Prees Heath Common nature reserve in Shropshire is the last sanctuary for the Silver-studded Blue butterfly in the Midlands. The reserve is on a large Common that had been a Second World War airfield. A major restoration project is re-instating heathland and grassland vegetation across much of the site.

As we are back home for a week or two we decided to go out for a drive and revisit some of the places we hadn't been to for ages.

Houghton Mill, near St Ives in Cambridgeshire, is the only working watermill left on the Great Ouse. The present Grade II*-listed building probably dates from the 17th century and was substantially altered and extended in the 18th and 19th centuries.

In its mid-19th century heyday, the mill ran 10 pairs of stones, powered by three separate waterwheels. Much of the internal machinery remains intact although the wheels were removed in the 1930s when the mill stopped production. Today, corn is ground by a pair of millstones powered by the north waterwheel which was re-instated in 1999.

Houghton Mill is owned by the National Trust.

This valley, known as Whitcombe, is part of Ham Hill Country Park, in South Somerset.

It is the site of a medieval village, the village pond remains, (it is not visible in this picture). The stream from the pond, flowed through the willow trees in the centre of the photograph. Some years ago it was piped underground and is now being re-instated, after Whitcombe became part of Ham Hill Country Park.

Our only visitors so far to the newly re-instated bird feeders have been robins and the occasional blackbird pair. So I was surprised to see this little bird flitting around and even more surprised to capture it and see that it had found something useful in the garden. I think it's a goldcrest...........identification welcomed.

Looking down from the Iron Age ramparts into Whitcombe Valley, Ham Hill Country Park, Somerset.

The medieval village of Whitcombe was sited in the valley with houses each side of a road, that ran down to the pond in this photograph. The village became deserted due to social and agricultural changes over the years.

A stream flowed out of the pond but was piped underground when the land was part of a farm.

In recent years the management of the Country Park has including re-instating the stream, creating a series of small pools, which are visible in this picture due to the heavy winter rainfalls this winter.

A view from the Hawes side of the disused railway to a barn and beyond.

The NER section of the line lost its passenger service in April 1954, but the station retained a nominal service of one train each way from Hawes Junction (by then renamed Garsdale) until final closure to passengers on 16 March 1959. Goods traffic from the Leyburn direction continued until complete closure in April 1964, after which the track was lifted and the buildings left to fall into disrepair. However, after many years of disuse, the site was purchased by the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority and converted into a museum and tourist information centre in the early 1990s, a role it continues to fulfil to this day. As part of this scheme, the station buildings and platforms were refurbished, a short length of track relaid. A preserved industrial tank locomotive, cosmetically painted in British Railways colours, together with a pair of ex-BR Mark 1 coaches, were installed as a static exhibit.

Although isolated from the national rail network for over fifty-five years, the Wensleydale Railway hopes to one day eventually rebuild, re-instate and re-open the currently abandoned and derelict section of line between Redmire and Garsdale (thus would involve restoring the station to its former glory and active use). However, the train with three carriages which currently resides in the platform would have to be removed and placed in a newly-constructed siding, because the project involves re-instating the entire station to its former use.

I just liked the combination and this a happy memory of the hour spent with Canon R, a full frame mirrorless camera with a handy lens that I was able to use at the Canon Collective Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers workshop week which I very much enjoyed at the time.

That was all finished up due to the problems of last year and I guess it has not been re instated again yet.

This valley known as Whitcombe is part of Ham Hill Country Park, in South Somerset.

It is the site of a medieval village, the village pond remains, (is not visible in this picture). The stream from the pond, flowed through the willow trees in the centre of the photograph. Some years ago it was piped underground and is now being re-instated, after Whitcombe became part of Ham Hill Country Park.

This valley known as Whitcombe is part of Ham Hill Country Park, in South Somerset.

It is the site of a medieval village which extended along both sides of a road running through the valley floor and culminating at the village pond, located beneath the bushes to the right of the centre of the photograph. The stream which flowed from the pond was piped underground some time ago, and since becoming part of Ham Hill Country Park, is being re-instated.

The snow on the left hand slopes outlines the former sites of strip cultivation from medieval times.

The left hand slopes also form the remains of the ramparts of the Iron Age fort on Ham Hill.

Colas Rail Class 37116 seen making its first appearance on the anglia test train for quite some while. Seen passing the recently Instated Werrington Diveunder in a lucky break of clouds running a mere 36 minutes Early working 1Q86 1137 March Down Refuge Siding to Derby RTC Serco Via Lincoln and Doncaster. 21/08/22

This valley known as Whitcombe is part of Ham Hill Country Park, in South Somerset.

It is the site of a medieval village which extended along both sides of a road running through the valley floor and culminating at the village pond, in the centre of the photograph. The stream which flowed from the pond was piped underground some time ago, and since becoming part of Ham Hill Country Park, is being re-instated.

Today I decided to visit this picturesque place in Gates, Oregon.

This water wheel was built and instated in 1984, intended as a roadside attraction.

I saw photos before the restoration work (2017-2019) and I really liked them, because it was covered with moss and plants everywhere but I can say they did a great job with the restoration it looks beautiful and colorful now.

I hope I can go earlier in Fall next year, at night with the lights it's cute too.

CSX L048 brings L002's train east through the crossovers at CP 33, preparing for their enroute work at Westborough Transflo Yard on their way to Framingham. Eastbounds in some decent morning light have been hard to come by ever since then-Q436 was truncated to Worcester and Worcester-Framingham turn job L002 was instated.

Whitcombe Valley is part of Ham Hill Country Park. The remains of a medieval village and village pond can be traced in the vicinity and recently a stream that was piped underground, some years ago, has been re-instated and can be seen at the bottom of the valley, on the far right in this shot.

Among the sources of Western esotericism, the Hermetica is the most prominent. It is a collection of writings on cosmology, astrology, alchemy, and magic, and it has its origins in the Egyptian city of Alexandria. The Hermetica is attributed to Hermes Trismegistus. Thoth, the Egyptian god of wisdom and magic, is a significant figure in the Hermetica. Greeks in Egypt came to identify Thoth with their god Hermes.

Hermetism, in its ancient context, is closely related to pagan Neoplatonism. Neo-Platonists practiced Theurgy, a form of pagan mystical practice and magical ritual. The concept of theurgy came from the Chaldean Oracles, which describe the physical world as a prison from which the higher human soul must escape.

Gnosticism is a heresy from the early Christian era. The word Gnosticism comes from the Greek word gnosis, meaning “knowledge” or “insight,” and it pertains to hidden or secret spiritual knowledge. Gnostics believe that their souls are trapped in an imperfect world and that through esoteric knowledge they can be freed from the prison of this material world.

During the Italian Renaissance, a priest named Marsilio Ficino taught new spiritual concepts of Platonism and the Hermetica. This caused a revival of Neoplatonism and Hermetism. During this time, Giovanni Pico della Mirandola blended Kabbalah with Hermeticism. Then came figures such as Johannes Reuchlin, Johann Trithemius, and Henry Cornelius Agrippa, who mixed forms of Hermeticism with Neoplatonism, Neopythagoreanism, magic, astrology, alchemy, and Cabala. After came John Dee, who was an advisor to Elizabeth I. He immersed himself in astrology, alchemy, and Cabala. John Dee and Edward Kelley collaborated in angel magic for several years. And an influential figure in medicine named Paracelsus, combined alchemy with Hermetic and Neoplatonic ideas to form his medical theories. The Emerald Tablet, one of the oldest alchemical writings, played a major role in Renaissance esotericism. The saying, “as above, so below,” comes from the Emerald Tablet.

Christian theosophy emerged in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in reaction to the strict orthodoxy of the Lutheran Reformation. Jacob Boehme was the figure behind the start of this movement. His ideas influenced intellectual movements such as Romanticism and Idealism in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Platonism and Hermeticism are an essential part of theosophy. Rosicrucianism also arose in the seventeenth century. “From its obscure origins, the Rosicrucian myth would inspire literature, eighteenth-century Masonic adaptations, the rituals of the Golden Dawn, the leading magical order of the modern occult revival, and still exerts a powerful mystique today.”

Many secret societies formed in the eighteenth century, with their different esoteric beliefs. Many of these societies had relationships with the various Masonic lodges. Continental Freemasonry latched onto many of the esoteric ideas of these societies. The higher degrees of Freemasonry usually incorporated themes of theosophy, Rosicrucianism, and alchemy. Therefore, in the eighteenth century, Freemasonry was a major conduit for the spread of Western esotericism.

Emanuel Swedenborg had a great influence on eighteenth-century theosophy and was a major player in the development of modern esotericism. The Enlightenment influenced esoteric ideas, and they were accepted by many eighteenth-century illuminists. Then came Franz Anton Mesmer, who developed the theory of animal magnetism. His legacy can be traced to the early beginnings of modern Spiritualism. Animal magnetism was rooted in esoteric traditions. A key figure in animal magnetism was Justinus Kerner. His work became well-known throughout Europe. Another key figure was Baron Jules Dupotet de Sennevoy, who used animal magnetism to “unlock the secrets of magic.” His ideas influenced modern occultism. Helena Blavatsky, one of the founders of modern Theosophy, was a big fan of Dupotet. She also linked animal magnetism to magic. A man named James Braid coined the term “hypnotism” to describe animal magnetism. Hypnosis played a major role in the development of modern psychology. (Though they stripped the occult “ideas” from animal magnetism (hypnotism), I consider hypnotism to be an occult “practice.” Both Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung experimented with hypnosis.

In the mid-nineteenth century, occultism was introduced to America, predominantly through forms of animal magnetism, Swedenborgianism, and Freemasonry. Animal magnetism was introduced to America by Charles de Poyen. It quickly spread among occultists and spiritualists and was often combined with Swedenborgian ideas. Then came Andrew Jackson Davis, who communicated with a spirit he later identified as Swedenborg. He wrote a book called The Principles of Nature, which utilized Swedenborg’s ideas. His book sold many copies and became one of the founding texts of modern Spiritualism. Out of animal magnetism came the movements of New Thought and Christian Science, which integrated traditional Christian ideas with nineteenth-century metaphysical traditions. Next came modern Spiritualism, with its entertaining showmanship (self-moving furniture, self-playing musical instruments, and body levitation). Although the concepts of Swedenborg and animal magnetism were part of modern Spiritualism, the movement emerged independently of these influences.

The modern occult revival of the nineteenth century was complex. Romanticism sparked interest in the mysterious and unknown, thus creating an interest in animal magnetism, Spiritualism, and magic. A man named Eliphas Lévi became a pioneering figure in this Western occult revival. Lévi mixed ideas of animal magnetism with his philosophy of magic. Lévi used the Kabbalah and the Tarot as a source of magical symbolism. Much of modern occultism recognizes the Tarot as a root of mystical symbolism and imagery. Aleister Crowley believed himself to be a reincarnation of Lévi. Helena Blavatsky was also a fan of Lévi. In the second half of the nineteenth century, a Freemasonry order called the Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia was founded. In turn, some of its members founded the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. The Golden Dawn produced various offshoots, impacting Western esoteric traditions during the twentieth century.

Arthur Edward Waite came out of the Golden Dawn. He was a poet, scholar, mystic, and occultist. He was a prolific writer on esoteric matters. He was also a co-creator of the Rider-Waite TAROT card deck, which is one of the most popular Tarot decks. Aleister Crowley also came out of the Golden Dawn. Crowley wrote “The Book of the Law,” which stated, “Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law!” Crowley used sex magick as a major tool for his magical system. Crowley referred to himself as the Great Beast 666. “Gerald Gardner, the founder of modern witchcraft, introduced Crowleyan magick into the neopagan Wiccan movement.” Dion Fortune, who had a great impact on modern Western esotericism, also came out of the Golden Dawn. She was one of the most influential twentieth-century occultists and ceremonial magicians. She had a significant influence on both later ceremonial magic and Wicca. “She was perhaps one of the first occult writers to approach magic and hermetic concepts from the psychology of Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung.”

The Theosophical Society was founded by Helena Petrovna Blavatsky and Henry Steel Olcott. Blavatsky combined elements of Neoplatonism, Renaissance magic, Kabbalah, Freemasonry, ancient Egyptian and Greco-Roman mythology and religion, Buddhism and Advaita Vedanta into her religious system. Her new religious movement played a major role in the spread of esoteric traditions in the modern era, and it was likely the biggest Influence behind the modern occult revival. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Theosophy gained a large international following. Her work prepared the foundation for what is now known as the New Age movement.

Alice A. Bailey authored many books on Theosophy. She was one of the first writers to use the term New Age, and her works have significantly influenced the New Age movement. Alice and Foster Bailey founded the Lucifer Publishing Company, which was later named the Lucis Publishing Company. (The Theosophical Society had also used the name “Lucifer” for its early magazine.) World Goodwill, which is part of Alice Bailey’s Lucis Trust, is an accredited Nongovernmental Organization with the Department of Public Information at the United Nations. The Lucis Trust is also on the Roster of the United Nations Economic and Social Council.

Carl Jung, the famous psychiatrist, had a profound impact on the world of psychology and spirituality. Esoteric traditions profoundly shaped Jung’s understanding of the human psyche. Gnosticism deeply resonated with Jung’s theories. His ideas have had a significant influence on the New Age movement. Western esotericism gained renewed momentum from Jung’s implied spiritualization of the psyche.

“Ever since Plato’s separation of the body and the soul, Western esotericism has traced a path in which the soul has been granted some share in divinity.” Hermetism, Neoplatonism, and modern-day Western esotericism provide people with a vision of the cosmos in which their soul has divine purpose. With the popularity of New Age and neopagan philosophies in the West today, esoteric traditions will continue to evolve and lay claim to some sort of enlightened gnosis.

I think that modern esotericism will lead down the road to Alice Bailey’s vision of a world religion—the fusion of faiths. This concept has been around for a long time. Here is the concept: a one-world government is needed to unite mankind in order to create a world of peace and prosperity (political Gnosticism). To accomplish a one-world government, all religions must unite under one umbrella (spiritual Gnosticism). Many groups have been working towards this goal, such as the Parliament of the World’s Religions, the International Association for Religious Freedom, the World Congress of Faiths, Nostra Aetate, and Religions for Peace.

Nietzsche’s murder of God is an element of parousiastic Gnosticism, which seeks to destroy everything that is perceived as unjust (imperfect), and to replace it with a just (perfect) order through the power of human means and intellect. Therefore, the Christian God of the West has to go, and so does Western democracy. Just like the murder of God, Nietzsche’s transformation of man into the superman is an attempt to murder man. “Historically, the murder of God is not followed by the superman, but by the murder of man.” The Marxists must destroy capitalism and instate communism, thus killing off bourgeois society. They are trapped in this world of capitalism; thus, their world is a prison. The Marxists are trapped in a system of private property and must transcend private property, abolishing it forever. Marxists must transcend the evils of this capitalist world and evolve into the “socialist man”/“communist man.” They must destroy the current system to gain their utopia. Indeed, “socialism is man’s positive self-consciousness,” his gnosis.

“Communism is the riddle of history solved, and it knows itself to be this solution. The entire movement of history, just as its actual act of genesis—the birth act of its empirical existence—is, therefore, for its thinking consciousness the comprehended and known process of its becoming.” – Karl Marx

“The positive transcendence of private property as the appropriation of human life, is therefore the positive transcendence of all estrangement—that is to say, the return of man from religion, family, state, etc., to his human, i.e., social, existence.” – Karl Marx

Political Gnosticism is seen in communism and National Socialism. Political Gnosticism is alive and well today, with affluent people and organizations who want to transform our world into their utopian dream. The United Nations, with its Sustainable Development Goals, is the chief example. The World Economic Forum is another. Through their gnosis, they can bring peace and prosperity to the world.

“Queer theory brings knowing and being into the education of young children.” In queer theory, people are born (trapped) in the wrong body; their bodies are prisons. “Young people are absorbing the idea that the physical body is not part of the authentic self—that the authentic self is only the autonomous choosing self. This is ancient Gnosticism in new garb.”

Transhumanists want mankind to transcend into the superman. Man is trapped in this mortal body, but the goal is to someday attain immortality. They will use technology and super intelligence to solve man’s problems, to bring about a perfect world of peace and prosperity.

The Bible warns about the forming of a future one-world religion—the mother of harlots and abominations of the earth. It warns of a one-world cashless currency system, which will be connected to the Mark of the Beast. Without this one-world digital ID Mark, which will be located on the right hand or forehead, a person will not be able to buy or sell. The man who implements this system will be the Antichrist. His Mark will plunge mankind into the first stages of transhumanism. Those who refuse this transformation into the superman will be put to death—the murder of man. The Western religion of Christianity will be replaced with the worship of Caesar (the Beast). Western democracy will be replaced with totalitarianism.

The gnosis: if you eat the fruit, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God.

Whitcombe Valley is part of Ham Hill Country Park. The remains of a medieval village and village pond can be traced in the vicinity and recently a stream that was piped underground, some years ago, has been re-instated and can be seen at the bottom of the valley, on the far right in this shot.

Whitcombe Valley is part of Ham Hill Country Park. The remains of a medieval village and village pond can be traced in the vicinity and recently a stream that was piped underground, some years ago, has been re-instated and can be seen at the bottom of the valley, on the far right in this shot.

214) Milky Stork

Milky Stork, Mycteria cinerea, Upeh Bakau

This is a large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. This species occurs in Cambodia, Peninsular Malaysia, and the Indonesian islands of Sumatra, Java, Bali, Sumbawa and Sulawesi. The milky stork can be found in coastal regions and favors mangroves and low-saline swamps of these areas. They feeds on fish, amphibians, small rodents, prawns, and crabs. It finds its food on mudflats, saltwater pools, freshwater marshes, ponds, and rice fields. It is classified as Endangered owing to loss of coastal habitat as well as hunting and trade. The storks' habitats are being diminished by logging and farming. In some areas, the birds, eggs, and chicks are being taken for domestication, food, or trade. Efforts are being made to boost the bird's population to prevent it from going extinct. In Malaysia, programs have been instated to breed the storks domestically and release them into the wild. In Perak, Malaysia, actions are being taken to create laws of protection for the Matang Mangrove Forest Reserves.

Burung Upeh Bakau diklasifikasikan sebagai terancam kerana habitatnya yang semakin menghilang selain diburu. Burung ini kini dibiakkan dalam program-program konservasi di Matang, Kuala Gula, malah di Putrajaya dan Zoo Negara

This valley known as Whitcombe is part of Ham Hill Country Park, in South Somerset.

It is the site of a medieval village which extended along both sides of a road running through the valley floor and culminating at the village pond, located beneath the bushes to the right of the centre of the photograph. The stream which flowed from the pond was piped underground some time ago, and since becoming part of Ham Hill Country Park, is being re-instated.

The snow on the left hand slopes outlines the former sites of strip cultivation from medieval times.

The left hand slopes also form the remains of the ramparts of the Iron Age fort on Ham Hill.

This owl has given some amazing moments for sure. I guess it's a female snowy owl. For whole time she was flying around. Had so many different expression and poses from her. She jump from a table top and fly behind this rock. So instate of not shooting anything I decided to wait until the snowy will give me a good eye contact and compose the shot. The BG is the ocean.

For so many years one of the 'must do' shots on the Blyth and Tyne railway was here.

Passenger services between Ashington and Newcastle were re-instated after a 60 year gap in December 2024. As part of the line upgrade, a new run round loop was installed at Bedlington, meaning that the Alcan services no longer cross this bridge.

Back in July 2020 'Cambridge PSB' on the last leg of the long journey from Fort William crossing the River Blyth with the 6E45 empty alumina tanks. The train left the smelter in Scotland at 08.03, and arrived at the North Blyth import terminal a few minutes after this photo was taken at 20.45.

Taken in the City of Wells Somerset England, this shot is of a beggars porch instated in 1450. Sometimes a lack of progress isn’t a good thing, as this present day beggar illustrates. In this shot she is counting her donations, small amounts of change from passing tourists.

Wells is a beautiful tiny City famous for the Bishops Palace plus the fascinating and architecturally bewildering Cathedral. It’s small high street with the market Square is charming. Used as the main filming location of Simon Peggs film Hot Fuzz many of the City’s locations are recognisable when walking around.

One of the loveliest Sunrises I've ever witnessed this was about shot No 15 with what was then my Brand New first ever Digital SLR the Eos 5D in 2008. Photo taken from the 7th Floor of Salvesen Tower, Blaikeys Quay, Aberdeen Scotland.

This photo has been posted a few times before in different guises, this version has had the Bow of the Normand Progress (Left) re-instated using the Content Aware fill and though if you look closely it's not accurate it does complete the picture.

Excerpt from Wikipedia:

Nationalmuseum (or National Museum of Fine Arts) is the national gallery of Sweden, located on the peninsula Blasieholmen in central Stockholm.

The museum's operations stretches far beyond the borders of Blasieholmen, the nationalmuseum manage the National Portrait gallery collection at Gripshom, Gustavsbergporclain museum, a handful of castle collections and the Swedish Institute in Paris (Institut Tessin). In the summer of 2018 Nationalmuseum Jamtli opened in Östersund as a way to show a part of the collection in the north of Sweden.

The museum's benefactors include King Gustav III and Carl Gustaf Tessin. The museum was founded in 1792 as Kungliga Museet ("Royal Museum"). The present building was opened in 1866, when it was renamed the Nationalmuseum, and used as one of the buildings to hold the 1866 General Industrial Exposition of Stockholm.

The current building, built between 1844 and 1866, was inspired by North Italian Renaissance architecture. It is the design of the German architect Friedrich August Stüler, who also designed the Neues Museum in Berlin. The relatively closed exterior, save for the central entrance, gives no hint of the spacious interior dominated by the huge flight of stairs leading up to the topmost galleries.

The museum was enlarged in 1961 to accommodate the museum workshops. The present restaurant was instated in 1996. The museum building closed for renovation in 2013 and reopened on 13 October 2018. The $132 million overhaul sought to put more of the museum’s collection on display and to match the security, accessibility, fire safety and climate control of a modern institution.

Despite the legend assigning its foundation to the famous Greek wrestler Milo of Croton (whence the name), Miglionico was most likely founded by the Oenotrians, a local Italic tribe. After the Greek colonization, it was held by the Lucani, followed by the Samnites until 458 BC, when it was conquered by the Romans.

In the Middle Ages the story of Miglionico was strongly connected to that of its large castle, which was held by the Hauteville Normans and then by the Sanseverino. After the latter where slaughtered by order of Frederick II (1245), Miglionico was assigned to his son Manfred. After the latter's fall, however, the Sanseverino were re-instated, holding the town until the abolition of feudalism.

0Z69 on their way from Tonbridge to EMD Longport for assessment and rectification work.

The original route was via the WCML then off at Nuneaton to run via Water Orton. Many thanks to the unknown fotter at WO who spotted that the train had been cancelled at Willesden then re-instated as a new working leaving at 11.25.

While house-sitting this sunset presented itself. It is one of the most powerful sunsets I have ever seen.

To me these always re-instate my belief in GOD and HIS Kingdom and the joy it brings to me and Rosey!!!!!

St. Bridget's is an ancient church, consecrated in 1207, which has seen the worship of God through many centuries.

This is one of the oldest churches in continuous use in Monmouthshire. The massive original altar stone has 5 incised crosses. It was hidden in the floor to save it from destruction in the Reformation (1550 - 1599). The church has been repaired, extended and re-ordered many times. Major work was done in 1663, a date found in several places in the church, and again in 1909-10, using the principles of the Art and Craft Movement lead by William Morris (1888). Repairs in 2011-12 re-instated the stone roof tiles and conserved the internal plaster and wall paintings.

Another shot of Houghton Mill, which is on the River Great Ouse in near St Ives in Huntingdonshire - now part of Cambridgeshire.

Houghton Mill is the only working watermill left on the River Great Ouse. The present Grade II*-listed building probably dates from the 17th century and was substantially altered and extended in the 18th and 19th centuries.

In its mid-19th century heyday the mill ran 10 pairs of stones powered by three separate waterwheels. Much of the internal machinery remains intact although the wheels were removed in the 1930s when the mill stopped production. Today, corn is ground by a pair of millstones powered by the north waterwheel which was re-instated in 1999.

Houghton Mill is owned by the National Trust.

Houghton Mill, near St Ives in Cambridgeshire, is the only working watermill left on the Great Ouse. The present Grade II*-listed building probably dates from the 17th century and was substantially altered and extended in the 18th and 19th centuries.

In its mid-19th century heyday, the mill ran 10 pairs of stones, powered by three separate waterwheels. Much of the internal machinery remains intact although the wheels were removed in the 1930s when the mill stopped production. Today, corn is ground by a pair of millstones powered by the north waterwheel which was re-instated in 1999.

Houghton Mill is owned by the National Trust.

Avalanche Falls is located inside the Franconia Notch State Park in New Hampshire (free for instate residents – fee required for out of state visitors). The falls have a 25 foot drop and carry a pretty good spray on the walkway. The image shown was taken on May 7, 2016 using a Canon 6D, Canon EF17-40mm f/4L USM lens, HDR image of 1/3, 1.3 and 2.5 seconds at f/22, ISO 100, 40mm, tripod mounted, slightly cropped from a larger image.

CSX 1776 leads L702, the Wilmington to Charlotte road local, west on the Monroe Subdivision. The train is seen here at Wadesboro, just west of the connection with the Winston-Salem Southbound. This train had been instated the day before, and was re-symbolled (L703 westbound, L702 eastbound) the next day.

66154 heading north at Souldrop with the 6F93 11.22 Churchyard - Ketton cement empties.

In 2022 this service still runs, with the same four wheelers but GBRF locos.

The fourth line has been re-instated and the route from Corby to Bedford has been electrified - see below.

Houghton Mill, near St Ives in what used to be the county of Huntingdonshire, is the only working watermill left on the River Great Ouse. The present Grade II*-listed building probably dates from the 17th century and was substantially altered and extended in the 18th and 19th centuries.

In its mid-19th century heyday the mill ran 10 pairs of stones powered by three separate waterwheels. Much of the internal machinery remains intact although the wheels were removed in the 1930s when the mill stopped production. Today, corn is ground by a pair of millstones powered by the north waterwheel which was re-instated in 1999.

Houghton Mill is owned by the National Trust.

Acer Palmatum Atropurpurem.

The last days of a spectacular colour display.

I've re-instated comments box as I hope to be able to catch up with comments as long as Flickr behaves itself and I can get my contacts photos to load. It seems things have improved a little bit from day to day but still having persistent problems getting my contacts photos to load.

Please be patient if I am slow commenting.

www.flickriver.com/photos/47044499@N03/

Under the watchful eye of the GBRf groundstaff 73969 eases towards the Met Cam crossing with 47727 in tow running as 0Z32.10:41 Washwood Heath Metro Cammell to Barrow Hill L.I.P. . This was reputedly the first and final visit of a 73 to the Met Cam site with Colas and Boden vacating the site exactly seven days later. The level crossing and roadway were subsequently ripped out by HS2 but the road has since been re-instated for access to the new deopt currently being constructed with the approapriate name of Engine Room Way.

Back in 1997 the boulder train was a daily runner from the Mendips quarries to Minehead for a sea defence scheme at the seaside town. A shot I was after meant waiting for the longest day of the year so as to get the sun into the bottom of the field at Kensford farm, Watchet. Luckily 21st July 1997 was a sunny day and I was on a early turn so drove to the Quantock Hills with fingers crossed. Luck was on my side not only with the sun but with a Mainline Blue 37798 being turned out. Here the former 37006 passes with 8C25, the 13:15 from Merehead Quarry. These jobs were maned by Westbury drivers with a West Somerset Railway pilot man. The popular 37 was cut at Booths, Rotherham in July 2009.

In the background the Wansbrough Paper Mill chimney can be seen which shut in 2015. For many years it was rumoured that the large mill was going to have it connection to the network re-instated for paper traffic but like many schemes sadly came to nothing.

Pentax 6 x 7 Slide Scan

Although Inchgarvie Island is dominated by the Forth Bridge, it has an interesting history of its own.

Records of Danish attacks on Fife and Lothian and their nearby islands, particularly Inchcolm Inchkeith and Inchgarvie meant that they valued their use.

The island of Inchgarvie was licensed by King James IV to John Dundas of Dundas with the power to build a fortress on 20 March 1491. Dundas Castle is still occupied by the Dundas family and lies a short distance to the South of Queensferry,

John Dundas did not build it, and James IV himself ordered a strong tower to be built in 1513.

On 8 March 1514, Margaret, the widow of William Dundas of Dundas, undertook to manage the completion of the fortress that James IV and her father-in-law had begun building on her island.

From 23 December 1514, Charles Dennison, Captain of Inchgarvie managed and fed a large royal construction team. The master mason was John of Cumbernauld, with his "servitor" John Strathauchin, who directed eight other masons and ten labourers. Margaret, Lady of Dundas gave them two boats. Two 'serpentine' guns and guns from Colstone were placed on the island after a visit by artillery experts in July 1515, and the island was equipped with a "blawing horne."

There was also a chapel. The Laird of Dundas was paid £33 for repairing the fortress in March 1533.

The fort was captured and demolished, a week later, by Richard Brooke in the Galley Subtile on 6 May 1544, during an attack on Edinburgh. The English commander Lord Hertford wrote that it would have been useful to garrison Inchgarvie, but his orders from Henry VIII would not allow it.

In 1547, after the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh, Inchcolm and Inchkeith were fortified by the English, and held for two years; it is possible that Inchgarvie was fortified at this period too.

Between 1519 and 1671, the castle was used as a prison and, in 1580, Inchkeith and Inchgarvie were made a places of exile for those stricken by plague, by order of the Privy Council.

On 6 September 1627, the Laird of Dundas was invited to meet the Privy Council at South Queensferry to discuss the building a modern fort on the island.

Inchgarvie, like Inchkeith, had a quarantine hospital, and a prison. Oliver Cromwell had these demolished.

During the reign of Charles II as King of Scots, the island was subject to continued maintenance for defensive purposes. The island was inspected by Charles in 1651 before falling into disrepair after his army was defeated by Oliver Cromwell at the Battle of Worcester.

In 1707 the island is known to have been rented to Archibald Primrose, 1st Earl of Rosebery. The Rosebery Estate is still just beyond the Forth Bridge to the East.

In 1779, however, the island's fortifications were renewed once more, in response to the threat posed by John Paul Jones, American Naval Commander, who harassed British ships from a base in the Forth. These fortifications were never used in anger.

During the Napoleonic period, the threat from the sea meant gun batteries were created in 1806.

Construction of the Inchgarvie cantilever of the Forth Bridge In 1878 the foundations for Thomas Bouch's Forth Bridge were laid on Inchgarvie Island (and their bricks still remain there), but after the Tay Bridge Disaster, these plans were abandoned, and the island languished until the west end of the island was extended with a pier and used as the foundation for one of the Forth Bridge's cantilevers.

The island, due to its proximity to the bridge, was also used as a construction office for the bridge, as well as accommodation for its workers within the re-roofed castle buildings. Some of the stone from the former castle was used to help build the caissons of the Forth Bridge.

The island became of renewed importance to the security of the Firth of Forth at the beginning of the 20th century. It was armed with two 12-pdr guns in 1901, in conjunction with gun emplacements on the mainland to the north (at North Queensferry) and to the south (at Dalmeny).

Although the island's guns were removed from the approved armament in 1906, they were re-instated in 1908. The number of guns was increased to four in the early months of the First World War. The island's guns were removed from the approved armament of the Forth in the early 1930s. The guns may have survived for drill and practice until the beginning of the Second World War, during which the island was armed only with machine guns.

The island's defences were intended (until 1905) to cover the controlled minefield laid across the river, some of which can be seen between the village of Cramond & Cramond Island, and later to tackle fast-moving torpedo boats attempting to enter the naval anchorage above the Forth Bridge or to damage the lock gates of the Rosyth Dockyard.

There are a few keen photographers in the team I'm in at work, so we have re-instated the team photography challenge. The first challenge was f/8 and 50mm. Now as you know, I usually shoot in as narrow a depth of field as possible. So, what to do with f8 and 50mm??!!

Well, it turns out you can still achieve some lovely background blur at these settings - a good reminder to step outside the usual comfort zone :-) Will post a few more photos over the next few days.

Brisbane sits of peak flood level today and for the next 18- 24 hours before levels recede, and the big clean-up can start, with power being re-instated to over 120,000 houses throughout the city, all public transport is currently cut, however hoping it will be operational by the end of week

many wll return to their houses in the coming days to find mud and stench throughout the remains, many will never be able to return, and many will not have a house to return to.... the re-building will be the biggest post-war construction ever experienced in Australia

With barrier vehicles Ernest and Oliver in tow railadventure's (No capitals or spaces) 43465 and 43468 roll towards Duddeston Junction with 6Z43, the much delayed and then re-instated, Burton Wetmore Sidings (Nemesis to you and me) to Long Marston for Rail Live 2022. Can't quite get my head round the livery, maybe I'm getting old........

Ration store in Solidad, Cuba.

The vast majority of Cuban families rely, for their food intake, on the distribution system, instated on March 12, 1962. The system establishes the rations each person is allowed to buy through the system, and the frequency of supplies.

The ration is not the only means of acquiring goods available to a Cuban citizen, as these and other products are freely available on the free market but the prices in the ration book are about 20 times lower than the free market

46045 hauls the 10:20 Hampton Loade - Kidderminster 'private charter' through Foley Park on the 8th March 2025 (pole)

This train & numerous other trains that 46045 worked this day were in aid of a fund raising day for the Peak Locomotive Group who are raising funds to re-instate a working boiler inside one of their other loco's, 45041.

Over £4.6k was raised on the day, so a massive shout out to Andy Piper & Steve Fulcher for the organizing, the Peak Locomotive Group for turning out 46045 (which looks & sounds the business), the SVR & everyone else who made the effort & help make it a fantastic day.

The Grade II Listed Loughborough Central Station the current end of the line of the heritage Old Great Central Railway (GCR). In Loughborough, Leicestershire.

The origins of the old GCR may be traced back to the earliest days of railways in and around Manchester. What was to become identifiable as the Great Central Railway was the amalgamation in 1847 of the Sheffield, Ashton under Lyme & Manchester, the Sheffield & Lincolnshire Junction, the Great Grimsby & Sheffield Junction Railways, and the Grimsby Dock Company. The principal reason for existence was the movement of coal and other goods across the harsh Pennine moorland.

A bill was put before Parliament in 1891 for the line from Annesley through Nottingham, where the great Nottingham Victoria station was built with the Great Northern Railway, Leicester, Rugby and to an end on junction with the Metropolitan at Quainton Road. Construction of the line started in 1894 and was opened to coal traffic in 1898 and to passengers a year later.

The nationalisation of the railways in 1948 led to the Great Central metals becoming part of the Eastern Region of British Railways. In 1958 the ex-Great Central was re-allocated to the Midland Region of British Railways and so were sown the seeds of its decline as a main line to London.

Country stations such as those at Belgrave & Birstall, Rothley and Quorn & Woodhouse were closed in 1963. In 1966 the line closed as a though route to London and the line was severed just south of Rugby while the proud station at Nottingham Victoria was demolished. Until 1969, when the line was finally closed, a DMU service ran from Rugby to Nottingham Arkwright Street.

A group of enthusiasts was determined to keep the line alive for the running of main line engines. The Main Line Preservation Group was formed to begin the mammoth task of preservation and restoration. Fund raising was always a problem so in 1971 the Main Line Steam Trust was formed and registered as a charity to raise funds through covenants.

Since then, the volunteers and staff have re-instated a double track section from Loughborough Central to Rothley and opened a single track to Leicester North, just south of the old Belgrave & Birstall station (and built a new station there) and have restored stations, signals and signal boxes, carriages, wagons and steam and diesel locomotives.

Information Source

www.gcrailway.co.uk/brief-history/

The farmer left it a long time before re-instating the public footpath ;o) HSS!

This siding is now a passenger line running through the re-instated platform 5 at Bolton.

3H01 1834 Bolton to Mayfield parcels service loads.

Tuesday 12th June 1984

Re-instated BR 40060 [97405] heads away from Wrexham on the Chester line in February 1986 with an engineers train from Croes Newydd that included a brace of Class 08 shunters. The Class 40 was one of the four Whistlers re-instated in April/May 1985 to work on the major project to remodel the railways around Crewe station.

All images on this site are exclusive property and may not be copied, downloaded, reproduced, transmitted, manipulated or used in any way without expressed written permission of the photographer. All rights reserved – Copyright Don Gatehouse

George H.W. Bush was the Republican candidate in my first presidential election as a legal voter. I voted for Bill Clinton instead. Nevertheless, my view of Bush improved over time, and I have come to see him as a very good president, and one that represented a fairer time when people were more decent to each other. It was an honor to see him "In State" tonight at the U.S. Capitol Building.

I deleted this and the next image by mistake and now re-instated.

However, all the original numerous awards and comments are gone

Class 25 24601 (formerly D5061) became something of a celebrity when it was transferred to the Railway Technical Centre (RTC) at Derby in 1975 to operate test trains. Re-numbered RDB 968007 (later 97201) and named ‘Experiment’, it received the RTC’s distinctive red and blue paint scheme at a time when there were very few exceptions to the corporate blue livery. It spent time at various locations after withdrawal, before eventual preservation on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway as D5061 in original green livery. This digital representation is based on the locomotive in its preserved state with re-instated side skirts which are regrettably inappropriate for this RTC re-creation (updated 04-Jun-21).

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