Tag Archives: travel

Ironbridge

When we still lived in Lancashire, we made a trip to Shropshire to visit my uncle and his family. As part of the visit, we went to Ironbridge. For those not familiar with industrial architecture, this is a significant place for the bridge made of iron (you’d never have guessed) that was a major innovation at the time. There is a great museum nearby which has old buildings and forging/casting techniques still practiced. Here is a view of the bridge itself and the steeply sided river valley that required it. Maybe we will get back there at some point on a future trip. We have friends that aren’t so far away!

Rocamadour

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About twenty years ago, we had a vacation in southern France. It is a beautiful part of the world to visit and a combination of great food and wine and some outstanding scenery. We were staying along the Lot river but a short drive away was the town of Rocamadour. This town is famous for being built on the side of a cliff. It is really a stunning location. As you approach it by road, you get a great view of the whole town arrayed up the side of the hill.

When you get in to the town, you can climb up to the top following a trail that pilgrims have made over the centuries. They did it in slow and laborious ways but we just walked, albeit slowly. When you get to the top, you can walk out on some ramparts that are pretty high and exposed. Not my idea of a fun place to be but I am not going to wuss out. If you find yourself in this part of France, so make the effort to visit. I would love to go again and this time I would take way more photos!

Busy American Terminals

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It’s been a little while since my last trip to Dallas but I did come across some other shots from when I was coming home through DFW. As one of the hubs for American Airlines, the majority of the gates seem to have American jets on them. The variety of types is decreasing with the MD-80s in their last throws while I was there. I like the longer shot you can sometimes get from the connector between the terminals which bunches up the jets. When they are all one type it isn’t so interesting but a collection of different fins is good if you can get it comparing the size of the narrow bodies and the widebodies.

Frosted Trees Along the River

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While I didn’t get the shots of the trees over the pass on Vancouver Island and I did get some shots from Port Alberni, I did pull off the road as we descended to take some shots across a valley that we were passing through. The local fire station was on a small rise which gave an elevated view of the valley that was still covered in frost. Plenty of farm structures provided a bit of interest to the shot. The wider shot was nice but the power lines which are, no doubt, very useful to the residents were a bit more annoying to the photographer. I wonder which is more important…

Chasing the Ball

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Beaches are great places for dogs. Plenty of space to run and then there is the water to play in if they like. As we were walking along Long Beach in Tofino. One guy was throwing a ball for his dog to chase and fetch. The dog was having a fantastic time roaring around the beach after the ball. The guy seemed to be happy too but I think I was almost as happy as the dog watching it having such a good time. A couple of times it came towards me and I wanted the guy to throw the ball my way more often to get some shots but I think he was throwing it away from me to avoid inconveniencing me. I should have said not to worry.

777-300 But No ER

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Japan is one of the places where it is easy to find a Boeing 777-300. The 777-200 sold in good numbers and Boeing stretched the airframe to create the -300. It was not a big seller but was picked up in the Asian market where capacity was important but range was not such a concern. When Boeing launched the 777-300ER, they unlocked the range and payload capabilities that were in demand and it sold very well – usurping the 747 as the long range high capacity jet of choice.

The -300 has been retired from some of its original operators but Japan Air Lines still flies them. They are most easily identified by the original wingtip shape as opposed to the rake tip that the 300ER has. They also have the original engine choices as opposed to the GE-90 only 300ER. I saw some at Haneda and grabbed some shots. With the A350s joint the JAL fleet, I wonder whether the 777-300s will soon be heading to the yard.

North Pacific Clouds Beneath Me

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A had to go to Tokyo for work recently and, for the first time on my transpacific trips, I got a window seat. The low winter sun angle made the clouds look great out of the window as we crossed the ocean heading to Japan. I don’t know what was below us. It might have been the Aleutians or it might have been nothing. I just thought it looked pretty.

Japan Transocean Air

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Haneda is a busy hub for Japan Air Lines (JAL). While you visit, there will be a steady stream of JAL 737s coming and going so, another one arriving is no cause for interest. However, I realized that this particular jet did not actually say Japan Air Lines on the fuselage. Instead, it was marked Japan Transoceanic Air. I had never heard of this airline before. A little research shows that it is part owned by JAL – hence the use of the common livery – but there are other shareholders. Occasionally they will lend aircraft to JAL but they do operate to Haneda so I don’t know whether this was a JAL flight or one of their own. A new airline for me, though.

Another Japanese Coast Guard Surprise

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On a previous visit to Haneda I ended up getting a photo of a Japanese Coast Guard Gulfstream. This time, the weather was not great so I ended up staying on the side which should be backlit but wasn’t since there wasn’t much light! A turboprop showed up on approach which I hadn’t noticed online and initially wasn’t bothered about. However, I shot it and it turned out to be a Japanese Coast Guard Dash 8. I was pretty pleased!

Amphitrite Lighthouse

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Drive south from Tofino and you come to the wonderfully named town of Ucluelet. There are some great trails near the town that take you around the coastline and one of them goes past a lighthouse. The Amphitrite Lighthouse is a great looking lighthouse. In the days of modern navigation techniques, the concept of lighthouses seems a little out of date but they still serve a purpose and they do provide a nice focal point to a view of a rocky coastline. The lighthouse was one of the first things to see on the trail we took and I should probably post some of the other views in another post at some point. In the meantime, here is the light to keep you going.