Friday 3 December 2021

Parklands. An Autumn Gallery. The Beauty Quest.

                                                   ALL PHOTOS CLICK FULL SCREEN.

Autumn this year, 2021, has been a strange one. At first, in early October, I didn't think the colours would be all that special as it wasn't particularly cold, and you need the cool nights and mornings to change the internal chemistry in the leaves. A natural picture frame here I took full advantage of.....


 but it lasted..............

and lasted.........

and lasted.....


 

 all the way through October........ Rouken Glen Park here......

and on into the month of November.......

Even through a period of high winds, heavy downpours and flooded roads... most of the leaves stayed on the branches.

Hail Queen Nature as I hate bare trees and the long damp, grey, gloom filled, winter days and nights.... like every other wild creature living outdoors. A time to endure.... or hibernate.

 The last rich blast of vivacious colour unfolds before the more muted tones of brown, grey, black and white dominate the soul.

Keswick in the English Lake District, in autumn, viewed from above. Did you know that without the moon's gravity to stabilize the Earth there would be no seasons of reliable, (up until now), weather patterns, no tides, and not much life on our planet either?  So many aspects need to co-exist, co- align, or fall into place for us to even be here- that is the real miracle of our daily existence. We should not even be here at all when you look at the rest of the dry, bare, lifeless galaxy swirling around us. A million or even a billion to one chance of higher life forms evolving. Not the 1800s and onwards popular celluloid and sci fi book vision of a teaming universe filled with strange but able to interact with us aliens. Nothing but lifeless gas clouds, dust and rock.... so far.....

 Yet here we all are.... still clinging stubbornly on..... like this years autumn leaves. Southern Uplands above.

 Last of the autumn flowers and flying insects during a warm spell.

 The Parklands in autumn....

and all through November they still kept clinging on.........!

For me this was a real bonus...... a warmer than usual November... a month that in the past traditionally could be either very cold or very wet.

 and a bonus for wildlife as well. Seasonal riches lasting longer perhaps.

The woodland realm in October.

 The climate may be changing but with Spring coming earlier each year in the UK winter's are definitely getting shorter. Yippeee!!!!!!

 A Dream of Tangerine here.

 and in 'the city of one hundred hills'....

 ........ 'and one thousand towers'..... 

I was very happy with that....................... Ruchill Park view, above..... 


 ..... as life within a camera viewfinder, can sometimes be,.... a simple quest for beauty and perfection in all things...

 In our 'radiant' environment.............. small plane landing approach strategy....

 .....especially when my muse is walking with me.....


  during this extraordinary......

long lasting.........


 ....often sun drenched autumn.... right into December..... and the last of the leaves...


so  a big "thank you" A💜💙💚.  For being there. Quest accomplished.




















8 comments:

Carol said...

I don't think our springs are getting earlier here in England - around 20 years ago, we were seeing hawthorns coming into leaf in February - now sometimes they only come into leaf when the (end of) May blossoms come out on them as well. Last spring didn't start until 28 May which is really late!

Our autumn has been poor too - we've probably had the colours but we've had the constantly drab weather with poor light so I wasn't able to get any photos which would have had any colour in.

I hate it when the leaves have gone too - but I do like to see some interestingly-shaped trees in winter when the bareness accentuates their shape. But I hate the lack of colour in winter - as well as the cold - the cold has already made me really ill this last week :-(

blueskyscotland said...

Sorry to hear you have not been well Carol. You can buy a cheap (£10-£20) three season sleeping bag out of one of these discount supermarkets plus thinsulate hat,gloves and thick socks for a few quid each in most post offices, garages and supermarkets. That and a couple of fleeces or jumpers on and I'm sorted for cold temperatures at night. Saves me a fortune as long as you remember to run the(water)pipes if it's below freezing for several days. I do put the heating on then for an hour late at night and early morning. Other than that I'm toasty warm though you have to watch if its sub-zero and it gets into your chest then you need heat. Cheer up. Only another year then it's pension time for us, hopefully.

Rosemary said...

It has been a beautiful Autumn season this year and you have showed it off to perfection. Hopefully, as you mention, it will help to shorten the winter months. Although there are Christmas decorations up everywhere it still does not feel like winter to me, the sky is blue, the sun is shinning, and as long as I don't watch the news, all seems well in the world.

Carol said...

Nothing keeps me warm in winter and I can't get into a sleeping bag as I'm having to do stuff all the time - I only get chance to sit in an evening for a couple of hours before bed. But having to go outside or anything makes me ill when it's cold. My body just isn't designed for it. I wear lots of warm clothes and am a big fan of thinsulate but nothing can really help as I have no body insulation and the cold just penetrates through to my insides and bones no matter what I do. It makes me really tired too :-(

I suspect that, if you live in a city, you're either in semi-detached or other accommodation with housing joined on one side or the other or above or below. Here, my little house is sat with only 7 others in the extremes of the weather with little shelter and it's always colder in rural areas. If you don't heat the house much, you'll have to watch for it going damp.

Another couple of years before I can get my pension unfortunately. It's the bus pass which annoys me most - if I had one of those, I wouldn't have to drive between 80 and 160 miles every week to work and back, I'd just get on the bus!

blueskyscotland said...

Hi Rosemary,
on a purely personal level after 60 plus years of sub zero winters I am enjoying any warmth that comes my way via climate change. And an officially verified three weeks earlier UK Spring.

blueskyscotland said...

I keep a close lookout for damp Carol. I also have a dehumidifier if I see any occurring though I try to keep any moisture from happening in the first place. Dry house- less dampness. I'll heat it up next winter, hopefully, when I have more income available.

Andy said...

Some great colours in there to brighten a dreary Xmas Eve. What I’ve noticed about the climate is that it seems to be windier (truly calm days are quite a rare event) and the constant changes of extremes. Cold one day then a swing of double figures the next to mild, and back again in all seasons. We don’t seem to get prolonged settled spells in any season. Or is it just my memory playing tricks.

blueskyscotland said...

Cheers Andy. Winters are definitely getting milder and shorter though as it's almost January and I've hardly had the heating on once. Just as well given the soaring fuel costs. I have the money to pay it I just grudge giving them it when I can spend it better elsewhere. The downside is ticks, poisonous spiders, and other creepy bugs not getting zapped with sustained hard frosts each year.