Wednesday, 28 December 2011

Floods, websites and cameras

Outdoor activity is curtailed awaiting a knee appointment on 9th January.

Daughter Jill ventured out today by car and phoned home to report floods on the road at Storth about a mile and a half from my house.  I motored down and took a few photos. This road often floods with a high wind, high tide combination, but I have never taken pictures before to add to my local photo folder.

The distant hills to the north-east are the Shap fells above the M6 - the water is the Kent Estuary flowing into Morecambe Bay

Back south-east to Arnside Knott - my house nestles under the lefthand end


I was there and back for this shoot within about ten minutes.

The camera used is new and arrived today. I bought this Canon SX150IS for £38 less than Amazon price from a website called Awooza. After ordering I had an unexplainable, uneasy feeling and browsed further to find out the camera was coming from Honk Kong and there were many unfavourable reports about Awooza citing bad service and the unexpected imposition of import duty. I contacted Pay Pal who agreed to refund if delivery time exceeded ten days from their involvement, or if I was asked to pay import duty. The camera arrived today after  being ordered on 16th December - all appears to be satisfactory, and I have cancelled the complaint procedure with Pay Pal.

Hopefully, further observations on this new toy will follow in forthcoming posts.

Sunday, 18 December 2011

Views from the house

The knee is  worse than before the recent operation. I have an appointment for 9th January, and I reckon I'll be offered a replacement knee joint. What this bodes for future walking I will have to wait and see. For the last couple of weeks I have literally limped around and have done no recreational walking.

My daughter Jill and  brother William have taken a four bedroom, first and second floor flat in Arnside with extensive, uplifting views over the Kent Estuary, and across to the Lakeland and Shap hills, which are now covered in snow. I have been helping with both moves. William is in residence.  Jill and Katie will follow after Christmas. Within the last few days Jill's furniture etc. has been moved from storage into the flat.

I have a similarly enviable view from my living room window across the M6 corridor to Hutton Roof with Ingleborough and Whernside jutting above the horizon twenty miles away. I never tire of observing the birds, helicopters, aeroplanes, vapour trails and endlessly changing clouds, enhanced by two of the Three Peaks. Unfortunately a neighbour's house sports an obtrusive chimney pot which jars. I vow that when I win the Lottery I will make them an offer they can't refuse then have the house demolished.

Today with intensely white snow the distant horizon is even more dramatic, but it cannot be captured with my inferior camera, so I have driven a few hundred yards up the road from my house and taken a better shot in the last of the afternoon sun, without the necessity to walk any distance.

This is 4 x zoom, hand held - Whernside appears off pic to the left





In case I don't post again before forthcoming festivities I wish everybody compliments of the season.