The start of a new (and hopefully much brighter and happier) year brought a cold snap to the valley. Temperatures were below freezing and the Met office was suggesting the possibility of a new Beast from the East later in the month. The original Beast from the East hit us in March 2018, when the whole of the Breamish Valley was knee-deep in snow. Well, we didn’t have to deal with that yesterday but it was cold enough to begin freezing the lakes.
What goes around… Groundhog day! Been there, seen that… Déjà vu!
If you’re one of many who enjoy the walk around the Hedgeley Lakes at Powburn, you’ll probably be aware that some of the railway embankment steps had fallen into disrepair over recent years.
These are the steps leading down from the embankment that overlooks the west lake, just to the side of the memorial bench dedicated to Allan Forrest (late Chairman of Powburn Show) [GPS: 55°26’53.964″ N 1°54’26.22″ W]
Got to keep reminding myself to keep looking up and keep looking down when I’m out and about. Of course, with the easing out of lockdown, we’re now able to get out and about a lot more, and more than once a day. Feels good if you can take advantage of this, doesn’t it? So, that means more opportunities to look.
So, what’s the colour of Spring for you? As a resident of the Breamish Valley I can’t help but think that you’ll say it’s ‘yellow’. I mean, just about everywhere along the Breamish Valley is yellow right now. The whole valley is smothered in flowering gorse, giving a wonderful scent of coconut drifting on the Spring air.
If you’re lucky enough o be able to get out for your once-a-day exercise, and lucky enough the be able to walk on a bit of rough ground, then a walk around the lake at Hedgeley is just what the doctor ordered.
It can’t go unnoticed that the spaces around us are predominantly empty of people at the moment. While it’s somewhat strange, it is heartening to see that the majority of people are heading the UK Government’s stay at home policy.
For my daily exercise yesterday (Saturday 28 March 2020), I walked around the Hedgeley Lakes and back home following the path along the A697. In the seven-and-a-half years that I’ve lived in Powburn, I’ve never seen the A697 without a single vehicle on it on a Saturday: extraordinary times!
A lot has happened since June 2017 when John Carr-Ellison of Hedgeley Estates led a public meeting in Powburn to discuss the Estate’s plans for the management of the Breamish Lakes. Work has progressed on developing unique and diverse habitats for both migrant and resident birds.
Thanks once again to photographer David Hanks, who was accompanied by Robbie Burn (Chair of Hedgeley Parish Council), we are able to view this rare development as a bird’s-eye, 360-degrees view:
Following our recent post showcasing photographer David Hanks’ Branton Lakes 360-degrees aerial ‘movie’, David has been out with his drone again: this time, photographing the Hedgeley Lakes.
His work provides another striking perspective on our local landscape. He’s created two movies: one shot at 100m (which gives the same perspective as the Branton Lakes 360-degrees movie that was also photographed at 100m) and one shot at 50m. You can view them here:
The British Library is preserving this site for the future in the UK Web Archive at www.webarchive.org.uk
