West Pennine Moors

The scenery is breathtakingly beautiful and there's a timelessness about the moors that gives you the impression that you could have slipped back a century. It's so quiet and peaceful, with just the odd cry of birds circling overhead, enjoying the wind.

View of Darwen

The surrounding towns seem far away and less significant. In this shot you can see the town of Darwen nestled between the hills. If you look closely on the opposite hilltop, you can just see Darwen Tower, which up closer looks a bit like a rocket ready for launching, according to my grandson!

Standing stone

You come across some unexplained things on the moors. This standing stone has always puzzled me. What was it put there for? There are no other stones like it for miles. It has an air of pagan mystery about it.

Mound

This is another mystery to me. What can this large mound be for? It's quite large and looks a bit like a slag heap, but there are no mines around here. Where did it come from?

Farmhouse built from local stone.

I love the moorland stone houses and farms. Sadly, they're way beyond my means to buy. Still, I can dream…

The whitewashed building with the conservatory is a licensed Italian restaurant. I once had a meal there. It was very pleasant to eat whilst enjoying the marvelous views.

Drystone wall.

Another of my favorite things is drystone walls. There's something about rocks and stones that appeals to me. It's hard to explain what it is. I love the way the lichen grows on the stone. I didn't realize how skilled a job it was to build these walls until I once tried to build one in my garden.

A different viewpoint.

I like experimenting with the camera. Lately I've had a thing about taking shots through holes like this. Usually they turn out badly, but I quite like this one.

Cattle grazing on moorland.

There are always cattle to be found grazing on the lower slopes. The masts you can see in the background are on Winter Hill.

Moorland sheep.

Higher up you get sheep. This one was unusually inquisitive!

More sheep.

Whereas these three were off on a jaunt somewhere.

Farm cat.

I didn't expect to come across this animal in the fields. He watched me for a good ten minutes before slinking off.

Ramsbottom

I finished off my day's shooting in the village of Ramsbottom. After a much needed coffee I did a bit of charity shopping - another of my favorite pastimes. I picked up a real bargain of a jumper for £4.

Hand-knitted jumper.

My daughter thought it was “naff “ but I love it!

The process of cheese making is basically the same no matter where you go. It is very simple and can even be tried at home if you are feeling adventurous.

Each country has it's own particular types of cheese and the names vary. Here is a small selection of the more interesting UK produced ones.

1. Buffalo

   This is a fairly recent addition to the UK market. It was first produced in 1996 and has a mild flavor with a touch of almonds. It is hard and made with unpasteurized buffalo milk.

2. Cornish Pepper

   This is a rich, creamy cheese which is liberally sprinkled with cracked peppercorns. It takes about five weeks to make and is soft and moist in texture.

3. Exmoor Blue

   This blue cheese is made from ewe and goat's milk. It is strong tasting and suitable for vegetarians and compares well to other blue veined Stilton type cheeses.

4. Gospel Green

   This is a hard, Cheddar type cheese made from cow's milk. It is unpasteurized and has a slight aroma of apples.

5. Stinking Bishop

   This hard cheese is made from cow's milk. It is washed in an alcoholic drink called "Stinking Bishop" which is made from pears. It has a very strong, ripe flavor and smell.

6. Tymsboro

   This soft cheese is made from goat's milk. The natural rind is dusted with black ash and covered in a light, white mould. It has a light after taste of lemon.

1. Per capita, New Zealand contains more bookshops and more golf-courses than any other country in the world. The image of New Zealand as ‘just a sporting nation’ is actually false. New Zealanders are intelligent too.
2. Per capita New Zealand has more sheep than any other country in the world. (The Japanese tourists go crazy over them.) In recent years the highest number of sheep the country had was some 70 million in 1981. The sheep population, however, has dwindled since then, so that by 1999 there were only around 45 million. That’s still around 11 sheep per man, woman and child.
3. New Zealand is the first country to see the sunrise, and consequently was the first country to see in the new Millennium. That’s officially correct only because the first place in the world to see the sunrise each day, the Chatham Islands, belongs to New Zealand. The three islands making up New Zealand itself are some 45 minutes behind the Chathams.
4. New Zealand has the most southerly railway station, vineyard and pub in the world. These are all in the South Island. The most southerly capital city in the world, Wellington, is in the North Island.
5. This same capital city, Wellington, has more restaurants per capita than any other city in the world - including New York. Either Wellingtonians are a hungry lot and eat out frequently, or else there are plenty of restaurants that don’t do very well.
6. Auckland, which some New Zealanders (mostly Aucklanders) consider should be the capital city, has more boats per capita than any other city in the world. Auckland has several fine harbours, and of course, the Americas Cup was hosted there with great success in the past.
7. Per capita, New Zealanders have more access to the Internet than any other country in the world. This is not to say that every New Zealander has broadband, or even good access to the Net. Some enterprising New Zealanders have found their own way to get access, with more or less success. And Wellington gets in on the act once more: it’s the most wired city in the world - per capita.
8. Per capita, New Zealanders have the second highest rate of car ownership in the world. Fortunately, New Zealanders are spread over the land fairly thinly, so there are still plenty of places where you can drive for miles without seeing another car.
9. New Zealand was the first country in the world to give women the vote, to adopt the eight-hour working day, to operate a tourist board and to introduce the retirement pension. Unfortunately, these great gains have been eroded somewhat over the last few decades. Women, of course, still have the vote - in fact, New Zealand has had two female Prime Ministers - but many people work longer hours for less money now. With the advent of retail weekends, where shops are expected to be open at all hours, many people in retail have lost their right to any sort of proper weekend. And the retirement pension, which used to be set at 60, is now up to 65 - and may climb higher. For better or worse, people in New Zealand are just living longer.
10. The Lord of the Rings trilogy was filmed entirely in New Zealand, in spite of concerns from the American producers, in spite of the fact that the director, Peter Jackson, had never directed one film of that scale before, let alone three, and in spite of the fact that they all said it couldn’t be done. ‘They’ were wrong as usual. New Zealanders aren’t the sort of people who give in easily.

Whatever we hear, it often makes us steer clear of endeavoring furthering into exploring whatever it may have to offer. Boulder City, Nevada is one such place I would never have thought I would enjoy visiting.

My thoughts about it have now changed. My parents live in this small city and I have been staying with them for a short visit. They live in a home that has a clear view of Lake Mead the beautiful body of water that is contained by the Hoover Dam.

Across the street from their backyard is a simple street that separates their home from a small park containing a small playground set for children, a tennis court and a baseball field.

Every morning three sets of sheep come bounding faithfully down the hill to graze upon the park's rich green grass, a piece of land that the Boulder City community keeps meaningfully watered as a conscious effort to bring tourists to the area to view the animals and bring in much needed economic dollars.

Quails, doves and hummingbirds readily visit their backyard, feed on their bird feeder and rest on tree branches. One evening I attempted to take a jog and was pleasantly greeted by wild jack rabbits that hopped and ran past me into the comforting landscape beyond my reach.

As the night fell faster, the stars shone brighter. Living in Los Angeles, California I had almost forgotten what the Big Dipper looked like. Leaning my head back, I could view the stars in the sky lucidly and wondered how I have gone so long without seeing them. The night air was fresh and the ambiance helped invigorate my soul.

Though the temperature is something you must get used to, I have developed an appreciation for the beauty that can be found in this small part of the world. It is simple here. My parents went to the bank and the employees knew their name. I don't know if I could ever live here as I love jogging and the extreme dry heat caused my throat to get sore within minutes, my skin to dry and crack without enough lotion, and my hair to develop static.

But I will never forget my experiences here and the beauty of nature that has thankfully been preserved in this quaint, special town.