I’ve moved!

Hey there!

I’ve moved, or at least the blog has. You can find me at:

http://kathysamuelphotos.com/blog

Please feel free to pop by for a visit!
Kathy

Our highest field

The drought and heat of the summer are finally having repercussions on the land here. Apart from a couple of storms, we haven’t really had any rain since the beginning of June.

The lack of water means that the grass has dried and disappaeared a month earlier than usual this year, so this was the last time that the sheep were left to graze in the hills behind the farm. And when we went to fetch them we found them awaiting the dessert.

There’s a field that we stop off at on our way back home which has the remnants of alfalfa growing it. The sheep love it with the passion of a 3 star Michelin restaurant.

I love it because it has the most amazing views, especially early in the evening.

And whilst some of us feast with our eyes, others, just….

…feast!

WordPress weekly photo challenge – Near and Far

I took this whilst out hiking in Le Valgaudemar in the French Hautes-Alpes.

Who’d go hiking in the northern Alps?

As far as tourism in the French Alps goes, the north wins the battle hands down. Everybody goes there.

And that suits me just fine.

Because unlike the more famous regions in higher parts of the Alps, Le Queyras, hidden in the Hautes-Alpes in the southern Alps, remains completely unspoilt by any sort of development or environmental destruction.

When you go hiking here, you don’t have to navigate through huge ski resorts with their labyrinths of pylons and chair-lifts sprawling across the mountainside.

And you can walk all day without finding cable cars regurgitating tourists onto tarmac covered mountain tops.

All the souvenir shops and restaurants remain firmly in the villages in the valleys. And if you’re looking for a bite to eat, the only place you’ll find it is in your rucksack. Maybe on the edge of a lake.

And call me anti-social, but one of the best things about being here is that you can walk all day without meeting another soul. It is truly 100% solitude, sunshine and steep slopes.

It’s just (wo)man and the great outdoors – and isn’t that what hiking is all about?