Wales and Borders Photo Tour by David Bull

David Bull takes us on a stunning photo tour of a region  he likes and where he goes often, Wales and Borders.  Let us follow him and his words ... 

We start with a Black Mountain View. The peak to the right is Pen Y Fan, the highest point in the southern United Kingdom at 886 metres (2,907 ft). The range in the foreground is part of the Black Mountains. These are both part of the Brecon Beacons National Park, see map.

Sunset reflections on wet sand in Dunraven Bay, where I went as part of a group course on long exposure photography – this image is a 221 second exposure.

Llyn Clywedog – a lake in mid Wales. It is actually a reservoir built in 1967 on the upper waters of the River Severn (Britain’s longest river) to control flooding and provide drinking water for the cities of the West Midlands.

The Black Mountains in autumn. Despite their name they frequently turn white with snow. The valley in between is that of the River Wye, often rightly considered one of the most beautiful rivers in the UK. This image was taken a short walk from my home, which is just on the English side of the border.

A misty sunset view from Hergest Ridge, a large elongated hill which traverses the border between England and Wales. It is 426 metres high. The ridge inspired an album by English multi-instrumentalist Mike Oldfield, Hergest Ridge. Oldfield was a resident of the area during the writing and recording of his albums Hergest Ridge and Ommadawn. Ommadawn was actually recorded in his nearby house, The Beacon. At the end of Ommadawn is a short song entitled On Horseback. The last lines of the lyrics are as follows: “so if you feel a little glum, to Hergest Ridge you should come. In summer, winter, rain or sun, it's good to be on horseback”. On the day this picture was taken the ridge was above the clouds.

Another image from Hergest Ridge, with low cloud filling the valleys below.

Part of the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal. For most of its currently navigable 35-mile (56 km) length it runs through the Brecon Beacons National Park, and its present rural character and tranquillity belies its original purpose as an industrial corridor for coal and iron.

Herefordshire sunrise – taken a short walk from my home.

The beach at Ynyslas National Nature Reserve on the West coast of Wales.

A view of the town of Aberdyfi (Aberdovey in English) taken from the Ynyslas nature Reserve across the Dyfi river estuary.

Hills on the edge of the Snowdonia National Park across the Dyfi estuary.

Bluebell wood near Crickhowell in Monmouthshire, South Wales.

Powis Castle. The castle is known for its formal gardens and for its interiors, the former having been described as "the most important", and the latter "the most magnificent", in Wales. The castle and garden are under the care of the National Trust. The present castle was built in the 13th century, constructed by a Welsh prince, Gruffydd ap Gwenwynwyn. Gruffydd was Prince of the ancient Kingdom of Powys (which was abolished in 1283). Powys is now the name of a Welsh county.

Looking west into Wales from the ruins of Montgomery Castle – one of many castles build along the border over many centuries of conflict between England and Wales. Commenced around 1223 on the orders of Henry III in response to the growing power of Welsh native prince Llywelyn ap Iorwerth (Llywelyn the Great), the castle remained in use for centuries, surviving attacks by Llywelyn in 1228 and 1231 and Llywelyn’s son Dafydd in 1245. The castle’s ultimate end came during the English Civil War, when it fell to the Parliamentarians and was demolished in 1649, leaving just the crumbling towers and low walls that stand today.

A long exposure view out into the Irish Sea from Whitesands Bay in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park in the far south west of Wales.

A sunset shot from the beach at Whitesands Bay.

Breakfast Anyone? A puffin with a beak full of sand eels taken on Skomer Island, a nature reserve off the west coast of Pembrokeshire. The Atlantic puffin colony is the largest in southern Britain. Skomer is a national nature reserve, a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a Special Protection Area. It is surrounded by a marine nature reserve and is managed by the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales. Skomer is also known for its archaeological interest: stone circles, standing stone and remains of prehistoric houses. Much of the island has been designated an ancient monument. The island has an area of 2.92 km2 (720 acres). A survey in 2020 estimated as many as 35,000 puffins on Skomer.

Marloes Sands Beach in Pembrokeshire, not far from the ferry to Skomer. The 1.5 mile long sandy beach is rated as one of the best beaches in Britain but involves a fairly long walk to reach it. It is owned by the National Trust and famous for its rock formations rising out of the sand. If you visit, be careful not to get cut off by the incoming tide. Marloes Sands was the filming location for   Snow White & the Huntsman (September 2011) and The Lion in Winter (1968). The picture was taken on a dull, wet day in June.

St Davids Cathedral. St Davids, in Pembrokeshire, is Britain’s smallest city with a population of less than 2,000. St Davids was given city status in the 12th century, lost it in 1886, but it was restored in 1994 at the request of Queen Elizabeth II. The cathedral stands on the site of an earlier monastic community founded by St David, the patron saint of Wales, who died in 589. St Davids has long been a pilgrimage destination - in 1123, Pope Calixtus II decreed that "Two pilgrimages to St Davids is equal to one to Rome, and three pilgrimages to one to Jerusalem". The present cathedral was begun in 1181. It suffered earthquake damage in 1247/48. The cathedral was all but destroyed by Cromwell's forces during the Civil War and has been restored multiple times over the years.

Elan Valley, near Rhayader in mid Wales, is the site of 5 reservoir lakes built by the Birmingham Corporation to provide clean drinking water for the city of Birmingham. The picture, taken this summer shows the effects of the drought on water levels – the lake has almost disappeared.

Red Kites. The population in Wales had declined to just two pairs in the 1930s, but a successful reintroduction programme means there are now around 1,000 pairs in Wales.

A view of Tintern Abbey and village, in the Wye Valley (which marks much of the border) as it runs through the Forest of Dean. The left-hand side of the river in the picture is in Wales, the right-hand side in England. The Abbey was founded in 1131 and fell into ruin after the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 16th century (when King Henry the Eighth fell out with Rome). The photo is taken from a viewpoint known as the Devil’s Pulpit (legend holds that from here the devil would taunt the monks of Tintern Abbey below), which sits on the long-distance Offa’s Dyke Path, which runs for 177 miles along the border, roughly following the line of an ancient earthwork named after Offa, the Anglo-Saxon king of Mercia from AD 757 until 796, who is traditionally believed to have ordered its construction. Although its precise original purpose is debated, it delineated the border between Anglian Mercia and the Welsh kingdom of Powys.

We hope you enjoyed as much as we the editors did.