Rivers 1

Silver Birch tree fallen into river

This beautiful Silver Birch tree has fallen into shallow river water here and gives off these many wonderful reflections across much of the almost still water. I like the juxtaposition of the rocks in and out of the water, and the material showing just under and just above the surface, as well as the deep hues all over. It’s gone now, dredged out of this place where it fell, so this image is now a piece of history !

A sunny summer days’ mini waterfall

This small set of running water over rocks is just down from an old stone bridge and has a steepish earth side going up on the far bank over there so the reflected sound of the waters is in your ears and makes this whole bit of this energetic river a happy powerful place to just sit and watch it all. The trees and shrubs all along the banks love it, as do the many trees way up higher and out of shot. Their canopy leaning over the waters up there also bounce back the sounds so it all has a feel of a very much bigger waterfall. A happy place.

The salmon run at a very low ebb

This salmon run is usually full of powerful overflowing water coursing down from the upper levels to the lower but on this day, on a mid-summer quiet day, with no rains for several weeks, what little water is making it down that shute may not even be enough for a small fish to use it to get up higher and try for the lake way back there where it may well have come from originally. Even the local Heron is idly looking at water and clearly not too hopeful of an imminent lunch ! (not in the shot!)

Low water levels in this small river

This is the river just down from the salmon-run in Riv 6 and is as shallow and slow moving as the rest of it in this midsummer shot. The water disappears into and under classed greenery that is blown out by the hot midday sun and the whole thing could be out of a rainforest if it was all multiplied up several dozen times in scale. I like the texture of the slow moving water, the pale rose reflections of the rhododendron bushes flowers on the water at the mid left of the shot and the rocks further back there.

The same river from a different angle

The breeze has got up here now and is pushing the rhodo bushes about as well as ruffling the surface of the water as it babbles and scoots over small rocks in its’ path. You can almost hear the murmmerations if you look at it quietly. The resident Heron can often be seen sitting on those almost submerged small rocks, waiting for unsuspecting fish to swim on by - and they do, and it gets a good living out of this small but quite long wriggling river system.

Riverside Winter Reflections 1

Snow is still on the green stuff, the vibrant colours of stripped back architecture visible and reflected in the still water of the river in the foreground here, all tell you this is Life in action and Love writ large - for anyone with eyes to see, to see - and be glad about. The late afternoon sunlight in the clear blue sky up there, playing its’ essential part, without which, we would see nothing at all.

Riverside Winter Reflections 2

Snow is still on the green stuff, the vibrant colours of stripped back architecture visible and reflected in the still water of the river in the foreground here, all tell you this is Life in action and Love writ large - for anyone with eyes to see, to see - and be glad about. The late afternoon sunlight in the clear blue sky up there, playing its’ essential part, without which, we would see nothing at all.

Old bridge across the river 1

There used to be a full blown bridge here but now there is only the two under-girder supports left. Trees actually grow out of the tops of those girders - you can see the reflections of one of them in the water in the middle top of this shot and, right way up, and also reflected, in Riv 20. Extraordinary what nature does when left alone to just get on with it !

Old bridge across the river 2

There used to be a full blown bridge here but now there is only the two under-girder supports left. Trees actually grow out of the tops of those girders - you can see the reflections of one of them in the water in the middle top of this Riv 19 and, right way up, and also reflected, here in Riv 20. Extraordinary what nature does when left alone to just get on with it !

Still water reflections / white water rafting

If this water was deep enough for rafting it would be great but you do get this wonderful still water there, just a small distance away from where the level drops and, in that stillness, is the revealed implication of so much of the beauty that is all around this river at this so-called ‘empty’ time of the year. Nothing in nature is ever ‘not working’ - there’s always essential work of some kind happening, often out of sight,.

Riverwater going from higher to lower level

The lovely almost oily smears of the water as it changes levels is what got me here - and the very still water just above it, showing off a whole different look and feel. All within less than a metre of each other - and the bank and all the vegetation looking on and being blessed by the constant refreshed moisture in the air.

A Quiet piece of river in mid winter

This small stretch of a long river system has a peacefulness and a quietness in the winter months. The water is slow moving and all around you are the architectures of the trees which are normally covered with their leaves so you can’t see how they are shaped. There is something nicely elemental about this time of year and the spare look a lot of the landscape has. Some trees, the evergreens, keep their green leaves all year round and keep giving us all the oxygen we need even when the mass of other trees are resting their leaf output. A kind thought by A Loving and All Powerful Creator Who Clearly has Intelligence.

Busy small waterfall in high summer

The water here is funnelled down a small physical area across a narrow rock path so starts powering its’ way through, bouncing lots of noise off the steep rockface on the far side of it, and the whole thing sounds like a mini-Niagara at times. Full of vibrant energy on this full summer day, with all the greens alive and strong.

Cherry Blossom Tree in full bloom over water

This beautiful moment just appeared on my right as I was driving down a street with a small wall on the right, the other side of which was this narrow body of water with this great tree at the edge of where it broadened out and, presto, a beautiful image for us all to be blessed by. The motto of that is : “Always take your camera bag wherever you go !”

Small weir on small river

This is what the original weir used to look like on this vast open parkland before they built the Salmon Run in the middle of it and changed the look of the whole thing. So this image is now a piece of history which you cannot see any more in this part of the river now. It’s a peaceful quiet place with a small suspension bridge over it so you can look up and down the river here for a couple of hundred yards each way or so. On a quiet day you can find the resident heron perched patiently on a rock just above the water or on a handy tree branch, surveying the water for upcoming bites of lunch or a snack. The sound is lovely too. The birds love it and are everywhere. A small part of paradise for real.

Elderly Moss Covered Tree by the River

This great old tree leans majestically out over the river here and provides long arms with foliage covering the water and reaching low down to it in summer. A peaceful calm place to just sit and let the water ease by, listening to the birds all over the place here and being grateful to be alive. On a very still day, with some sunlight streaming down into the water, you get great reflections deep in the water here, some of which you will find in the river galleries on this site.

Riverside Reflections

Not a breath of air moving on the water surface in this day so these reflections can be as crisp and deep in three as they are. A whole world in there, as you spend time looking and marvelling at almost seeing more of the existing landscape, more clearly, under the water than above it. You can see why the software people love to create digital worlds we can just dive into and find ourselves somewhere completely other, but with enough of a reference to what was familiar, to be able to function. And Nature does that all the time, all around us.

Early Spring Waterfall

These lovely little white flowers just pick out and add contrast to that deep dark moving water. The white water of the mini-waterfall seems to sparkle in the early Spring Day and the little plateau of collected stones on the nearside bend on the other side make this the sort of crossing place John Wayne and his posse might have splashed through on their way to fulfilling their latest capture of bad guys. Happy sounds and sights here - all in return for the looking thereof.

Underwater rocks and what they do

The line of underwater rocks going almost right across the width of this small river here makes the surface break and jump and push, rill and splash to get over and past them. Just further down, underneath the bottom of this shot, the terrain falls away under the water and a small run of waterfall water rushes to the lower levels before calming out again. Thich Nhat Hanh often used to ask his students to “Be Like Water”, for it is the strongest element we have on the Planet : it goes round, over, under or through anything in front of it, always finding a way to follow its’ ultimate and undeniably true course. Indeed, All I know is it is beautiful as it does that, and we get to see, hear and rejoice in it as it does.

Sparse winter riverside

Not so interesting till you spend a bit more time looking. These natural grasses are wonderful. They seem to last most of each year and provide material for birds to use as nests, insects to use as homes, people to use as fire-starters as well as a host of other Human product-related material and, in all they so naturally do, they look wonderful - if you ever come across these grasses on a wild windy day, settle down and watch the many shapes they make as the winds take and toss and whip and tug at but never destroy them. Wonderfully hardy creations. You can find two shots of the mature versions of these grasses in the Flora & Fauna Gallery 7 on this site, blowing mightily in the winds there. The stones in the water here give a beautiful array of hues on this cloudy overcast wintery day - as precursor of things to yet come. Exactly what Faith does also.

Vibrant Winter Water Reflections

The sun is strong, out of a clear blue winter sky, snow is on the ground all around here, and these sharp vibrant reflections in a small turn on a small stream, play havoc with our recognition of where the water begins and the land and plants on it, end. Whichever bits are which, the whole effect of massed hues and in-yer-face highlights, grabs attention and rivets concentration.

Winter river landscape

The transition from the smooth to the ruffled water is a nice divide in this shot that takes in an everyday winter look at a bit of this small river and some of what’s along its’ edge. The almost oily smoothness of the water allowing reflections to be time-warped almost while the ruffled water, the other side of the rocks, reminds us of familiar babbling brooks and blesses us with a moment in time here, as the winter landscape largely rests, waiting for Springtime.

Almost a whole tree reflected in the river

A slight ruffling of the breeze on the water surface stops this being a crystal clear shot but the juxtaposition of elements here is a lovely look at a winter river landscape. You can see more of the landmarks in the water than if you find them on the banks.

Early Springtime along the River

Green leaves are shooting out of previously unnoticed twigs, making a great contrast with the duller winter hues everywhere else. The water with plenty of rain in it, moving energetically over small rocks in its’ path, the birds and wildlife all finding their survival way starting to look more interesting now warmer days and nights are approaching and the land starts to reawaken after the cold and sparseness of its' resting time.