ONE DAY LIKE THIS (Part 27)
(3 July - 9 July)
Welcome to this week’s episode of Sheep | Song | Photograph coming to you from a wonderful house in a very quiet valley in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. We are here to celebrate Pip’s mum’s 90th birthday and, for the first time ever the whole family (mum, children, spouses and grandchildren) have gathered. Pip and I came to the Dales on our first holiday together nearly 40 years ago and I was here on my first ever residential photography workshop thirteen years ago. But I’d forgotten just how dramatic this landscape can be. Obviously, this isn’t a photography trip but the light has been such that nobody resented me stopping the car every now and again to capture the scene.
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3 July 2016
Starting this week with an image from the Farndale 400 project. For those that don’t know this is a collection of photos all made locally on walks with just my camera and a 400mm prime lens. The thinking behind the idea is that it forces me to look at the familiar landscape in a completely different way. I call this particular picture, ‘One World, Not Three’, a title I stole from a song written by Sting. It fits well because although I have framed it to look like three trees, they are all in fact growing from the same roots. Much like people living in the first, second and third world. I was also drawn to the thin sliver of blue reflected sky on the river beyond.
3 July 2019
A memorable day at the Riverside Stadium, Chester-le-Street, County Durham for a World Cup cricket match between England and New Zealand, with my good friends Anna and David. This was in the group stages and England won comfortably then went on to play the Kiwis again in the final 11 days later. That time they won by the narrowest of margins in one of the most incredible one day cricket matches ever played. Cricket has been a big part of my life since moving to Yorkshire although these days I only umpire, my playing days are long gone.
4 July 2018
Another ‘Farndale 400’ image, this time picking out the rows of cut grass in my neighbour’s hayfields. Hay time is one of my favourite jobs on the farm mainly because I get to drive my tractor up and down the fields with either Test Match Special on the radio or my favourite tunes playing on my phone through the ear defenders.
4 July 2021
One of those ‘Oh shit!’ moments. In this case, “Oh shit I wish I’d brought a coat with me on the dog walk!”
4 July 2024
I decided when I started my Substack that I would concentrate on sheep, landscape photography and Americana music because those are the three things I know about. But my musical tastes are much broader than that and I have listened to what might loosely be termed Electronic Music since the early 1980’s. When I moved to Yorkshire I lost the inspiration that comes from sharing music with likeminded friends and didn’t really keep up with what was happening in the world of synthesisers and computers. But my good friend Jason, who lives a mile or so up the road from me introduced me to the German pianist and producer, Nils Frahm a few years ago and it was love at first listen. When I saw that he was playing at The Glasshouse (formerly The Sage) in Gateshead, just 90 minutes north of us, I managed to persuade Jason to join me. And what a night it was, fantastic music played in a concert hall with the most incredible acoustics. The building itself is fascinating, and the surrounding streets have the kind of art I can definitely get behind. Nils Frahm is humble, self-deprecating and nothing short of a musical genius.
5 July 2017
In 2017, Pip and I had been married for 25 years, no mean feat when you consider that neither set of parents achieved that feat. So we decided to celebrate in style. My friend, David Ward and his partner, Saskia had turned their backs on the UK and landscape photography and were running a safari camp in Botswana. They worked three months on, one month off and suggested to Pip, our friend Anna and me, that for their time off in July 2017, we join them on a road trip around neighbouring Namibia. Their only stipulation was we had to be there for the whole month. The logistics involved in allowing us to be away from the farm for that length of time are massive but, over a period of a year or so, we managed to arrange everything. Those who’ve been following my story will have seen the last few bits and pieces falling into place in last week’s post.
On the 4 July 2017 we flew from London Heathrow to Johannesburg and then on to Windhoek, the capital of Namibia and began our first holiday together for 15 years. By the following day, we were under canvas at Sesriem and this was the first picture I took. David Ward demonstrating some of the equipment him and Sas had brought with them for the wild camping section of the trip.
5 July 2020
An unusual picture of Belle and Sassie on a hot day in our top fields. Unusual because they would very rarely lie down together. My guess is I persuaded them to rest for a moment so that I could too.
5 July 2024
One of my regular visits to Runswick Bay, on the north facing coast of our part of Yorkshire. This is where Pip and I were married and where we lived when we first moved up to Yorkshire from down south.
6 July 2016
We now move on to the places we have visited on my birthday. On these days, I am far more likely to spend time making pictures although I’m still aware that Pip, and other family and friends, aren’t necessarily as into it as I am. This was from a walk Pip and I took along Filey Beach, sand trees.
6 July 2017
I think this qualifies as the ultimate birthday party destination, the massive sand dunes of Sossusvlei in Namibia. We spent the entire day here, sitting in the shade of the few trees, photographing the incredible dunes and or having a picnic and playing party games. As we made our way back to Sesriem, we stopped at Dune 42 (all the dunes are numbered according to how far they are from Sesriem) to enjoy the sunset. A totally magical experience.
6 July 2019
A picture of home featuring a stone gatepost that has stood the test of time. You find these posts dotted around the North York Moors, they are at least two hundred years old and predate the availability of iron hinges, crooks and catches. The wooden bars of the gate were slotted into the stone rather than being hung as they would be now. Sadly, the adjoining post to this one has broken off and is laid on the ground nearby. I would love to restore it but it’s an expensive business so it may take a while.
6 July 2020
Another birthday at home, this one enforced but I was thankful for a spectacular display of clouds and also my continued good health. 2020 was certainly a year where so many priorities changed and those of us who farmed and had a reasonable amount of land had so much for which to be thankful.
6 July 2021
Still somewhat restricted, Pip and I met with David and Saskia somewhat closer to home, at the Yorkshire Arboretum, Castle Howard for my birthday. I hardly took any photographs but I do remember a very pleasant lunch outside at the cafe and an enjoyable walk as well.
6 July 2022
A birthday spent at Runswick Bay with family. Pip’s family are my family now and they have embraced their role wholeheartedly, something for which I am very grateful.
6 July 2024
Yet another birthday close to home and with members of Pip’s family. This time we chose a flat walk along the old railway line around the top end of Rosedale. My sister-in-law, Sally, has a hip problem and finds walking on the flat less painful. However, part way round, we mentioned Dale Head Farm Tea Garden down in the bottom of the valley, and their amazing fruit scones. I’m not saying they’re the best in Yorkshire but I haven’t found any better ones yet and I’ve researched enough that I could call this Substack Sheep | Song | Photo | Scone. Anyway, at mention of the Tea Garden, Sally was off like a robber’s dog, down the steep path and a wonderful birthday lunch ensued that was all the better for being unplanned.
7 July 2015
Two more pictures from the ‘Farndale 400’ project although these are slightly different as they are of animals, all of whom are no longer with us so invoke a kind of wistful melancholy. First up is sheepdog, Belle, and her near constant companion if she was in the yard, and sometimes in the fields too. It’s Tabitha, one of our original feral cats, she even, once of twice, tried to help Belle round up sheep. And then it’s Bracken, Pip’s first horse and the boy who taught me so much about horses and their behaviour. I don’t ride but I love having these wonderful, intelligent animals around, like dogs they are so gentle and loving we probably don’t deserve them.
7 July 2017
Back to Namibia and the earliest morning of the whole trip. David wanted us to reach Deadvlei before anyone else so we broke camp at stupid o’clock and we were second car in line at the gate to the Namib-Naukluft National Park when it opened an hour before sunrise. As the gate was lifted the car in front pulled over and we were able to race along to our destination unimpeded and, after walking in, we had nearly an hour before anybody else got there. It was a truly magical experience.
We left the dry salt pan just as the hoards of tourists arrived and as we returned to camp we had our first proper wildlife encounter, oryx. They posed beautifully for us and fortunately, we had the long lenses necessary to capture them. In the evening we drove a short way from camp and climbed a dune for sundowners. Some photography also took place.
7 July 2021
July is a good month for big skies at home as the next two iPhone pictures show. Separated by three years but in most other respects quite similar.
7 July 2024
8 July 2020
My favourite sheep shearing photograph. Our neighbour Chris, very kindly agreed to clip our sheep under social distancing measures to help me to keep Pip safe during her cancer treatment. Chris had his spaniel, Ziggy, with him and the dog decided at one point that Chris needed to see his purple ball. Fortunately my phone was handy to catch the moment.
8 July 2021
A few images from a walk I took with my good friend, Anna, around the village of Appleton-le-Moors where she lives. There is quite a lot of arable farming in that area which made a nice change after 16 months of photographing sheep and cattle pastures.
9 July 2017
After the proper campsite at Sesriem, we were gradually moving towards what would become totally wild camping. First stop was Mirabib Campsite which was the most wonderful experience, there were quite a few other pitches but we couldn’t see or hear any of them so we felt very much alone, out and about in the wilderness. This is a picture made the morning after our arrival showing our campsite in its surroundings.
9 July 2021
A friend of Pip’s contacted me having seen some of my iPhone photos on Facebook. As the owner of an iPhone herself, she was convinced she should be able to make better pictures and wondered if I might give her a lesson. She offered to pay but she was based on the Yorkshire Wolds, an area I had wanted to visit for a while so we agreed that she would show me around and I would share with her how I use my phone. This certainly turned out to be mutually beneficial.
9 July 2023
The last picture this week is my standard view from the bottom of the yard that I can get to if it all kicks off! My friend Jon would call this ‘Rainbows and Unicorns’, the incredible light we get after an evening storm. There is even a slight haziness caused by the steam rising from the road. A fabulous end to the day.
Musical Interlude
This week’s choice is hastily made due to other commitments but is no less brilliant for all that. Andrew Duhon is someone I’ve been following for a few years and his new album could well be his best yet. This track is from that, I hope you enjoy.
That’s it for this week, I honestly can’t believe I’ve managed to get this finished amongst the chaos of a family holiday. Thanks as always for taking the time to read, like and comment, I really appreciate the conversations I have on here and look forward to hearing from you this time. Until next week,
Much love,
Dave
Brilliant photos. The spaniel with his very important purple ball stole my heart!
Are the dunes as huge as they look? Despite the obvious differences between Yorkshire and Namibia, they do remind me of fells.
Goodness, those sand dunes look enormous! Such great photos, and I love the others from Namibia too.
It was nice seeing your photos from the Wolds. We used to go walking there a lot, and loved that the landscapes are dramatic but much less well known than the Moors and Dales.
Hope you have a great birthday this year (remember to take some photos, lol :-)