The colour of late summer

A moorland with heather in flower is a fine sight and worth making the effort to wander around and photograph, though a breeze is welcome to keep the midges at bay. On this trip to Y Mynyddoedd Duon, there was thankfully some wind around and the rain showers were light, which combined with a north westerly wind meant visibility was very good.

I would have preferred the views to the north, but the nature of cloud breaks meant only ground to the south received mottled sunlight, one of the vagaries of upland areas affecting cloud formations. Still, the views to the south are not too bad.

The moorland is also being actively managed again, with numerous small areas of burning to clear away 'leggy' heather and encourage new growth. I'm guessing it is habitat management for red grouse and other upland birds, as the scale of burning is nowhere near that of managed grouse moors of shooting estates. The moorland hereabouts still has grasses, bilberry, gorse and fern, which create a richer more varied habitat and pioneer trees are also starting to spread, mostly Rowans, with a few Birch and the odd conifer from nearby plantations.

Towards sunset the wind strengthened, the cloud visibly clearing and breaking up quickly, the prospects for dusk were not promising. Also the way back would be slow going down steep and rough ground under head torch light, it seemed prudent to make the most of natural light to ensure a safe return to the car. I still harbour hopes of one day photographing a heather moor under 'colourful' clouds at dusk.