The Light of the World

Once Christmas is over, I quickly tire of the decorations hanging around: the tree, the Christmas cards and so on. They rarely last until Twelfth Night in my house. I packed them all away on the 31st December this last year. I did, however, decide to leave a string of lights that I'd draped around my mirror, for at least a while longer. I like the way they bring a bit of cheer to the darker end of the sitting room, especially in the evenings when the various lamps make pools of light and the little LEDs sparkle. They're slightly annoying, since every time I switch them off at the plug I have to cycle through all the 'modes' again when I switch them back on! (Whoever chooses the flashing modes must risk a seizure every time!) I also might have to find a better way of securing them than the masking tape I've used, as they do tend to keeping falling down! But I might keep them lit until Candlemas, which is on February 2nd, traditionally the day that commemorates Mary and Joseph presenting Jesus at the temple. On that day, some churches bless the candles that will be used throughout the year. 

'When Jesus spoke again to the people, He said, 'I am the Light of the World. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.'   John 8:12 

Noticing nature

A few nature notes from some of my recent walks. This small acer in the Hirst Wood nature reserve gives a lot of pleasure throughout the year, with vibrant leaves in autumn and equally vibrant red branches in winter. With the low sunshine catching it, it looked like the Biblical 'burning bush'. 

The winter structures of plants can be surprisingly pleasing. I think these are dead hydrangeas, in Roberts Park. 

Looking ahead to spring, there are already a few catkins on the hazel bushes in the nature reserve leading into the park. They seem quite early but, until recently, it's been quite warm, so maybe that has tempted them out. 

Finally, a rather fuzzy photo (taken on my phone zoomed in, which is never good!) but it always amuses me when I see gulls spaced regularly like this, one per fence post. They were enjoying what little warmth there was in the sunshine, I guess. 

Saltaire scenes

On a very clear, cold day, the local gull population clearly thought the roof of the New Mill was the warmest place to be. 

Elsewhere in the village, there seemed to be more cars than people. I guess folks were making the most of the end of the holidays and enjoying the warmth inside their homes. 

George Street runs right down through the village. It's one of three streets that spans the entire estate south to north, carefully designed to showcase the church right at the bottom. The others are Victoria Road and Albert Terrace, at opposite sides of the residential area. 

Slicing through from east to west are Caroline Street, Titus Street and Saltaire Road (the original turnpike road). Titus Street, seen below, holds one of the more unusual village houses, which has a watchtower. It was reputedly the home of the commissionaire and chief security officer at Salts Mill. People say he used the glazed tower as a lookout but I can't verify whether that's true or not. 

Geese may safely graze

The number of geese around here seems to have increased even more! There was a flotilla on the river and a huge number grazing in the nearby fields. I wonder if some of them have come here to overwinter, adding to the resident flock. It's a mixture of Canada and Greylags... and one rogue white goose. Can you spot that one? I try to like them but they're incredibly noisy, often sounding like dogs barking. They leave a huge mess of droppings too, which might be alright in the fields but isn't good on the canal towpath. 

Watching those on the river did make me slow down enough to also see a kingfisher. They're really quite small and very fast; hard to spot, even though they are so brightly coloured. This one was darting around just below me on the river bank but then, when some more people walked past, it sped over to the other side of the river and out of sight. It was a lovely little gift to me on my walk.

Ice ice baby

We are definitely in winter's grip, though it's been the kind of cold weather I really quite enjoy, with blue skies and some sunshine; crisp, very cold, icy cold in fact. We've only had one very light dusting of snow here (yet) though the east coast and North York Moors had quite heavy snowfall, I gather. The Leeds-Liverpool Canal was well iced up. That boat is going nowhere, for now. As usual, little boys were hurling rocks to try and break the ice but it had little effect (except to clog up the canal when eventually it thaws!) 

Lots of pretty, swirly patterns in the ice... I remember when we used to get those patterns on the windows at home, before we had central heating and double glazing. I don't miss that, attractive though they were. 

Favourites from 2025 #2

More of my more memorable moments of 2025, these from the second half of the year:

A quiet, green, summer wander in upper Wharfedale.

An atmospheric sunset.

Playing around with a shallow depth of field in Salts Mill's antiques centre.

A truly stunning performance of 'The Railway Children', part of Bradford's City of Culture 2025.

A fascinating insight into the William Morris & Co stained glass in Bradford Cathedral.

A close look at some interesting civic sculpture in Leeds.

Lovely light in my local woods.

Heavy horses at Keighley Show - and a blacksmith hard at work.

A memorable celebration - 'Bloom' - in Shipley's market square, another City of Culture event.

Edinburgh Castle, a reminder of a few days exploration further afield.

Also in Edinburgh, a quirky view of one of the exhibits in Andy Goldsworthy's exhibition. 

A perfect and colourful autumn day in upper Wharfedale.

The Turner Prize exhibition, hosted in Bradford as part of the City of Culture 2025. This was the winning entry, raw and expressive, from Nnena Kalu. 

A couple of night shots in beautiful Paris. 

And finally, an enjoyable little 'early music' concert in Salts Mill. 

Favourites from 2025 #1

 

It's that time of year when we look back over the past twelve months and choose our 'best' or 'favourite' photos. I don't think, for me, 2025 was a particularly outstanding year photographically. I haven't travelled widely and I seem to have been too busy simply enjoying myself and taking photos along the way, rather than putting photography front and foremost. Another day and I would probably choose an entirely different selection but here are some that stuck out as among my favourites from the first half of the year. 

Blue sky and bare, sunlit branches = welcome light in the depths of winter. 

A trio of black and white studies in Saltaire.

The welcome sight of snowdrops.

A mono square from a memorable walk in Calderdale. 

New buds on colourful stems.

A moody and textural shot in attractive light inside Heptonstall's museum.

Bluebells in Calderdale.

The hazy, fresh greens of Spring.

Two most enjoyable events from Bradford's City of Culture 2025 feast: 'The Bradford Progress' - music on the canal, and beguiling wool cloaks from Ann Hamilton's 'We Will Sing' installation in Salts Mill. 

A re-enactor from 'The Sealed Knot Society' bringing the English Civil War history to life.

My favourite border at Harlow Carr Gardens. 

Wolf moon

Clear skies and cold nights... I woke in the night and I thought the lights were on outside as it was so bright but, when I looked out, it was luminous moonlight. When I woke again as daylight dawned, the full moon was right between the houses and the church tower. It was the Wolf Moon, a 'supermoon', which occurs when the moon is at its closest point to earth in its elliptical orbit. 

Splendid to see, though I really don't have the right camera equipment to do it full justice in a photo. 

Frigid

Over the New Year it was very cold here though also quite bright, with a few bursts of weak sunshine that lit things up quite nicely. The whole of the UK is in the grip of Arctic air, though we've not yet had any snow in Yorkshire. 

I managed to hurt my back on NY Day (doing exercises that are supposed to help strengthen my back!) so I was pretty stiff and sore. By the next day it was still sore but I was a bit more mobile, so I went for a three mile walk. My back is always a bit stiff, just some days hurts more than others, and I find regular walking seems to help on the whole. 

I was well wrapped up but the wind was icy. I haven't ever really found a satisfactory way of stopping my mouth and nose getting cold, so that when I get back in the warm, my teeth hurt! I've tried scarves and a stretchy buff, but then it's hard to breathe and they get all wet, urgh. Despite the discomfort I enjoyed the walk. 

(I'm a bit short of 'blog fodder' and not getting out anywhere very exciting at the moment, so don't worry if I'm missing for a few days here and there.)

River - again

I met a friend at Bolton Abbey just before Christmas. It was yet another very dismal, damp day, though mercifully not actually raining. We spent most of our time drinking coffee and chatting, though we did have a short walk along the riverbank. A view downstream here is always quite attractive. We went as far as the ford where a lane crosses a small stream that runs down to the river. It wasn't really a day for photography but I enjoyed the peaty colours of the water running over the stones. Some tiny children were splashing in the shallow water, with delighted squeals; it looked fun. I might have joined them if I'd had my wellies on!