Now, you may be wondering what <<< this photo has to do with ponds. Be patient! This morning, about 200 sheep were sheared and this photo was taken at the end of the hours of hard graft. Two shearers, two willing fleece handlers and one busy farmer got the last of the out-bye sheep de-fleeced. I picked up the dog and drove one of the helpers home.
On the way back I stopped to give the mad mutt a chance of some exercise and found Cwmcelyn Pond, a place I've been meaning to visit for ages and what a lovely surprise it was. Originally a feeder pond for the local collieries, it has been transformed into an area of recreational activity and what a hidden treasure it was to find this seemingly tranquil lake.
Serene and peaceful now, it is hard to imagine what it was like in it's industrial heyday. So much has changed in the Welsh Valleys now. Gone are the grit and the grime of the coal pit and industrial smog. Now instead of dark faced miners heading for work underground, fishermen patiently wait for a bite. The air is clean and clear, the atmosphere one of recreation replacing the grim, hard, dark working times of a nation.
This was one of the empty stations we walked past today, but many of the others were occupied with fisherman. Some old , some young, some in-between, all talking their chance at a catch. Talking to some of them. it seems that the pond is well stocked with trout, pike and bream. They also have well attended fishing competitions here, so all is not as tranquil as it at first appears to be.
A bridge, spans towards one end of the pond and today the reflections were clear in the undisturbed water, that was until the frenzied feeding of the local ducks. A mother and kids were feeding bread to the assorted species of water fowl of which mallard were the most numerous, but sadly only one mallard chick was to be seen. I'm guessing the voracious, greedy pike had the rest. Pike in a pond as limited as this can easily decimate the numbers of other birds and have even been known to eat rats, water voles and other supposedly land dwelling creatures! They are a voracious species and best caught on a fisherman's line!
Meanwhile on the opposite bank, two "old timers" were having a chat as they dangled their lines in the water. They were obviously just out for the day to share reminiscent tales of times past. They reminded me of that now famous film "The Odd Couple"
I was joined on our slow walk by an elderly chap, whose wife died on the morning of their 47th Wedding Anniversary. How sad is that? He then proceeded to tell me that he himself was waiting for a serious operation and was wondering who would look after his lovely little Jack Russell bitch when he goes in. It was a sad, but enlightening meeting.
I may struggle sometimes with my health, but his story, sort of put my own into perspective. The sad thing was that he told me, he rarely gets the chance to open up to others that he regularly meets on his walks with the dog, and we spent a long time just talking, but ... what cheered me up was the fact, that, he is learning from local school children about the migration of seasonally local birds and ... the inhabitants of the pond. He has found a new interest in local life and was very informative about how this area used to look in its industrial heyday. Hopefully, like me he will inhale the wonderful scent of one of my favourite, delicately scented summer flowers, that now replaces the darkness of coal mining ... it now grows freely and abundantly and is very aptly named ...
A bridge, spans towards one end of the pond and today the reflections were clear in the undisturbed water, that was until the frenzied feeding of the local ducks. A mother and kids were feeding bread to the assorted species of water fowl of which mallard were the most numerous, but sadly only one mallard chick was to be seen. I'm guessing the voracious, greedy pike had the rest. Pike in a pond as limited as this can easily decimate the numbers of other birds and have even been known to eat rats, water voles and other supposedly land dwelling creatures! They are a voracious species and best caught on a fisherman's line!
Meanwhile on the opposite bank, two "old timers" were having a chat as they dangled their lines in the water. They were obviously just out for the day to share reminiscent tales of times past. They reminded me of that now famous film "The Odd Couple"
I may struggle sometimes with my health, but his story, sort of put my own into perspective. The sad thing was that he told me, he rarely gets the chance to open up to others that he regularly meets on his walks with the dog, and we spent a long time just talking, but ... what cheered me up was the fact, that, he is learning from local school children about the migration of seasonally local birds and ... the inhabitants of the pond. He has found a new interest in local life and was very informative about how this area used to look in its industrial heyday. Hopefully, like me he will inhale the wonderful scent of one of my favourite, delicately scented summer flowers, that now replaces the darkness of coal mining ... it now grows freely and abundantly and is very aptly named ...
Meadowsweet!
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