Monday 12 March 2012

Hartford Blue Bridge to Vale Royal Locks........................................................

 I am fairly fit for a 56 year old or I thought was... yesterday I was out walking taking images and video clips for over 5 hours... today I have aches, pains and sore knees.

 Continuing my walk from yesterdays post I crossed the river and was now stood below the bridge.



Click on the video clip above to hear the traffic noise beneath the bridge.
I can't believe feral pigeons put up with the racket and roost here.

 There are reed beds to the left of the towpath... It's a good place to see warblers during the summer months.

 The footpath is covered in cycle tyre tracks.. they do make it quite muddy in places for others.
Everyone seemed to have dogs with them.

A wonderful way to discover our waterways... I got a cheery wave from the guys on board.

I reached the Vale Royal railway viaduct just in time to capture a Virgin Train crossing... a minute later another came... then another... it's a busy line.

 The railway viaduct was built in 1837... this whole area alongside the towpath is covered with wild garlic.
Ramsons (the official name) flower from April till June and the strong smell of garlic fills the air.
Some hate it... I love it.

 I didn't know what to make of this pile of carrots dumped on the river bank.

At Vale Royal the road bridge over the locks was closed and new walkway had been constructed.
This image was taken from the temporary bridge.

Alongside the locks another section of the original river meanders by... these lovely sections are full of wildlife.
Unfortunately all the dogs made sure my sightings were kept to a minimum.

There is a notice board at the locks showing recent sightings... all three woodpeckers plus goosander, ravens and kingfishers are recent visitors. In the summer butterflies are listed as well.

Crossing the river over a small bridge took me onto the old coach road... this leads to Vale Royal Abbey.
 ...as the name suggests this was the site of a medieval abbey and then a country house.
It is now a private golf course.. the country house is now the clubhouse.

My journey home unfortunately was in the other direction... back to the bypass and through Hartford village.

Hartford Hall... a lovely pub and hotel looked very tempting as I passed by... I resisted.
I had a couple of cans cooling in the fridge less than two miles away.

These are just a few my images from this section of my walk... I hope they do it justice.
It was a lovely day weather wise for walking... quite warm but the sky was dull... not ideal for sharp images.

A short video clip of the Heron for World Bird Wednesday tomorrow...editing a film of the walk is taking a lot longer than I thought.

17 comments:

TexWisGirl said...

beautiful reflections. the carrot pile is a bit odd. i like the train trestle shot...

John @ Beans and I on the Loose said...

Just wait till 7 years from now Andrew. You'll be my age then. I am forcing myself to take the whole week off from my regular activities as my body is screaming at me to do so. Not fun and somewhat disheartening but I have to face it, getting older is an eye opener and not what I expected. I enjoyed the photos and the walk. I wonder if the carrots were left for deer?

Unknown said...

Lovely set of photos. I especially like the reflections in the water.

MadSnapper said...

strange place to dump carrots. i love the train over the bridge shot, i love trains. and hubby would love that old wooden boat. the noise is incredible under that bridge. if i walked 5 hours i would be in the ER at the hospital and there would be no post for a long time. 2 is my max

Kenneth Cole Schneider said...

I feel you pain, Andrew-- I have 20 more years than you, but think of the rewards of being out and active in such a beautiful place. (Oh, to be 70 again!)

Anonymous said...

Beautiful photos Andrew, and I feel your pain there [uuuuhhhh]. You did a great job with those photos. I love the boat on the river, and the reflections are great. That pub looks very inviting indeed.
Have a nice evening!

Eva

Unknown said...

Great tour Andrew!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.

Anonymous said...

Well Andrew, you are in better shape than me and 3 years older!

The winter months have every bone in my body screaming, so I am lucky to walk half a mile without any pain in my knees,hips and back. Come Spring, like everything else around me, I thaw out ;) and hit the trails so by early Summer I am easily walking 8-10 miles with no problems..of course I have to wear a back brace to keep my spine straight!

Love the Vale Royal railway viaduct with its arches and the Hartford Hall is beautiful, and I would definitly be stopping if it were me!

cieldequimper said...

Ooh what a lovely walk!

The carrots? Might be for the Easter bunny! (Sorry, couldn't resist that!)

Bob Bushell said...

Beautiful images, I love the bunch of carrots, why?

Debbie said...

oh the battle between mind, body and spirit!!

it was well worth it, you got some amazing photo's!!

grammie g said...

HI Andrew...What's wrong ..you do alot of walking ....poor baby ; }
I'm kidding ya...sometimes those bones just get the best of ya!! : }
I do love seeing these photos from yesterdays and today post..so different than my world right here, I don't see boats and railway traveling,and such!!
I agree with the follower above about the carrots, and I don't think you was thinking dogs when you took the shot of the girl jogging..lol.. ; }
Grace xx

Anonymous said...

I agree with Debbie above...the photos, the sightings, all worth it. I have not been out walking for any great length of time in quite a while. Since I'm 3 yrs. your senior, I'm a little fearful. As soon as I have time, I'm going to get out there. I need to see what I'm up against AND I need to get out of the office and the house...soon!
I so love all the photos...especially the boat and old viaduct! Wonderful!

Gillian Olson said...

A lovely walk, thanks for taking us along Andrew. The carrots, no idea???

Stewart M said...

I love the smell of garlic in the morning - it smells of spring - or at least it did when I was a kid!

Nice set of pictures.

Stewart M

PerthDailyPhoto said...

Excellent walk Andrew, just caught up on the start from yesterday's post. I guess even though it's noisy under the bridge, the pigeons feel safe under the bridge. Not sure if I'd have been able to resist a drink at Hartford Hall, what a great looking pub.

Sallie (FullTime-Life.com said...

Bill always used to like to have a pub (or what passes for one over here) as a final goal after a nature hike! It makes me kind of crazy to be under a bridge -- even when we're on our boat and passing under one.
It was a beautiful day for your walk -- thanks for the rest of it. (And at the ripe young age of 56 you'll bounce back quick from the aches and pains. (70+ takes a little longer!)