Bourne Again!

Last week was such a tonic for me. I've already posted about my trip to Aberlady and success at Crufts, but before that I had a fantastic few days in Lincolnshire with my very great and very true friends Margaret and Paul.

A rowdy play with Roxy helped too! What a great dog she is, I love her so much!!



After a month of crying and illness and general downright miserableness, I'd arrived in Bourne a bit of a wreck. Five minutes later I was smiling, ten minutes later I was laughing, and after a couple of hours I felt so unbelievably refreshed and revived and perked up that I really did feel born again!

Honestly, I did. It all sounds a bit drama queen I know, but it's true!

Margaret had made plans though, and what a fab weekend it was! Having arrived on the Saturday, Sunday saw us up at Fineshade Woods in Rutland for a day out with a wildlife photographer and Margaret's great friend Kat.

Kat and Malc were instantly warm and welcoming and it felt like we'd all known each other for ages... it was gonna be a really good day!

It was!! The birds came out to play, the cameras came out to play, and so did we!



It was a brilliant day out and revived me in a way nothing much else could have done! Spot on Margaret, and a huge thanks to Kat and Malc too!!

We travelled back to Bourne pretty much carefree and full of anticipation at maybe seeing barn owls in the fields where Margaret and Kat walk their dogs.



We didn't really expect too much though, as they both said they'd not seen the owls at that time of day before, but wow, within only a couple of minutes of arriving there it was, swooping away from it's nesting box in the barn rafters and across the field. Only Margaret had the savvy to have her camera ready, so unfortunately I didn't get any shots, but what a privilege it is to see such a beautiful creature so close up!

Such a privilege in fact, that no sooner had that one disappeared than another one swooped out and across the fields too! Again, no photos, but again, how special just to be there! I'll hopefully be more prepared next time!!!

Monday was also a good day out. We went in to Peterborough and had not only the best muffins in the world ever, but also a lovely walk round Peterborough Cathedral. It really is beautiful inside and, again, next time I go I shall be armed with my camera! It's stunning!!

The burial place of Katherine of Aragon and first burial place of Mary Queen of Scots, the Cathedral has a long and fascinating history. It's architecture is quite unlike that of any other Cathedral I've visited and the ceilings are magnificent. Really magnificent.

We returned to Bourne that evening and waited for Margaret's son Paul, a primary school teacher with a bit of a problem. He's a superb teacher, having been commended in previous Ofsted visits, but Tuesday and Wednesday were going to see Ofsted back again. Andrew's teaching assistant had gone sick and Andrew had a dozen fishing rods and various other things to make and do. I like a challenge and thought "how hard can it be?" ...all that was needed was to stick a length of string to one end of a small piece of cane and stick a round magnet to the other end. Easy eh?

Er, no actually! My mum has always said I'm a bit cack-handed and it seems she's right!! There was sellotape on all surfaces, including my hair at one point, magnets were sticking fast to each other... and the radiator! The strings were getting knotted and I couldn't untie them because the magnets were stuck together again!!! Honestly, how hard could it be?!!!! Still, got there in the end and Andrew had 12 fishing rods and quite a few magnetic fishes to take to work the next day, so it all turned out ok, thank goodness!



A walk across the fields on Tuesday morning and then it was time to be off to catch the train to Edinburgh. It was such a good wee break and I can't say thank you enough to Margaret and Paul. I can't wait to come back, let's hope it's soon!!!

Rebecca XX still smiling now! :-D

To Aberlady and Beyond!

I first visited Aberlady Nature Reserve last year when I was feeling raw and emotional and hurt and grieving. A wee while there and I felt my spirits lift a bit and my strength to return a little bit.



So here I am again, a year on, raw and emotional and hurt and grieving. Seems I'm not quite as strong as I thought I was, but nor am I a victim. I will be back and, to that end, a trip to Aberlady was the perfect boost... as well as a trip back to Bourne to see my really fab friends Margaret & Paul, but more of that in another post!

I took the train up to Edinburgh last Tuesday to be met in the rain by my old pal John. A flatmate from our university days over 10 years ago, we've kept in touch on and off over the years and how glad am I of that? Very glad indeed. I don't know if he can be bottled, but he really is such a great tonic!!!

Having spent a few days away with Margaret and Paul, I was already feeling lifted and rested and on my way back to peace, but a couple more days with John put the cherry on the top. We laughed, I cried, we laughed again, we ate, drank & laughed a bit more and set the world to rights and talked & laughed some more. Perfick!

Arriving in the dark and in the rain, I could only get a rough idea of the view John has to look at every day. It looked good, even in the dismal light... but wow, what a view in the daylight!



John is warden at the Nature Reserve and is fortunate enough to have an apartment that looks out across the estuary, across the old shipwreck and across the salt marsh beyond, where North Berwick Law stands in majesty above this beautiful, ever-changing landscape.

The rain had stopped, the sun was out and it would have been extremely rude not to go out and embrace the wind as it whipped along the coast. We filled a flask with coffee and a box with rolls and John's home baking (Yum! He never did that when we shared a flat in Aberdeen!!), and weatherproofed & hunger-proofed, we set off for a walk round the reserve.

The salt marshes across the far side of the bay lead on to an extensive dune system, with back dunes and ponds and a fantastically shaped landscape that reminds me of a volcanic crater clothed in grass!



Home to reptiles, amphibians, mammals, invertebrates, insects and birds, this wonderful ecosystem is so incredibly beautiful but also incredibly fragile. John and his team are working tirelessly to control the dunes from the threat of invasion by non-native species... the attractive but rampant sea buckthorn to name but one!

Another threat of invasion was thwarted by these huge blocks that, although invaders themselves, are now so much a part of the landscape that they are also protectors and holders of their own small ecosystems, as lichens, mosses and small plants colonise the concrete!



Placed here in the war to protect the land from enemy tanks that could be landed from the shore, these blocks are so weathered and bedded in that they have completely embraced the natural world. Rejecting manmade ideas of war and destruction, these memorials of war now offer peace and new life. It's part of the magic of Aberlady Nature Rerserve. It really is!

Twice now I've visited the reserve when my world has crumpled, and twice now I've been restored and revived by the magic that's here. Peace and new life, here I come!!

Walking further along the coast, the landscape changes with every turn and, rather dramatically, with just about every high tide!



The rocks are astonishing, not just in beauty, but in their vast differences. All colours, shapes and sizes, the rocks represent so many different forms and types that a geologist would be in perpetual bliss! Carved by wind and rain, sea and sand, smoothed by years of exposure to all the elements, the rocks here take on really fantastic and surreal features. Is it any wonder myths and legends are born when you come across such grotesque and pained faces as these?



Blimey, my problems are nothing compared to theirs! See, I really do feel better already!!!

John pointed out this huge rock and said that until the winter it had been buried by sand dunes for who knows how many years! Winter storms swept a huge section off the end of a the dunes to reveal this and other rocks for the first time in centuries.



How exciting is that? I think it's great! Apparently this particular rock was a beautiful green colour when it was first exposed, but has now muted to a still very attractive silvery green. I wonder what it looked like before it was buried in the sand, and how many people have sat on it and looked out to sea?

As we walked, the landscape changed in every bay. Looking out to the island of Fidra, we sat and ate our lunch and just revelled in the rawness of the day.



The wind was biting, but it was perfect. Blowing a gale through our troubled thoughts and frazzled minds, all negative emotions dispersed on the wind as easily as dandelion seeds blow away from the clock. Time heals, it's true, but there's nothing quite like a good sea breeze to get the colour back in your cheeks and a hearty stride back in your step!



12 miles & 7 hours after setting off from John's front door, we arrived in North Berwick. A beautiful day, a stunning walk and great company. I could do with a LOT more of that!!!! Thanks John, it was ace and I am so grateful to you for helping me through and making me laugh and getting me back on to the road again. You should be available on the NHS!!!

Rebecca, X

Team Tima!

Well, Friday was a day of firsts all round... my first trip to Crufts, Tima's German Shepherd Dog Masai had his first win at his first ever time at Crufts, and he was also the first black GSD to win his class!



We also hoped that he would become a father for the first time on Friday, but nature knew better and he is, as yet, still pacing the hall waiting for his pups to arrive! It was a long day for us all, starting at 4.30 in the morning, but it was such a good day.

Crufts and the Kennel Club have come in for criticism over the years for allowing breeding to result in dogs that look a certain way but can suffer from skeletal problems or breathing difficulties or other severe health problems. I was, therefore, very happy to be going along to my first show with Tima Lund, who is loud and proud in her determination to show German Shepherd Dogs with strong, healthy skeletal systems rather than the extreme sloping backs that so often cause poor hips, plus shoulder, knee and elbow problems and spinal deformities.

The judge at Crufts this year, Gary Gray, is also a strong supporter of the straighter backed GSD's and the Kennel Club are certainly heading in the right direction to encourage breeding to produce healthy, happy dogs!



Let's hope it continues and the poor dogs who suffer so much for nothing more than a desired image will not suffer further and common sense will prevail. So, well done to Masai, and to Team Tima!



Tima breeds GSD's and Cocker Spaniels, trains agility and obedience and somehow also manages to find time to work as a Science & Animal Care teacher in a local school too! Find out more about Tima and her furry family here at http://www.folkvanggsd.webs.com/

We were also accompanied by Pickle, who unfortunately missed her class group due to a bit of a mix up. Still, she looked beautiful and she enjoyed our walks round the show and it was all still a bit of a day out for her.



Thanks to Tima for letting me come along to Crufts, and a huge big cuddle of love for Masai... he is just awesome!



I wish you could have met my Hogy Bear! He was no champion or show stopper, and he had the worst case of hip & elbow dysplasia the vet had seen, all caused by poor breeding and, because of his suffering, I will support anyone and everyone who can help bring attention to the problems and attention to the work that's going on to eradicate such needless suffering!!!

But I do wish you could have met Hogy. He was the most gentle, placid, beautiful natured dog that I have ever met and I still miss his nose poking round my bedroom door every single day, a whole year on! He wasn't healthy, but he was happy when he was strong and he was the most fun I've ever known! Bless you Tima for bringing some Shepherdy love back into my life! And well done again to Masai (aka Tracelyn Hobson at Folkvang).

Rebecca. X

Lessons with Love

I love photography, I love the technical side to it and I love the artistic and creative side to it too.



I love being out there with my camera and love being in here remembering good days out and looking at photos and, above all, learning from them! Every step I take in this journey is a step that's been thought about and worked on and analysed and crafted. It's also a journey that's fun, exciting and promising to keep on moving and changing and challenging me as I go forward.

That's why I love it so much. I'm still really new to it all, but I am learning so much along the way, and one of the greatest of all pleasures is to be able to share that learning and passion and pleasure with other people!



Helen and Mick have recently purchased their first DSLR and asked to come out with me on some photography tutorials to find out how to use it and how to get images that they will be proud to say are theirs... photos they've actually taken, rather than simply allowing the camera to take the pictures for them!



We've had three afternoons out and about with the camera so far, covering everything from manual exposures to composition and creative exposure.



We have three more afternoons planned before they head off up to the west coast of Scotland for their annual holiday, where they will be ready to take photographs in any light and still be happy with the results!!

The weather has actually been a bit of a problem on these first three sessions, as it has been dull, wet and decidedly unalluring for landscape photography!



We've managed though, and had a bit of fun into the bargain! Which is always good!! Thanks for your hard work and patience so far, here's everything crossed that the sun might actually show for the next three sessions!!!

Rebecca, X

rebecca@rtphotographics.co.uk
www.rtphotographics.co.uk

Dinton Dreams

Since moving back south of the border, I've rediscovered the simple, innocent joys of birding!

It's something that I used to do as a student at the University of Aberdeen, once upon a long time ago and is something that I gave up when I left there... much to my own regret and shame! But now I'm back down south and mistress of my own time again, it's something that I can now start again, proudly and with head held high, instead of hiding it as a guilty pleasure!

I've always been a bit of a geek, but where once that was a problem, now I'm free and proud and will say it clear and loud... I'M GEEKY & I'M REALLY HAPPY WITH THAT!!! So, there we are, I'm back into the birding at very long last!

Dinton Pastures, halfway between Reading and Wokingham, is a good spot for learning the joys of birding again.



It's local, it's lovely, it's diverse and can be really quite exciting at times! The biggest draw for me at the moment is the lure of Bittern. There are 3 reported to be overwintering here and I've never seen one in my life! How much would I love to see one? Oh, I'd love to see one lots!!! I've been along so many times now, at various times, and still I haven't seen one!

I'm really not a very lucky person in any way, shape or form, but even my friends struggle to believe that I can be so blooming unlucky!!! I am, of course, used to it by now, and that's why I keep perservering. Persistence pays, isn't that right? We all get what we deserve in the end don't we? I really, really hope so!!!



So, here we are then, another few hours at Dinton, dreaming and hoping and wishing and praying... and going home disappointed yet again! Still, it's a nice enough place to sit and watch the sun go down. And there's always next winter. Or the winter after that. Ho hum. Again.

Rebecca, x

rebecca@rtphotographics.co.uk
www.rtphotographics.co.uk

By the Light of the Silchester Moon!

When I saw the reports in the press about the possibility of the aurora borealis lighting up the skies last week, my heart skipped a few beats with excitement! My heart is something I try and take a great deal of care over, so it takes something pretty powerful to stir it up... the aurora is one of those things!

My poor old heart has really taken a bit of a battering lately, so it was with some excitement and a huge amount of hope that I set out towards the ruined remains of Rome (erm, well, in Silchester actually!), hoping to see a glorious display of dazzling light and astronomical fury as charged particles from the solar storms whipped and collided across the ionosphere!

So that was a waste of time then.



And my heart sank. Again.

As the clouds roll back into my heart, so the banks of cloud and mist crept over the night sky and obliterated any last remaining hope that something wonderful might actually happen for me. Deeply disappointed. Again.

I knew it was a bit of a ridiculous fancy really. The chances of seeing the aurora down here in the south are so small that it would have been a minor miracle to have seen it. But I've always been an optimist and am ever hopeful that finally, one day, things will happen the way I dream about them!!

It was also a very vain hope given the brightness of the moon that night. Still, faint hearts won't ever be truly happy or fulfilled, so I set my hopes high and my heart afire to see if at least one of my dreams might come true.

Obviously it didn't, but, not to be too down-hearted, I thought I'd make the best of things and try and salvage something from the ruins!



Silchester is a tremendously exciting place to be at midnight... my senses were on fire even if the sky wasn't!!

With owls hooting and foxes crying, the mist rolling in and Orion looking down from the darkness above, the ancient walls were sparkling under the touch of moonbeams... and I could swear that I heard the thunder of centurions feet approaching through the depths of ages past, ready to appear at any moment in my rather nervous future... Amazing how the sound of a train in the distance can sound so much like marching on an old Roman wall when there's nobody else around and the clock strikes twelve!

So, no aurora after all, but at least I managed a few starry shots and a few long exposures of the landscape as seen by the light of the Silchester moon! Hopes and dreams must always live on, I'm not giving up on any of them, not yet. They may need a bit of tweaking and adapting, and maybe even change altogether, but I shall always live in hope that one day, just for once, my dreams might come true!

Rebecca, x

rebecca@rtphotographics.co.uk
www.rtphotographics.co.uk

Arne I the Lucky One!!

Since moving back down to Berkshire, I've met up with some very, very nice people and none more so than my new best pals, Helen and Mick! Mick is a very keen birder and Helen is nuts about dogs. Mick makes great cakes & puddings, Helen makes great breakfasts & dinners, I love eating, I love birds, I love dogs. Perfect!!!

What could be better than to spend Boxing Day with Helen, Mick and the dogs down at the RSPB reserve at Arne, in Dorset?

The reserve is stunning. Situated close to Wareham and overlooking Studland Bay, Arne provides a superb mix of habitat including open farmland, heathland, wildflower meadow & common land, marsh & estuarine environments. There are trails across the reserve that are beautiful to walk even if you're not particularly bothered about the birds! Sika deer run freely and fearlessly through the reserve, and, if you're lucky as we were, they'll even pose good naturedly by the boardwalks for you!!

We were walking out to the bird hides through the woods and were approached by a man who looked very seriously to be on a mission! He asked if we'd seen the stag by the path, as somebody had said one was just sitting under the trees there. We replied courteously that we hadn't but wished him well on his quest and said we'd keep an eye out for the stag. He looked rather disapprovingly at the dogs (who, it has to be said, were exceptionally well behaved and under tight control on the leads) and said that it was no wonder we hadn't seen the deer and intimated that we were most unlikely to!!

Shame he didn't turn back and walk with us as we rounded the corner, 'cos there it was, sitting quietly and placidly amongst the bracken, just watching the world go by.



Not caring a hoot for us or the dogs, the stag eyed us impassively and carried on munching, probably wondering what it was that was so fascinating about his particular tree that so many people had stopped and stared that morning!

The hides were a worthy excursion too, offering distant views of spoonbill and avocet,



and closer views of redwings hopping about the shore margins.



Hugo got so excited by the views, he decided to climb on to the window ledge and was all for jumping out... luckily we spotted his intention and rescued him before any damage could be done! As we were at least 20ft up in the upstairs hide, it wouldn't have been a very clever move on Hugo's part, as well as a rather unexpected flight for those watching from the windows of the downstairs hide!!!

Arne is so beautifully located in the Dorset countryside... a stones throw from Corfe Castle, and a short drive to Studland Bay, famous for sand dunes, kite surfers and, er, nudists!!!



Keeping our clothing firmly in place (well, it was a particularly cold & icy Boxing Day remember!!) we ambled along the shore and had a very tasty lunch in the cafe above the beach.

A lovely day out, perfect company, wonderful views and excitement about the coming New Year!



All was well, a very happy holiday indeed.

Rebecca, X

www.rtphotographics.co.uk
rebecca@rtphotographics.co.uk