A Little Bit Icy

 Yesterday we decided to walk at Westport Lake to blow away the cobwebs after  having been indoors for a couple of days.  The roads were clear but both the canal and the lakes were still icy.

It was cold, very cold but there were lots of people out and about.  Dog walkers, a large walking group and quite a few photographers too.

When I saw the Moorhen walking on the ice I was reminded of one of my favourite paintings.

It's usually known as The Skating Minister. It depicts the Reverend Robert Walker skating on Duddingston Loch and is by Scottish artist Sir Henry Raeburn (1756-1823).  I remember seeing it at the National Gallery of Scotland in Edinburgh many years ago.  Here is a - link - to their website which tells you more about it.

A Frozen Landscape

Yesterday we walked a section of the Trent and Mersey Canal between Sandon Lock and Salt that we hadn't walked before. As you know from previous posts over the last few years we have walked, in sections, the length of the canal from Stone to Kidsgrove and beyond the Harecastle tunnel.

We parked the car just beyond the bridge, struggled into our wellington boots and made our way down the path towards the canal towpath.

The air was very still and there was a slight mist over the water which was, in places, solid ice.

The ice was cracked and broken as if something had tried to move through it leaving behind floating blocks that had frozen together again.

In some areas even the towpath was thick with ice as you can see from the photo below - we had to be very careful not to slip.

Further along we found evidence of the industrious Mr Mole.

To the left of the photo and running parallel to the canal is the railway and beyond that the road. To the right, just over the fence runs the River Trent over which the mist hung heavily, floating across the top of the moving water.

By this time our fingers and toes were beginning to feel the cold - it was time to turn around and head back.

We retraced our steps back towards Sandon Lock and the warmth of our little car.