A Light Dusting

Nowhere near as much as the East coast of America, and a bit less than most of Britain, but we have had snow. A light icing-sugar dusting but it still snowed. And it is cold. So cold. But after all it is December, so what else should we expect? We may even get a white Christmas. That would be magical.

Punching The Sky

Today is a 'let the photo do the talking' day. This is St Lukes church steeple with Leckhampton Hill in the background.

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View

The view across Cheltenham from the top of Leckhampton Hill. In the far distance, on the left, you can see the Malvern Hills. On very clear days you can see the Black Mountains on the Welsh border!
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This Old House

Its weird to think that these ruins on top of Leckhampton Hill were once home to someone. It must have been deserted many many years ago but the main features of the cottage are still there to see - the fire place and chimney breast, the space where doors once stood and the remnants of dividing walls. The stone floors are now just rubble covered with a carpet of weeds and there are twisted trees growing out of what is left of the roof. It was a sad sight.

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Two Things Challenge - Free / Range

Thought I'd have a go at the Two Things Challenge this week. At the moment there is an advert on TV here for Anchor Butter with the strap line 'the free range butter company.' Surely all butter is free range as the milk used comes from cows that graze on pasture, otherwise there would be no milk and therefore no butter! Anyway...here are some free range sheep, grazing on top of Leckhampton Hill. Do you count sheep to get to sleep?

If you want to join in with Two Things, or to see how others have interpreted this weeks challenge, head over to the Two Things Challenge blog.

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Sky Watch Friday

Kite and blue sky

While up on the top of Leckhampton Hill on Monday we saw lots of things going on - walkers, cyclists, families playing, picnics and kite fliers. There were a group of teenagers sitting around watching one of their own trying to control this large professional kite. The top of the hill is always windy, even in summer, and perfect for kite flying. At times the lad on the end of the strings was struggling to stay with his two feet firmly on the ground!

To join in with Sky Watch Friday, or to see more views from around the world, head over to the Sky Watch Friday Blog.

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Which Way?

On Bank Holiday Monday the weather was beautiful so we took full advantage and headed off to Leckhampton Hill for a walk. The hill top has everything - great views, woodland, grassland, wildlife and farms, perfect for blowing away the cobwebs and getting back to nature. Across the top of Leckhampton Hill you'll also find part of the Cotswold Way, a trail which runs from the market town of Chipping Campden in the north to the city of Bath in the south. The Trail is 102 miles (164 km) long, and runs for most of its length on the Cotswold escarpment (hence the name!) It passes through some wonderfully picturesque villages and has some magnificent views across Gloucestershire and neighbouring Counties. One day (when I feel really motivated!) it would be good to walk part of it, even just a stretch between a couple of country pubs!

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Sky Watch Friday

Break In The Cloud

Another week over, how time flies. Its nearly Christmas! This photo was taken last month on the top of Leckhampton Hill. I love how the cloud is being chased away by the clear sky. You can almost see the line drawn for battle.

To join in with Sky Watch Friday, and to see the sky from all over the world, head over to the Sky Watch Friday Blog.

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Mist Rolling In

At the beginning of the week, when this photo was taken, the weather wasn't so good. This is a view of Leckhampton Hill with the low cloud and mist swirling around the trees at the top. I guess it must have been like being on a plane up there. Now the weather is dry and bright, but we are promised an arctic blast for the weekend. I'll have to get out my long johns!!

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Corridor Of Trees

Today I'm keeping things simple. I think I'll let you tell me about the photo.

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Berry Nice Photo

Today's post is a bit of self publicity. A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that I was thinking of starting a macro blog. Well, I have! I posted the first photo a week or so ago and a few of you have stumbled upon it and left kind comments. If you would like to visit Macro World then you are more than welcome to check it out!

I'm also letting you all know that my cat is finishing his blogging adventure, he is just too lazy to carry on! He wants to thank everyone who visited and left comments about him and his useless owner! Anyway...new day, new blog - Macro World.

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The Devil's Chimney (a Halloween tale)

As its Halloween I thought I'd share a tale of local folklore with you. This rocky pile is known locally as the Devil's Chimney and it sits on the side of Leckhampton Hill, over looking Cheltenham.

The story goes that these stones form the Devil's chimney, on top of the Devil's dwelling deep beneath the ground. Supposedly the Devil, angered by the many churches in the area, would sit on top of Leckhampton Hill and hurl stones at Sunday worshippers. However the stones were thrown back at him, driving him beneath the ground and trapping him there so he could not further harass the villagers. Now he uses the mass of stones as his chimney to let free the smokes of hell.

That's the tale, now some other facts. In the past visitors to the Devil's Chimney would climb up and leave a coin on top of the rock as payment to the Devil in exchange for his staying in his underground home and not leaving to create mischief and spread evil in the local area. People would often climb to the top, thirteen is the largest number of people known to have been there in one go! In August 1926 the Devil's Chimney was left with several large cracks following an earthquake. In 1985 the Chimney was fenced off to stop erosion and also for safety (it is quite a drop below!)

Other theories surrounding the mysterious rocks include it being a "rude creation of some fanciful shepherd", a practical joke dreamt up by bored quarry workers in the 18th Century looking for a way to immortalise their work, and "differential erosion over many years which has left a column of harder rock free-standing as the softer rock has been worn away around it." (Boring!)

Hope you've enjoyed this Halloween tale. Have a spooky day!

Clinging To The Cliff

Another photo from Leckhampton Hill to keep you all entertained while I'm away. The hill is made up of mainly limestone and has lots of steep paths and craggy faces like this. People have been know to try to climb up this face, without ropes, or come down it to get a stranded dog from the ledge. It won't surprise you to know they end up having to be rescued! I like how this photo captures the bleak conditions up there at this time of year.

I'm away for a few days. I'm hoping Blogger magic will make this post appear like...well...magic!I'll catch up with you all at the end of the week.

Birds Eye View

From the top of Leckhampton Hill you get a clear view right across Cheltenham. Here I've cropped the photo to show you just the town centre. See if you can spot Eagle Tower, the top of the Regent Arcade shopping centre, the Town Hall, Municipal Offices, the Library and Cheltenham Boys College.

I'm away for a few days. I'm hoping Blogger magic will make this post appear like...well...magic! I'll catch up with you all at the end of the week.

Band Of Gold

I know there are lots of autumn coloured photos out there at the moment but here is another one! The colours are so vivid at the moment, it would be a sin not to share them with you. This was taken on the top of Leckhampton Hill, which over looks Cheltenham. It was rather breezy up there (to say the least) but I got some really good photos.

Sky Watch Friday

Its that time again - Sky Watch Friday. This is a view across the River Avon, with the Malvern Hills in the distance.

To join in with Sky Watch Friday, and to see the other sky watchers weekly offerings, head over to the Sky Watch Friday Blog.

Sky Watch Friday

The sunset breaking through the clouds over the Malvern hills.


To join in with Sky Watch Friday, and to see the other Sky Watch offerings, head over to the Sky Watch blog.

Hope you all have a good weekend.

Non-Famous Skyline

If I were to show you a photo of the New York skyline you'd know instantly where it was. The same goes for London, Sydney and many other world famous cities. Unfortunately Cheltenham doesn't have such a skyline. The only reason that you'd guess this is my home-town's skyline is because its on a Cheltenham daily photo blog! This photo was taken from the top of Chosen Hill and as you can see Cheltenham is surrounded by hills, mainly the Cotswolds. If you click on the photo to enlarge it you'll get a better view, and an idea of the geography. Our only skyscraper is Eagle Tower, which you can see on the right of the picture. Just past the tower, slightly up the hill, is GCHQ's Oakley site. The Government use this as one of their information gathering (spying) headquarters, the other one is shaped like a big doughnut and is on the opposite side of town. In the photo I've managed to fit in about half of Cheltenham, the majority shows the town centre and surrounding suburbs. If you imagine the same again to the left of the photo, then you get an idea of how big Cheltenham is.

Not so much the Big Apple, but more the Medium Grape!

Rock

This photograph was taken at Crickley Hill Country Park at the end of last year. I used the macro setting to get a really good close-up shot of this large boulder that was in the carpark. I really like the pattern in the stone, hope you like it too. Nothing more to say, I just fancied posting something a bit different.

Branching Out

These Beech trees were taken in the woods at Crickley Hill Country Park. The park is on the edge of the Cotswold Hills and over looks the Vale of Gloucester. The park is a mixture of Woodland (natural and man aided), Grassland, and steep Limestone hillside. The park has many trails for walkers and includes a visitors centre and archaeological site. The site has been excavated over the past 25 years and the remains of a hillfort have been revealed, with the fort and related buildings being marked out with coloured posts. To get a better view of this area there is a raised viewing platform with details of what is believed to have once been on Crickley Hill. As well as all this the park is home to around 200 species of wildflower and 34 different types of butterfly. Not bad for a walk around the top of an old hill!