For newcomers

At the bottom of each post there is the word "comments". If you click on it you will see comments made by followers, and if you follow the instructions you may also comment and I always welcome that. I have found many people overlook this part of the blog which is often more interesting than the original post!

My blog nick-name is SIR HUGH. I'm not from the aristocracy - my middle name is Hugh which relates to the list of 282 hills in Scotland compiled by Sir Hugh Munro in 1891. I climbed my last one (Sgurr Mor) on 28th June 2009

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Wednesday 18 August 2021

Trigs 103 - Singing Tree plus three


Wednesday 18th  August 2021

Thieveley Pike      SD 872 271     449m.
Merrill Head          SD 884 297    329m
Black Hameldon    SD 914291     479m




I'm sure you'll all be thrilled to read that I've ticked off another three of the 66 trig points on OS 1:50 - Sheet 103. That leaves another 49 still for your enjoyment.

Feeling masochistic and annoyed with myself for missing Tuesday, the only good weather day this week I set off for an hour's drive just to do these three trigs each only around one kilometre from a road. All three were visited in low cloud, eighty yard or less visibility and with on and off drizzly rain.

Thieveley started from one of those typical Pennine farm buildings on a lonely road side with piles of stone, other building materials and broken down vehicles from projects long abandoned. A path involving four stiles and two gates within one kilometre rose gently through rough moorland with reeds predominant. There were several places where disused fencing wire had been left half concealed in the vegetation, something of which I am particularly wary having broken my arm as a result of something similar. Within  five minutes I found my current waterproof boots were no longer waterproof and I spent the rest of the trip with wet feet.  My son speculates that this is my ideal kind of day - the more suffering the better - he may be right. I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I did have a sneaky feeling of guilt for using the car to drive between, and only walking less than three miles overall. I had a small reward at Thieveley trig, it was inscribed with a woefully cribbed version of "Once more unto the breach..."which I suspect was put up before England lost in the final.

Having walked close to the Singing Tree ( a sculpture that blows music in the wind) on my  Berwick to Castle Cary walk and dithered before deciding it was too far off route, and having driven close by several times within the last few months I decided to have look in between the first two trigs. See photo below and also a shaky video I took, mainly so I could capture the sound. If you want to know more and see some splendid photos  CLICK HERE


Thieveley Pike - you can just see the quotation top left of left side and see close up below. The surrounding terrain sums up the atmosphere of this dreich day


On the way back - a makeshift sheep shearing station. There were daggins of wool scattered far and wide around here. In my youth in Bradford I had friends who worked with wool in its raw state and the word daggins was often used. I was mildly surprised to find it under "dag" in my Chambers dictionary. 

The Singing Tree. I'm thinking of entering some of today's photos for Photographer of the Year

Merrill Head - exciting?

Looking back down to my car from Merrill Head - this could be my entry for the photo competition.

At the lay-by parking for Black Hameldon Hill. I've not seen one of these before on my recent travels in this area

Hameldon Hill.  There was a good but splodgy track all the way. Heather was well in bloom and seemed to glow in the strange light of this dismal day.A quick touch, turn around and off back -easy? For a couple of minutes I couldn't find the path I had approached on.



You will see that I have made no attempt to edit this. At least you do hear the sound now and again against the roar of the wind. The first few seconds are priceless


 

7 comments:

  1. A dreich day to be out and about.
    The opening sequence reminds me of a horror B, or in your case C, movie when the murderer or weirwolf is stalking the victim.
    You could have tried blowing down one of those tubes for a bit more music.
    Well done.

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  2. i want one - we have plenty of wind from all five quarters so an atonal symphony is assured : do they do them on your favourite website ?

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  3. BC - I noted your correct spelling of "dreich" and have corrected mine. As for wandering in the gloom I think you would have relished it as much as I did - a spooky atmosphere indeed. Although I enjoy music I have zero talent for playing an instrument so perhaps better left to those who know how.
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    gimmer - I'm sure you have a miscellany of old pipe offcuts knocking about. Just glue or weld them together "et voilà." I wonder if they have to be tuned?

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  4. Whilst I can't quite profess to have been 'thrilled' to see you visiting more trigs, I was certainly 'most pleased'. Always nice to see where you're getting out and about (even if the weather is grey and miserable and the views curtailed), and even better when you introduce me to a point of interest that I now feel compelled to visit (for the avoidance of doubt, that's The Singing Tree, rather than any of the trigs!).

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  5. Gayle - I'll settle for "most pleased."

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  6. Sorry, I'm a year late on this one. Sorry to hear you missed the splendid views. Dry and sunny for us - what a difference a year makes!

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  7. AlanR. I'm not sure I saw this post Conrad. Glad I popped back.

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