River Lagan Walks. Part Thirteen

There are many starting points to begin you River Lagan Walks, and Shaw’s Bridge car park is one of them.

Shaw’s Bridge is in South Belfast and there are 4 ways you can start your walks, all of which are different.

The first walk is up to Barnett’s Park, which will take you up to where the playing fields and the squirrels are, or you can cross over the River Lagan and the old Shaw’s Bridge and either turn left towards the Lock-Keepers Cottage; or you can head right towards Minnowburn Meadows, which is a truly beautiful walk, or you walk the towpath on the side of the car park at Shaw’s Bridge.

The squirrels are out and about this 2021, though my next few photographs were taken in Autumn 2020, which is why the leaves are brown and the trees are shedding their leaves, it is still part of my River Lagan Walks, on her towpaths, in her parks and on her many pathways.

I love they way my Nikon CoolPix P900 camera not alonely captures the beautiful Grey Squirre in detail, but also it’s surroundings and even the morning dew on the grass this cold Autumn morning out in Mother Nature.

In the Autumn up in Barnett’s Park the Grey Squirrels are everywhere, then during to Winter months, they hibernate until Spring and then slowly begin to surface again.

I know the Grey Squirrels get a bad rap for destroying the Red Squirrels, but it the fault of the one or ones who brought it into the country and not the Grey Squirrels fault.

The squirrels are always on guard and ready to bolt if anyone or pet comes their ways, so sit down, relax and just zoom into them at will.

There are plenty of sits and picnic tables to sit at and get your perfect photographs of the Grey Squirrels, so take your time and you will get some amazing photographs for your own projects, Social Media Sites and photography sites you might be on.

I love my last photograph because of how the Squirrel blends into the golden leaves on the ground as it searches for nuts.

Only one of these Mallard Drakes will win the favour of the Mallard Hen swimming beside the Drakes, but she is in charge, a bit like human women if Truth be told.

I have been practicing photographing fast moving wildlife, and it doesn’t come any faster than, Swallow’s, House Martin’s or Swift’s.

In my last photograph I have photographed a fast flying Swallow.

I know it is a Swallow because of the split in its long tail.

Yet this little bird was too fast for me to photograph while looking through my cameras viewfinder, so all I did was point towards it and simply snapped, with surprising and amazing results.

Now I have featured these little birds before, but they need to be seen again because of their fast beauty.

Once more I was surprised and amazed by my last photograph when I uploaded it to my laptop, because once more I just pointed my Nikon CoolPix P900 camera and snapped the scene of the House Martin’s dancing through the sky this warm Summer evening.

House Martin’s have stumpy tails as you can see from my last photograph and the one before of the Swallow with its long tails behind it.

As my last photograph shows, the House Martin is very different from the Swallow two photographs before.

I am just amazed at how amazing my Nikon CoolPix P900 camera is at capturing such fast flying birds as a Swallow and House Martin’s.

I have yet to photograph a Swift, but will when they appear along my River Lagan Walks.

The Grey Wagtail’s will be heading inland to the farms and farmland for the Summer, which is when this beautiful bird, it’s amazing colours and wagging tail will disappear until Autumn arrives again.

It is amazing to watch the young Grey Wagtails out learning the ways of their new lives this 2021.

It amazes me that such small creatures, after but a few days of life become masters and mistresses of their surroundings in and around the River Lagan.

I love my last photograph because of how I have captured not only the Grey Wagtail standing on this river stone, but also it’s amazing reflection on the River Lagan.

I love Monty’s character and mischievousness as he hides his ball behind this bench for Noel to pick it up.

He is not looking at me, he is fixated on Noel coming to pick his ball up behind the bench LOL.

Noel asked me why I would include a Rat in my River Lagan Walks books and stories on here, and I told him, “If it crosses our path, and I haven’t photographed it before like this Rat, then I photograph it.”

No time out in Mother Nature ever bores me because she has so much to offer as I slowly walk along.

In all her majestic beauty, shapes, sizes and colours Mother Nature does what she does best, and that is to display her beauty, whether through her amazing wildlife or scenery, which includes her beautiful flowers, trees, bushes and weeds.

Even a single flower can lift my Soul when I photograph it and see the result of my gifted eyes.

Just beside the Lock-Keepers Cafe someone has scattered wild flower seeds on the grass with an amazement result of wild flowers in a mini wild meadow.

My last four photographs are firsts for me because I have never seen these flowers before on my walks along the River Lagan, her towpaths, parks and pathways.

Whoever scattered the wild flowers seeds on the grass beside the Lock-Keepers Cottage knew what they were doing, and the beauty their activity would bring about.

My River Lagan Walks books available on Amazon.com-Aunidan Christi, and my stories here on Vocal.Media.com are not all about the amazing wildlife the River Lagan in Belfast, Northern Ireland has to offer, but also the beautiful scenery and all within them and that which flies above us, natural and manmade.

In my last photograph, my friend Noel photographed me, 5 feet, 11 inches standing beside this Hogweed weed standing even taller beside me.

This is why you cannot see the River Lagan at present, so photographing the wildlife at present is almost impossible.

All new life amazes me, especially at how quick each species can become masters and mistresses of their new surroundings.

In my last photograph I love the way I have captured the weeds surrounding the water lilies on the River Lagan and the amazing reflections.

It will be interesting to see how big these Water Lilies will grow this Summer 2021.

In my last photograph above I love the way I have captured the Little Grebe among the greenery surrounding it in and around the River Lagan.

Such a small bird in its great big world.

In my last photograph I have once more captured the Little Grebe on the River Lagan, but this time it is a piece of my Digital Art, which would look good on any gallery wall.

This photograph is a special second in photography.

Over the last 9 months of walking the River Lagan, her towpaths, parks and pathways, I have never seen any Wild Roses growing on any of my hour or so out each week, but then again my walks only began in Autumn last year, so I have never seen any weeds or flowers blooming in the last 9 months of walking.

It is really nice to see Wild Roses growing along the River Lagan towpath, and on the River Lagan herself, and it is lovely to photograph them for my River Lagan Walks books and stories here on Vocal.Media.com

The young Mallard Ducklings are out and about on the River Lagan this June 2021, which are a welcome distraction on this evening out where the wildlife was scant on the river, on the ground and in the trees and bushes.

Yet my River Lagan Walks are not only about the amazing wildlife in around the River Lagan, her towpaths, parks and pathway, because if it graces my path as I slowly walk along, then I photograph it, whether amazing wildlife, scenery or man made flying crafts.

I have been trying to photograph a fish breaching the surface of the River Lagan, but thus far all I have photographed is the ripples they leave behind while swallowing flies from the surface of the River Lagan.

I love the way I have captured the reflections of the trees on the River Lagan with their many shades of green.

To me the ripples above are Digital Art, which I have included on my photography sites I am on, in the Digital Art Galleries sections.

The deadly Giant Hogweed is just about to bloom this 23/06/2021, so be careful while close to it, because it can leave you with serious burns and blisters.

The small Hogweed is still dangerous to earthly human beings, but the Giant Hogweed is in a league of its own when it comes to dangerous weeds in the UK.

I have been trying for ages to photograph a fast flying bird, but bar my photographs of the flying Heron’s who fly slow and gracefully, and the photographs of House Martin’s and Swallows, my luck with flying birds is only beginning, and this after 9 months of walking slowly along the River Lagan, her towpaths, parks and pathways.

In my last photograph I love the way I have captured the Pigeon in flight, and the way you can plainly see it is a Pigeon flying in the cloudy sky.

As our short hour out was coming to an end this evening, once more I was passing the Lock-Keepers Cottage and garden and thought I would take another photograph of the amazing flowers in front of the Lock-Keepers Cottage and I am glad I did for the scene and it’s different beautiful colours.

As those who have read my River Lagan Walks books on Amazon.com-Aunidan Christi and stories here on Vocal.Media.com will know, if a Jetliner or any travel transportation fly’s by above, then I photograph it, just as my mysterious photograph above shows with this Jetliner flying into Belfast City Airport within the low clouds, which gives my photograph a mysterious look as you can see.

Well that is a few other short walks out in Mother Nature for my health, mental health and well-being and for my different writing projects.

I hope my stories and short walks inspire you to get out and about where you live on the Earth-Plane for your own health, mental health and well-being and for your own photography projects like mine.

Until next time:

Aunidan

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