Easy Riders; Stand Up Paddleboarding

 

‘I see seaweed – bladder wrack, waving below the glassy surface of the Menai Strait as I glide across it. Trees are reflected and an egret shifts its position on the barnacled rock. There’s something about the combined watery tranquillity and concentration necessary for stand up paddleboarding that makes it particularly mindful – the balance required to remain upright, repeated in the mind.’

Read more in the July 2019 edition of BBC Countryfile Magazine

Photography by Dan Struthers http://www.danstruthersphotography.co.uk/adventure/

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Pearl Bordered Fritillaries; Cwm Soden

The small, stony and seal-frequented coves of Cwm Tydu and Cwm Silio are hugged by low cliffs whose strata is twisted into smiles. Characteristically for Ceredigion, a sliver of maritime grassland is sandwiched between the coast and a landscape of pasture, small farms and villages cleft by wooded river valleys and scored by scant narrow lanes which make driving here in summer inadvisable.

Read more in the June 2019 edition of BBC Countryfile Magazine

Ty Hyll

 

‘Tŷ Hyll, or ‘the Ugly House’ is named for its colossal crudely cut, yet lovely stones. Of uncertain origin – either brigand’s hide-out, duke’s folly, or tŷ unnos (home built in a day to secure ownership), what is certain is that it’s now a cosy tearoom selling fresh-baked delights and very, very good tea. It’s run on behalf of the Snowdonia Society – a charity aiming to protect the beauty of Snowdonia National Park whose volunteers help with tasks such as path maintenance or mammal surveys, and who here at Tŷ Hyll have created a pollinator-friendly garden and a bee-room, and regularly host workshops such as herbal tea making or birch tree tapping.’

Read more in the May 2019 edition of BBC Countryfile Magazine

Wilderculture; Isle of Carna

‘Caroline had already briefed me, on the drive from Fort William station, with her plans to regenerate wildlife whilst farming cattle in the uplands. “Conservationists use livestock to get some of their aims achieved” she’d told me, “and farmers are happy to be wildlife-friendly as long as they get paid for it. But the key is to genuinely integrate wildlife and farming. Then you can bring back species you’d never expect. And make money.” Combining elements of rewilding and agriculture, she’s named her approach ‘wilderculture.’’ Read more in the May 2019 edition of BBC Countryfile Magazine

Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park

‘Dusk. Straining our eyes across the water one last time, we see a sandpiper step calmly in front of our tent. We see its creamy plumage and the almost-blue-white of its wing-stripe before it takes off, leaving just the echo of its whistle and whirr of its flight. We are looking for beavers, kind of, while not expecting to see any, or minding that we don’t.’

Read more in the April 2019 edition of BBC Countryfile Magazine

Photography by Mark Molloy https://www.framefiller.co.uk/about.html

Cambrian Rail Gallery Trail

‘Connecting land-locked river-hugged Shrewsbury with coastal outward-looking Aberyswtyth, the southern branch of the Cambrian Railway cleaves its way between the hills,  enabling you to view some of the art displayed in the market towns through which it passes. An art journey which could itself be described as also advancing from insular to international, local to global…’

Read more in the March edition of BBC Countryfile Magazine

Plas Gwyn-y-weddw; Llanbedrog

‘The building is comfortable, the grandeur gentle, the atmosphere relaxed, unlike the highly-charged excitement of some city galleries. Hikers, holiday-makers and art connoisseurs mingle. The art is tribute to the diversity of Welsh talent. Pieces such as ‘Three Mastered Schooner and Lighthouse Scrimshawed on an Ostrich Egg’ by Carwyn Jones who draws inspiration from the nautical folk traditions of Porthmadog, and James Naughton’s luminous, discreet landscapes, sit harmoniously in the Victorian setting. In spirited contrast are Siận McGill’s bold acidic acrylics, and Ruth Jên’s colourful, cryptic prints of Welsh Ladies. The windows are large, they invite your gaze out to the bay. ‘

Read more in the March 2019 edition of BBC Countryfile Magazine