Clouds build above a trail through agricultural land in the Cotswolds.
For a hiker like me, with a lifetime of wilderness hiking and backpacking behind him, a “Cotswolds walk” is a new and different experience. I am used to single-person-width trails, usually rocky, and sometimes ascending to quite high elevations. On multi-day trips I have carried everything on my back. But here the trails are gentle, often passing between and through fields and pastures. And you carry only a few supplies for the day’s walk — you simply stop at a grocery or a pub in a small town at lunch time and buy something to eat.
“Mountains, Clouds, and Shadows” — Clouds shadows drift across mountain terrain on the Isle of Skye.
I know I’ve mentioned this before, but one thing that impresses about the mountains of Scotland is that they have the appearance alpine terrain in my California High Sierra. There are few or no trees, the only vegetation is the sort that lies under your feet if you walk through it. The peaks are sharp and rugged and rocky. The entire landscape — mountains, streams, valleys — is laid bare. In the Sierra I must go well above 10,000′ to see this. In Scotland it begins barely above sea level.
“A Highlands Cascade” — A small creek tumbes down a hillside, Isle of Skye
I live in a place (San Francisco Bay Area of California) that isn’t exactly a desert, but it also is not particularly wet. Virtually all of our rainfall comes during a mostly-winter rainy season that lasts just a few months, and the rest of the years is generally dry. In fact, by this time of the year many of our hills and valleys have dried to a “California golden”color. So Scotland was quite a contrast for us! It rained at least a little on virtually every day we were there, and water — in rivers, streams, lochs, and the ocean — is everywhere.
“Little Sur River and Beach” — The Little Sur River meets the Pacific Ocean on the Big Sur Coast.
I confess to having photographed this scene quite a few times. I live close enough to Big Sur that I can drive down for a morning of photography and be home for a late lunch. This spot, where the Little Sur River flows across Little Sur Beach and into the Pacific Ocean, has always intrigued me. I stop and at least take a look almost every time I am down there.
Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.
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