Visual Sound: April 2015

17 April 2015

BIRDSONG DISCO ON YOUTUBE | AVIAN AUDIO MIXTAPE

BIRDSONG DISCO
MARCH 2015 MIXTAPE 1:13:57

TRACKLISTING :

@RUNNINGBACK - NATURE ENSEMBLE
@LENLEISE : RYOSHI'S GARDEN [ @aficionado-recordings ]
CHANCHA VIA CIRCULTO : EL MACHA TOBIANO [ @rhythm-roots ]
@LENLEISE: ASMAL IMAGES - ORIGINAL MIX [ @aficionado-recordings ]
@SELVY : LOST TREASURE
LULACRUZA: CUCHARACHERO DE NICEFORO [ @rhythm-roots ]
@BEGIN : ELATE [ 33 RPM VERSION ]
BARRIO LINDO : CAPACHINO PECHO BLANCO [ @rhythm-roots ]
SELVAGEM : LUANDA [ @universalcave ]
CARL JACOBS & CAROL : ROBOT JAM - PART ONE [ @emotional-rescue ]
@SELVY : CATAMARAN
MATANZA : GALLINETA CHICA [ @rhythm-roots ]
JEANCY : U TURN ME ON [ @invisible-city-editions ]
DEMBO KONTE & KAUSA KUYATEH : SIMBOMBA

14 April 2015

6000 FEET HIGH | FLYING OVER SCOTTISH BORDERS

Taken from plane window on Manchester to Glasgow flight

THREE LOCHS WAY | WEST DUMBARTONSHIRE | SCOTLAND

Last weekend I walked along parts of the Three Lochs Way and The John Muir Way in West Dumbartonshire - both newly renovated cross country routes for walkers, cyclists, deers & maybe beavers too. Set off from Helensburgh at 6am so caught the sun coming up as I headed up to Loch Lomond across moorland, deep forests, path ways and hill tops, vaguely along this route (in reverse)...

Various photos taken along the route below...

6.20AM SUN RISING SCENE

Wood pond

Rain forest...

Note the snow in background

Apocalyptic deforesting [ CLICK TO EXPAND ]

View to Loch Lomond from Three Lochs Way

7am mist over Loch Lomond

Boat awaiting on Loch Lomond

Maid Of The Loch

US Navy boats sailing up the Clyde on way to Faslane for this

WHEEL UP! | THE AMAZING FALKIRK CANAL BOAT LIFT | SCOTLAND

Visited the spectacular & unique Falkirk Wheel over the weekend. It's a massive steel boat lift that connects the Forth and Clyde Canal with the Union Canal in central Scotland.

The wheel itself and the canal approach are both very modernist in design - lots of functional concrete, industrial steel, curves and of course, water...

The wheel raises boats by 24 metres but the Union Canal is still 11 metres higher than the aqueduct which meets the wheel so boats must pass through a pair of locks to get between the top of the wheel and the Union Canal.

But how does in work....?!

The caissons or gondolas always carry a combined weight of 500 tonnes of water and boats, with the gondolas themselves each weighing 50 tonnes. Care is taken to maintain the water levels on each side, thus balancing the weight on each arm. According to Archimedes' principle, floating objects displace their own weight in water, so when the boat enters, the amount of water leaving the caisson weighs exactly the same as the boat.

It takes just 22.5 kilowatts to power the ten hydraulic motors, which consume just 1.5 kilowatt-hours per half-turn, roughly the same as boiling eight kettles of water.

[ lots more on The Falkirk Wheel Wikipedia page here ]

Also, along the canal on the other side of Falkirk, the Andy Scott-designed 'Kelpies' are worth a visit -100 feet high steel horse heads.

(please note that The Kelpies are not to be confused with the common Water Kelpie, the shape shifting spirits whom inhibit Lochs across Scotland)

07 April 2015

EAST LANCS RAILWAY | DIESEL TO RAMSBOTTOM & RAWTENSTALL | PHOTOS & VIDEOS

+ LESS GLAMOROUS DIESEL TRAINS TOO....

Went on the East Lancs steam (& diesel) railway over the bank holiday. Starting from Bury, the railway heads North through East Lancashire, ending up in Rawtenstall.

They have a variety of engines running on the line, both traditional steam through to 1970s British Rail diesel (connoisseur's choice). It's £14 for a day of unlimited travel and the trains run backwards and forwards throughout, allowing you to pop off for walking, eating, drinking etc as the weather dictates...

A few photos & videos below - taken on the tracks, in the hills around Ramsbottom and various places in between: