I took this shot whilst standing on a manmade, floating island, on Lake Titicaca, close to Puno in Bolivia. The locals, descended from the Spanish and the Incas, built the Uros Floating Islands from reeds, as well as the shelter you can see in this image. In the background, you can see one of the locals rowing her boat with her baby strapped to her back.
If you look closely enough, you can see the traditional engine…
I was standing on the edge of Lake Titicaca, the world’s highest navigable lake at a dizzy altitude of 3,811 m, when the girl in this photograph approached me and asked if I would take a picture of her. This was in 2003, so this shot was on 120 film, certainly well before the widespread usage of digital cameras. I doubt she will ever see this image, unless she somehow managed to find my blog.
If you ever decide to see South America, I strongly recommend that you visit Lake Titicaca, on the border of Peru and Bolivia. The lake is beautiful, with the Andes scraping the sky behind them in the distance.
Last time I was in Ushuaia, the most southern city in the world, was back in 2010. I visited Argentina, Bolivia and Chile for a 20 day photography trip. I started in Tierra del Fuego and worked my way north.
Ushuaia is an industrial town, situated next to the Beagle Channel, nestled amongst the mountains. Whilst wondering along the waters edge, I cam across this old tug that had run aground. The scene felt as desolate as the wintry weather that was lashing it that morning.
I was in Stockholm at the end of last week and wondered down to the harbour in search of a morning shot before the working day commenced. The weather forecast had stated it would be a clear, sunny day, yet as I stood on the quayside, it started to snow gently. As the opalescent cloud drifted off in a south easterly direction, the dawn light emerged along with some dawn colours.
The second shot below I took a short while later, with a Lee Filter Little Stopper (x6 ND filter), to lengthen the exposure. I lost the colour in the clouds but the movement of the ferry and sky made for an interesting alternative version of the same scene.
My view from Kowloon of a tug boat gliding away into the setting sun as it dropped behind downtown Hong Kong. I love Hong Kong. The geography, both natural and manmade are both arresting.
A couple of other extra long exposure shots from last weekend. This one was taken close to the Millennium Bridge. As the river was low, I was able to walk down to the beach, to take a lower angle shot of the Thames and Shard. The sun had finally broken through the clod, albeit temporarily, to illuminate the scene and bath the Shard in light.
This next shot was of HMS Belfast, across the Thames, of the Walkie Talkie building with the Gherkin also visible. As the ship was floating on the river, it tended to bob around, so I diminished the length of the exposure to compensate. You can see this in comparison to the tub boats in the foreground, which are blurred.
Out walking around downtown Singapore a week ago and grabbed a shot of the cityscape just after the sun had dropped below the horizon. Still over thirty degrees even past 8pm but that’s life one degree from the equator.
It’s day nine for Julien today and he started out from Brake early this morning catching the ferry across the Wesar river. Julien tells me he loves a ferry ride in the morning!
He then continued on to Beverstadt where he had a good German lunch and saw a number of schoolchildren disobeying their angry teacher!
Julien cycled over many hills today so he had a bit of a problem with both his knees. He also got a bit lost again (I am starting to sense a theme!) this time around Lambstedt. After a while he made it to a more major route to Wischaften and took another ferry along with a load of trucks and cars.
Julien then made a final 12 mile push to get to the campsite in Dageling where he is staying in for the night. Apparently the place is occupied by a few people who look like they have been there for too long!
Julien estimates one more full day in Germany heading towards the northeast around Schlesig and Flensburg.
Here is the Google Map for today and as always please visit the Child’s i Foundation and Julien’s Just Giving page. Thanks!
Total mileage: 78
Terrain: Flat on mainland but steep end of day climb on Arran with heavy rain
Another long day in the saddle after the previous day. However, we had a glorious view in the morning at the YHA hostel. The guys there were all really friendly and sent us off with a hot cup of tea and toast.
The weather was pretty foul again but not the same level of rainfall as the previous day. We cycled for a few miles on the small B7000 the hostel was sited off, until we came to the A713 main road to Ayr at Carpshaim. This road was fantastic as there was a long downhill through some incredible countryside. I think in all, we must have had the slope in our favour for about 4 miles.
We stopped off at a superstore in Ayr to stock up after the previous night’s food shortages. None of us wanted to be stuck in that position again in a hurry. Ayr is a very industrialised town and not particularly pleasant. Although the cycle route was well marked, the parts that took us through the urban areas, up through Prestwick and Troon, were particularly forgettable.
Fortunately, the route through the forests close to Kilwinning and Stevenston were really pretty and well maintained. We hardly saw another soul. The well kept cycle route made the ever worsening weather more bearable. Indeed, with 5 miles to Androssan where we intended to catch a ferry to Arran, the skies opened.
By the time we made it to Androssan, we were all completely soaked and the level of motivation was dropping almost as fast as our body temperatures. We timed the ferry perfectly, arriving with just enough time to buy our tickets and board the ferry. As you can see from the first picture, our bikes were fastened with a single bungee to the side of the boat. This, however, was sufficient as the crossing was relatively calm.
Arran looked incredible at first sight. The heavy, opalescent skies looming threateningly overhead as the ferry drew into the harbour. It was getting cold and our kit had not dried on the brief crossing. Mary was feeling the worst, suffering from knee problems. The harbour town of Brodlick was sufficiently congenial but very small. We soon pushed past the town limits as we headed northwards, towards the other ferry port town on the island of Lochranza.
Our route clung to the coastline, affording us the opportunity to see a sea lion as we rode along. The absence of traffic was also noted, something that made the final 16 mile push all the more bearable in the rain storm. The second leg of the Arran ride took us inland, into the mountains. The drama of the landscape was incredible, a real highlight of the trip as we forced the bikes up an ever steeper climb. The lashing rain only seemed to heighten the moment, making the scenery foreboding and menacing. It truly felt as though we were adventurers in parts unknown.
The hostel in Lochranza was great but considering that we had hardly passed a soul on the roads, strangely busy!
All Terrain Photography 