OTaL: Picture Thread

[Steve_God]

The Handover, with garynortheast (lovely chap!) - I've also counted this as the 'selfie shot' too


Mow Cop Castle - on the Cheshire/Staffordshire border, in between Congleton and Kidsgrove. It's basically a folly castle that's at the top of the hill where I now live.


The panoramic view from the top of the hill (thanks to garynortheast for the software tip for stitching them together!)


Another view from the hill (overlooking Jodrell Bank, and a particularly cool tree)


My office view by day (bit of zoom into the welsh hills)


My office view by twilight (Dat view...)


Full res images of my photos available here: https://goo.gl/photos/5QfXrmgUfWnZnFxp6

[Sir Trev]

The OTAL camera has finally made it south of the Watford Gap. Steve God was passing by on his way to a meeting so the handover happened over a coffee, where we were snapped by a chap who had trouble knowing which way up a camera should go... Excuse the blurs.


So, what to show you? Well the obvious place to start is H Cafe, near Dorchester upon Thames. Not so many bikes about of a Sunday in late Feb but on a Monday night in the summer the place is ram packed and has some nice roads nearby.


The cafe is not exactly pretty but I have a few chocolate box views nearby. Heading down the Thames a bit is Marlow, with it's chain suspension bridge, lovely church and (hideously expensive) period waterfront houses. It also has a picturesque weir which avid Dr Who fans might recognise from the 1970 Ambassadors of Death. The Doctor's assistant Liz is chased across it. [please note Lady Poppy is the 1970's Dr Who fan and provided this bit of info].


Closer to home there are a few other places of interest, such as what's left of the original broad gauge station built by Brunel when Wycombe was at the end of a branch line of the Great Western Railway


Wycombe was also well known for its furniture trade, especially chairs (hence why the Wanderers are called The Chairboys) owing to the amount of Beech woodland around here and the huge number of manufacturers that sprung up along the Wye valley to exploit the material. We used to the be the home of some big names, like Ercol and Parker Knoll, but sadly both have moved away now and there is only a few places left making traditional handcrafted pieces. Wycombe Museum has some interesting examples. This shows an early classroom chair, with a small built in desk on one arm; a soldiers chair that only has a right arm rest, allowing a soldier to sit without removing his sword; an office swivel chair, without the gas riser and casters we take for granted now; and a symmetrical garden chair which if it was wet or covered in leaves you could turn it upside down and sit on the dry/clean side.


The scenery is not too bad around here, if you like hills that is. Such as: my road


The view towards Aylesbury from the edge of the Chilterns, from a viewpoint called Coombe Hill. The vale to the north/west of the Chilterns includes central Bucks and Oxfordshire - a great place for biking with open roads and few obstructions


A panorama from the same spot - not the OTAL camera's greatest forte and you may need to view the full size image to see any detail at all. It was a hazy day but if the weather was better you would be able to see what's left of Didcot power station on the horizon to the left.


Last one from Coombe Hill is of a building bequeathed to the state in 1921 by Lord and Lady Lee of Fareham. Ever since it has been the countryside residence of the Prime Minister of the UK and known to all as Chequers.


And no set of this area would be complete without a snap of a real wildlife success story. Reintroduced to the Chilterns 20-odd years ago the Red Kite can now be seen all over this area and has indeed spread out quite a distance. Soaring and gliding all day they are a wonderful sight. An early morning ride down a quiet road will often startle a few as they come down to feast on roadkill.


And now it's on to the next recipient.

[Richie]

Where has Bretus gone ?

[chris8886]

brettus is in a couple of those pictures, where's he gone? I haven't seen him post on here in a while.....

[pookie]

Hand over.. Jolly nice day out! Great meeting you Sir Trev!


Fantastic detail from our local artists.. The wall art can only be seen from the river as it is on the other side of the river defense wall. As you drive over the qe2 bridge looking to the left you can see the start of the gallery



Apparently this is the tallest pylon in europe. They come as a pair with the other one on this side of the river. In the distance are the Tilbury docks.
The water is tidal and there are some tasty fish in there



Normally you take it for granted driving over it but there is a weird kind of awe standing underneath it. Not quite the Millau bridge but still a feat of engineering.
We paid it off years ago with the toll money and were promised it would be free thereafter..unfortunately our governments have other plans and continue to charge ( unless you are a cyclist or a motorcyclist.)



I remember quite clearly how I felt when I first saw this in 4 weddings and funeral and yes this is the church from the funeral ( St Clements church) . The mothership is Proctor & Gamble who maintain the church. The interesting note is the stonework outside is etched with dates and names of workers in years gone by.



Bonus Picture - This was the last piece in the gallery as I rode home. A half mile wall of ever changing artwork.