ABC Wednesday: K is for Kournas Lake

The only freshwater lake on the island of Crete, Kournas Lake is home to ducks and eels, water snakes and a rare species of bicoloured terrapin with a patterned shell, the Diamondback Terrapin (Malaclemysterrapin).

The Northern end is where you'll find most of the tavernas and pedalos for hire. In the summer, as the water recedes, white sandy beaches form around its edges.

There are two springs on the southeast bank, one of which, the Mati or Amati ("eye"), is visible in late summer. The lake is fed by streams from the nearby mountains and hills, whose underground courses are interrupted by the local bedrock on the way to the sea.

For more information on the lake visit Explore Crete.

For more of my own photographs of the island visit Crete 2006.

For more K posts visit ABC Wednesday.

ABC Wednesday J is for Jocelynne Preciouse (1930 - 2010)

© 2009, Jocelynne Precious
It was in June that I learnt Jocelynne Precious had died suddenly. I knew her as the editor of the magazine Curlew. We first met in the mid-70s at meetings of the Yorkshire Federation of Small Presses. In more recent times she would ring me up about three times a year to talk about poets and small press matters. She never had a computer but would look things up on the Internet at the library in Harrogate.

Jocelynne studied under Clifford Ellis at Bath Academy of Art (aka "Corsham"). One of the art teachers there was William Scott who taught her painting. She was a member of Harrogate Writers' Circle.

Issue 64 of Curlew is a chapbook collection by Jocelynne called SWIMMING IN THE NORTH SEA.

trying to stay afloat
trying to make sense of it all
and on the straight horizon
a long slim boat

A number of the poems (like the one above) are reproduced from hand-written manuscript rather than typescript.


Issue 65 has work by Neil Leadbeater, Daniel Healy, Peter Asher, John Younger and A C Evans. The cover design is by Peter Precious.

Issue 66 was the 1st issue of Chaucer described as

An occasional publication covering literature and the Arts; philosophy; history & current affairs; genre fiction (science fiction/fantasy/crossover) humour; reviews, criticism, correspondence.

Referring to House of Fame, Steve Sneyd asks

"Did Chaucer indeed see the far future in this long narrative poem of 1379, its title, after all, derived from Ovid's Metamorphoses and thus backward, not forward, looking?"

Rodney Noon answers the question "Where do you write?" and there are poems by Anne Grant and Alan Hardy.

Patricia Prime reviewed her collection THE SURPRISING SUMMER for NHI Review where you can also find reviews of Curlew issues ##51, 52, 54, 56. Elsewhere on this blog are reviews of ##57, 58 and also ##59, 60

A stalwart of the small press scene since the 70s, she will be much missed.

For more J posts visit ABC Wednesday.

Shadow Shot Sunday/Sunday Bridge: Tatton Arms Footbridge

Yesterday I showed you Tatton Arms Bridge together with its reflection in the river Mersey at Northenden.

It is from this bridge I took the photograph looking downstream past the Heron sculpture and towards the Northenden Bridges which I featured last week.

The footbridge leads to a section of the Trans Pennine Trail which I followed from here down to the motorway bridge.


Here is looking back towards the Tatton Arms from which the bridge gets its name. It was a grand Edwardian public house but alas closed down in 2007 and has an uncertain future.

More about the area can be found on the website of the Northenden Water Park Friends.

See more Shadow Shot Sunday posts at Hey Harriet.

See more Sunday Bridges at San Francisco Bay Daily Photo.

Weekend Reflections: Tatton Arms Bridge

As promised last week when I posted photographs of Northenden Bridges, here now is the Tatton Arms footbridge from which I took this photograph looking over the weir on the River Mersey.

Tomorrow I'll show you a closer view of the footbridge.

For more weekend reflections visit Newtown Area Photo.

ABC Wednesday I is for I'm Watching You

We've all been there I'm sure. You see the scene, point the camera, take the shot. It is only later that you find out just who was watching you.

The original from which this was cropped can be seen on Geograph.

For more I posts visit ABC Wednesday.

Northenden Bridges

Northenden Bridge carries Palatine Road over the river Mersey to the South of Manchester. I'm not certain about the age of this bridge but suspect it dates from about the turn of the 19th century give or take a decade.


This is the view from underneath the Palatine Road bridge at the M60 Manchester Orbital motorway which crosses both the river and Palatine Road on a nine-span viaduct.


This is looking from underneath the motorway. Northenden bridge can be seen on the right and the scale can be judged by looking at the pedestrians on Palatine Road crossing under the motorway on the other side.


The last view looks back at both the motorway bridge and Northenden bridge beyond it.

You can see them in the photograph on sithenah which also includes a view of the heron sculpture featured here recently.

Next week I'll show you the footbridge from which that photograph was taken.

For more Sunday Bridges visit San Francisco Bay Daily Photo.

Weekend Reflections: Camera Obscura in Stockport

This photograph was taken inside a camera obscura that was in Stockport Market last weekend. The image reflected in a mirror at the top of a darkened chamber is projected on to a table which can be raised and lowered to focus the image.


The camera obscura was there as part of the 750th anniversary celebrations for the Market charter granted to Stockport in 1260.


Here are the musicians captured by the camera obscura. Stockport Market Hall and some of the stalls are reflected in the shop window behind them.

For more weekend reflections visit Newtown Area Photo.

ABC Wednesday: H is for Heron at Northenden

Last Sunday I posted a shadow shot and left you wondering what had created it.


It is in fact a heron sculpture. According to the Northenden Riverside Park Friends Group website, it was installed on the 5th March 2010 and a competition is being held in order to name the sculpture.


You can see it in the distance from a little further up the river Mersey on sithenah.

For more H posts visit ABC Wednesday.

Shadow Shot Sunday:Northenden Riverside Park

This week's shadow was captured at Northenden Riverside Park.

Come back on Wednesday and I'll show you what created the shadow.

Find more Shadow Shot Sunday posts at Hey Harriet.

ABC Wednesday G is for Guillotine Lock

Lock #19 on the Rochdale Canal at Todmorden is known as the Guillotine Lock.


The British Waterways Board provide these operating instructions for boatmen.


Here is the view approaching bridge #30.

A sideways view can be found on sithenah.

For more G posts visit ABC Wednesday.