Walking by the river - in pictures

flisssweetpea

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Yesterday, our car was in the garage for some work to be done. They needed it in the workshop for the whole day, so we decided to take a walk by the river, do some shopping and have a late lunch.

Here are the photos of our walk by the river - beware, I took a few


We walked down the steps from street level to the towpath - the river has been canalised as it goes through the city. This is the view that meets us at the bottom of the steps



As you can see, when we turn the other way, we really are right in the middle of the city



We headed off away from the city, towards the locks - at the weir, the river widens out into a little lake



Here is the weir



Just beyond the weir is the first of the locks that we came upon, it is the set of locks at Freemans Common






The football stadium is just on the other side of the river




contd/......
 
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flisssweetpea

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We came across some wildlife on the river - mallards



Moorhens



and baby moorhens on the nest



A Red Admiral sunning itself on the nettles



A banded demoiselle damselfly (this one's a little blurry, it was a long way away on a blustery day and I was on digital zoom!)



a Blue Banded Damselfly on a lily leaf in the river



A lovely flower which I later found out is an invasive species called Indian Balsam (I photographed it so I could identify it at home)





As I was photographing it, a narrowboat sailed on by going towards the locks



contd/.....
 
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flisssweetpea

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The last part


So, we scooted on down to the locks and got some shots of the boats being lowered to the next level down on the river

Here at the boats in the lock at the higher level - you can see the water is just starting to flow out of the lock



After the water level had lowered, here are the boats emerging on the lower level



Here we are......back in the city and the end of our walk



Hope you enjoyed our walk along the river
 

dawnofsierra

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These are so beautiful, Beth! The reflection on the water is so very tranquil, what a wonderful serene feeling, and to think this atmosphere exists so close to the hustle and bustle of town. Wow, the Indian Balsam is beautiful!
The mallards and moorhens are such a lovely site, as is the graceful Red Admiral. The banded demoiselle damselfly is such an intense color! That would be a perfectly peaceful boat ride sailing on the river.


This was such a perfect day for this relaxing walk while waiting for your car! I do so enjoy these walks together!
 

anakat

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Beautiful pictures, we used to do canal holidays when our children were teenages.There is nothing like waking up in the morning and finding a heron looking in at you.
 

AbbysMom

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Those are some truly beautiful pictures Beth! Thank you for letting us share your walk with yuo! I thoroughly enjoyed it!
 

dawnofsierra

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I keep thinking how beautiful your Indian Balsam is, Beth, right down to the tiniest detail!
Is it common in your area? Being an invasive species, does this mean it grows rapidly and takes over the surrounding plants?


Originally Posted by flisssweetpea

A lovely flower which I later found out is an invasive species called Indian Balsam (I photographed it so I could identify it at home)
 
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flisssweetpea

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The waterways are so peaceful aren't they Anna - I've never taken a boating holiday, but love walking by the rivers and canals. At work we have a lovely wildlife pond that has fishes, ducks and kingfishers, every day a heron can be seen sitting on the roof of the medieval monastery watching all the fish hungrily


Glad you enjoyed the walk Karen and Fran.
 
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flisssweetpea

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Originally Posted by dawnofsierra

I keep thinking how beautiful your Indian Balsam is, Beth, right down to the tiniest detail!
Is it common in your area? Being an invasive species, does this mean it grows rapidly and takes over the surrounding plants?
It's such a beautiful flower isn't it! I didn't have a clue what it was, with the big bowl on the flower and the opening at the front I thought it might be some kind of orchid. Lani had it right, she said that it was a herb of some kind, possibly a member of the mint family - she was going by the stem and leaf shape, she had learned all about plant identification this year at her summer school.

When we got back we found that it was Indian Balsam. Apparently it was imported into the UK from the Himalayas in the 1800s and escaped from the gardens that it was planted in. You're right in that where it grows it tends to be vigourous and takes over the native species.
 

miss mew

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Those are lovely pictures!
I really like the one of the mallard
 

mistys mum

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I enjoyed the walk. Thanks for sharing. There is something about water and green scenery that makes me feel so rested.
 

kittylover4ever

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Beth, wonderful pics. I love it when people take pics of places around them, etc..........
 

dawnofsierra

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Originally Posted by flisssweetpea

It's such a beautiful flower isn't it! I didn't have a clue what it was, with the big bowl on the flower and the opening at the front I thought it might be some kind of orchid. Lani had it right, she said that it was a herb of some kind, possibly a member of the mint family - she was going by the stem and leaf shape, she had learned all about plant identification this year at her summer school.

When we got back we found that it was Indian Balsam. Apparently it was imported into the UK from the Himalayas in the 1800s and escaped from the gardens that it was planted in. You're right in that where it grows it tends to be vigourous and takes over the native species.
This is so interesting, Beth! I do so enjoy facts such as this, I'm glad you sought out these details of the flower. Thank you so much for telling us all about it!
 

furryferals

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PHwooaa !!! Take my breath away why don't you!!

I almost felt like I was back in my childhood hometown watching the wildlife myself when I saw your pics.

They are brilliant Beth
So detailed,I felt like I was there


Please get some more?


Hey and you know your wildlife too,don't you!!!
 
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flisssweetpea

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Did you grow up where I live Diana???? Wouldn't that be amazing! Or is it that you went on nature walks too?

Thank you so much for enjoying them with us.


Birds and butterflies I'm ok with and can pretty much identify anything I see on my nature walks; but dragonflies and damselflies are new ones for me to identify, so the photographs help to identify them later.

I live about 12 miles from the city. We are planning to take a longer walk along the river soon
- we'll wait for a day that's not so sunny as I shouldn't spend too much time in the sun.
 

furryferals

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Originally Posted by flisssweetpea

Did you grow up where I live Diana???? Wouldn't that be amazing! Or is it that you went on nature walks too?

Thank you so much for enjoying them with us.


Birds and butterflies I'm ok with and can pretty much identify anything I see on my nature walks; but dragonflies and damselflies are new ones for me to identify, so the photographs help to identify them later.

I live about 12 miles from the city. We are planning to take a longer walk along the river soon
- we'll wait for a day that's not so sunny as I shouldn't spend too much time in the sun.
Aww thats a shame Beth,I wish I had grown up where you live,but mine isn't as glam as yours,mine is a (ahem) was a dirty old town
but the wildlife is reclaiming what is rightfully theirs.
No I didn't go on nature walks Beth,I just spent as much time as I could outdoors

In my own little world
 
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