More Dogs at Appledown Rescue Centre.

Today was a good day to walk the dogs at Appledown http://www.appledown.co.uk/ not too hot with a slight breeze. I only had time to walk three dogs before having to return to do the weekly shopping. People give dogs some funny names  and I think I had three of them today. First on the list was ...

Grogan.

For the first fifteen minutes he pulled ahead but after half an hour he had settled down and gave me a look at the end of his walk to say thanks.

Next for a walk was...

Roseaide.

I hope I spelt her name correctly.

This dog barked for Britain and would not stop for 20 minutes, after this she calmed down and enjoyed the rest of her walk. If a dog has not had a walk for two days they are bound to be mad once let out but in the end they all calm down and most are very nice dogs.

Last for their walk today was...

Damalsa.

A beautiful dog who pulled away and just wanted to play with the other dogs on the training field.

I could control him but I don't know how owners of larger dogs who's dog is not trained can be safe when faced with a difficult situation.

This brings me to next weeks four hour release from my caring duties. After talking to the trainer today I plan to take some action pictures of dogs on the training circuit, so depending on the weather I will be getting my larger camera out to take some action shots or if the weather dictates it will be down to the canal to see who's about.

Rushing to open the locks at Marsworth

Today was damp and overcast so I decided another foray at Marsworth was called for. Not a day for pictures but with only two hours to spare I have to make the most of the time, very much like this family who have hired NB Dabcheck from Grebe Canal Cruises at Pitstone rushing to get the lock open for their boat.

Following on you can see the whole family enjoying their day at the lock despite the weather.

At lock 44 NB Mustn't Grumble came slowly out .

At Marsworth top lock NB John Ruskin exited the lock with gongoozlers http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gongoozler watching.

The other side of the lock the swans were glad the boat had passed.

I had time to dash up the Wendover Arm and see how it has changed over the years. It's still a quiet arm of the Grand Union canal but some great work has been done by the Wendover Trust http://wendoverarmtrust.co.uk/.

Here is a workboat moored to the piling the lads have added to the canal towpath which will be infilled to give a stable edge to the canal.

A narrowboat comes down the arm towards Bulbourne Junction.

I reached Gamnel Bridge No.2 before having to return after my little jaunt.

It is no wonder these small bridges suffer damage when large loads cross them.

The Canal & River Trust http://canalrivertrust.org.uk/ are putting these signs up to support the wildlife so if you can afford  to please feel free to donate.

Well that's it for this week, next week I must go to the dogs but then I feel I'm there already :)

Little Tring Bridge on the Wendover Arm of the Grand Union Canal

Today on my wanderings I managed to get to another of my old fishing haunts of 45 years ago. I used to cycle to the pumping station at the end of the Wendover Arm of the Grand Union Canal and enjoy the peace and quiet around this lovely part of Marsworth. Now I like brickwork, don't ask me why but I always admire old brick walls and the many colours you get so what a delight to find that the old bridge at the pumping station has been demolished and a magnificent bridge built as an replacement all thanks to the Wendover Arm Trust.http://wendoverarmtrust.co.uk/ Just look at the brickwork in this bridge.

Here are the commemorative plaques on the side of the bridge.

The canal has also been extended past the bridge by a volunteer workforce to which great credit is due.

Moored just before the bridge is NB Mithra enjoying the solitude that I found all those years ago.

On the way back I thought I would have a look to see what narrowboats were moored at Star Tops End,so I parked up in the car park and had a wander.

A shame to see the White Lion pub has closed down and has been for a while now which is happening far too frequently, this was another watering hole in my past.

Walking further up the cut it was nice to see a family enjoying a day out on the school holidays in a narrowboat hired from Grebe Canal Cruises at Pitstone, I wonder if the little girl caught anything, probably more than I used to.

This reminded me I was going to revisit the Waterside Cafe at Pitstone http://www.pitstonewharf.co.uk/ as they were not open the last time I went during February so on the way back to the car park I took a picture of the rear entrance to the Bluebell Tea Rooms.

Arriving at the Waterside cafe I had one and three quarters of an hour to have a bite to eat then get the weekly shop so I could not stay long, so a cup of tea and a slice of apple and almond cake went down well.

This is the view out of the window...

...and the front cover of the menu.

Now I had time to have a quick look outside at the cruise boat the Chiltern Countess.

In the water there were large mirror carp obviously used to being fed from the cafe.

Now I had to dash back to get the weekly shopping.

Well that was my time out from caring for this week next week who knows where.

Hot Dog Walking

This week on my four hours respite from caring I went over to Appledown rescue centre http://www.appledown.co.uk/ to walk the dogs. It was a bit warm at 20 Deg C but with a slight breeze it was a pleasant day to be outside.
I don't know why but the three dogs I took out this week were all a bit mad, probably a bit hyped up being in the kennels and it being warm. The first one was called...MUNGO

A lovely little dog with Jack Russell traits but after half an hour settled down. A nice dog for someone who likes company on walks.

Next dog was ...LAYLA

A hyperactive dog who would not keep still, jumping and barking at everything but again after half an hour she settled down and started to enjoy her walk.

Last dog out today was ... FERGUS

He was quite funny as he constantly pulled on the lead trying to power ahead with his legs going twenty to the dozen trying to get away. As you can see it was his tongue that ended up trying to cool such a hot dog.

Outside the office is a picture board showing potential owners some of the dogs in the kennels.

After that I went off to do the weekly shop and look forward to next week to either walk along the canal or walk the dogs again.

Cheese and Cookies on the Cut.

Today I thought I would go to The Globe in Linslade  http://www.globeinn-leighton-buzzard.co.uk/  Just beyond bridge 111 is where I did all my fishing as a lad 47 years ago and would you believe it two gentlemen have nicked my spot.

What a difference a week makes in the weather here in the UK, last week it was thunderstorms and pouring with rain, this week it's blue sky and a heatwave with the temperature at 31deg.C. which did not allow me to walk the dogs or show much enthusiasm for walking too far.

I had read that The Cheese Boat http://www.thecheeseboat.co.uk/would be moored up outside The Globe pub for a couple of days so I thought I would go and purchase some of their excellent Welsh cheeses.

This is Mike and Geraldine who have operated the business since 2006.

Geraldine is not too sure what a blog is so if you read this Geraldine you now know.

I purchased a selection of their fine cheeses which are produced in Wales.

Yes I will remember to remove the wax coating, unlike another customer who didn't and complained that the cheese did not taste right.

There were a lot of narrowboats moored  up and you can see The Cookie Boat moored up in front of The Cheese Boat. I would have purchased some cookies but there was no one at home but being moored outside The Globe I can guess where they were on this blistering hot day.

On the way back home I called in at the Wyvern Shipping Co.Ltd  http://www.canalholidays.co.uk/  thinking they had a tea room but no so I went without.

Their office was resplendent in hanging baskets.

And a few boats moored outside.

Being so hot I decided to call it a day as I still had the weekly shopping to do.

Next week who knows it all depends on the weather.

A Walk Along the Aylesbury Arm of the Grand Union Canal

Today was my four hour release from caring so it was either walking the dogs or a visit to the local canal.The weather dictated my choice as walking the dogs at Appledown Boarding Kennels http://www.appledown.co.uk/ would not be allowed in the rain so off I went to Marsworth to park and walk along the Aylesbury Arm before having to turn back because of the time constraint as I needed to get the weeks shopping in.
Here are a few photos taken in the rain with my small camera.I must take my larger Canon camera out one day as I can only stop down to F8.

Lock Keepers Cottage

I noticed that the bushes were encroaching onto the canal which could be a problem in a few weeks.

There must be hundreds of pictures of herons and wondered how close I could get with my small camera before it took off.

Answer, not very, about 30ft.

 So I caught up with it further down the cut and had another go.

I think this is one occasion when I needed my longer lens.

Next week I'll have to see what the weather is like.

Find direction of sunrise/sunset anywhere worldwide

The Photographers Ephemeris

The Photographer's Ephemeris is a program to assist the planning of outdoor photography.
Landscape photographers typically plan their shoots around the times of sunrise/sunset or twilight, or alternatively when the moon is in a particular place in a particular phase.

http://photoephemeris.com/

As an example, sunset on Wednesday 25th July 2012 will shine directly along the canal at the Soulbury Three locks which should make a good sunset picture if standing on the nearby bridge looking along the locks on the canal.
If you are keen enough you can list your favourite landscape views then find the time of year when the sun rises or sets in the correct direction for a good picture.

As you can see the Jet Stream in yellow is below the UK allowing moist air from the north to form cloud cover which is problematic in the execution of your well planned photo shoot.