Where's the Stray gone?

A beautiful sunny morning, and now this? Though it's probably not too surprising for November.

On a totally different topic, has anyone had the experience of crossing roads around the Stray,waiting dutifully until the light turns green, and being nearly taken out by cars going through on red? It's happened to me a few times. I don't like it.

Autumn sunset

I've been shamefully remiss - it's been weeks since my last blog, and although there were excuses (too old, too lazy, nothing going on, too busy, headache ... ) none was sufficient.

But the sky this evening was so beautiful that it was impossible not to photograph it and even my rubbish photographs, which don't come anywhere near doing it justice, still look pretty good.

Still, over the past few weeks there really hasn't been much going on apart from the usual agreeable stuff (so nothing to get worked up about). Leaves have fallen, runners run, walkers walk, dogs and children play. And cyclists use the cycle paths, sedately and with careful ringing of bells, and I have to confess to having joined them.

New England's got nothing on us!

Maybe a slight exaggeration, but the trees on the Stray are starting to develop some amazing autumn colours. Or, as auto-correct, would have it, colors.

 But now I'm going to say something that might just be considered heretical - I really hate the avenues of cherry trees. They're dismal little trees that are quite out of proportion to the lovely big chestnuts and beeches and others around the rest of the Stray, they're looking distinctly unwell, and they produce hideous pink blossoms in the spring. So there you go.

What a pretty place to park

.... half across the cycle lane and half on the Stray verge. What could be nicer on a sunny autumn evening - just leave the car there where there's lot of space, and take the dogs for a little walk.

And what a nice place to cycle ...

.... on the no-cycling path, so not too many other cyclists to get in the way, and only a few pedestrians who can always. move.

Apologies for the terrible blurry photograph. I was too busy jumping out of the way to be able to get my camera out in time.

And further apologies for the heavy sarcasm. It just gets a bit wearing sometimes - these two photographs were taken within about ten minutes of each other, and it's absolutely commonplace for some Stray users - not the majority by any means, but enough to be a nuisance - to ignore the rules, even when they're totally clear.

Empress for sale!

No, I mean the pub, not the senior member of some royal family. I hope it stays as a pub, though the real world might dictate that pubs like this are no longer viable businesses. It's a stunning building and a great situation.

And for no reason at all except that I like it, a picture of Christchurch showing off Harrogate's beautiful skies.

Posters on the Stray

Is this the Stray? These posters are on the hospital railings, so maybe it's not? But I think they look at mess. Other views?

But this is cheering - a really lovely sunset. Harrogate does skies very, very well.

Call this a flood?

I think it probably is a flood. It certainly looks too big, and too pretty, to be a puddle. Yorkshire Water ought to be interested, because this is the area next to St. Aidan's School which is always the first to flood and the last to clear. I would guess a blocked drain or culvert, but who knows ... ?

You call that a flood ...?

That was a comment from Geoff Blakesley in response to my post yesterday (Yorkshire Water take note). Well, fair point, Geoff, except that I didn't call it a flood. I'd probably call it a big puddle. I was using "flood" as a verb, to describe the movement of water from where it should be, in this case in an underground drain, to where it shouldn't, i.e. the surface of the road. But "big-puddling" is pretty rubbish as a verb. And I was using "rubbish" as an adjective, which is incorrect but enjoyable.

I'll see if I can get some pictures of real floods later today.

Yorkshire Water take note!

This area ALWAYS floods when there's a little bit of rain.

A really boring photograph ...

Sorry. I tried to capture something interesting but couldn't get my camera out in time. The something interesting was a father (I assume) and two children, probably aged about eight and ten, all on bikes.

When they got to the No Cycling sign, the little girl, who was between her father and her brother, hopped off her bike and ran to keep up with her father. The other two stayed on their bikes.

She's a star. Her father ought to think about the example he's setting.

Well, this is new!

These people seem to have taken it into their head to pitch camp on the Oatlands Stray - basically, a canvas bungalow that they could live in for a week. I really wonder what, if anything, the local authority plans to do about this. I took these pictures at 6 p.m. this evening, 6th September. I'll check tomorrow to see if it's still there.

Apart from this, everything's fine. It feels like the start of term, with plenty of activity, and the Stray looking busy and sunny, and brilliant. What a pity people can't just have fun instead of doing things that any fule no are not likely to be allowed (and if you don't know where that quote comes from, you're just too young).

Just an ordinary Saturday

... and here's an answer to the question in my previous blog, is the Stray a car park?

It certainly is on Saturday mornings.

But the 5K parkrunners are, as usual, having a great time (and maybe I should put in a word for the marshals, who are amazing - being encouraging and enthusiastic and clapping for an hour can't be easy).

On a different subject, does anyone know what on earth is going on here? It looks like a special enclosure put up to protect mud, with a few blue pipes in case anyone needs them, and it's been here for MONTHS).

Is the Stray a car park?

Somebody clearly thinks it is. This is new - this afternoon, a car parked on the grass to the west side of Oatlands Drive, well clear of the double yellow lines and unarguably on the grass. The driver parked it there and took his two dogs for a stroll along Slingsby Walk. And of course, the problem is that there's nothing (except common sense, a degree of consideration for others and a very clear statement on the Harrogate Borough Council website) to indicate that he shouldn't do that.

But to look on the bright side - there was an absolutely amazing sunset over the Stray a couple of nights ago.

Is the Stray a monoculture, part 2 ...

Here's a very interesting and useful response to my amateurish attempts to identify this fungus which I photographed on the Stray, from my friend David Swindell:

"Without a doubt it's inkcap, Toni, one of my favourites, unmistakeable. If smooth rather than shaggy you shouldn't drink any alcohol with them - won't poison you, but might make you feel very ill - used in cures for alcoholics. We once gathered pounds of them in Andover, and in the Falklands they tasted a little bitter. The condition of the ones you photographed is perfect for picking. Don't wash them, peel them if you must though that isn't necessary either, split down the middle and fry gently in hot, garlicked butter."

I still take the "don't do this at home" approach to identifying fungi.



Nothing to do with monoculture - this poster is still on the Stray. I thought it had been removed. ???

Good place for coffee

Harrogate is awash with great places for coffee, including, of course, the renowned and perfectly fine Bettys. But this morning I was struck by just how agreeable it is to sit UPSTAIRS in Cafe Nero, the one on Cambridge Crescent between RBS and Jaeger. The coffee's excellent, the cakes look nicely cakey (I resisted them), downstairs is a bit dark and crowded but upstairs there's a lovely big comfortable room with one of the best views towards the Cenotaph and over the Stray you could possibly hope for.

A new kind of litter?

I really hope it's new and that it's not going to happen again. Some kind person (probably genuinely trying to be kind - I'm not being sarcastic) has put out a load of white bread, clearly hoping that it will make the birds happy. But it's a REALLY REALLY BAD IDEA. It will definitely attract rats, squirrels, and as you can see, jackdaws and other birds that are already doing fine. The little birds won't get a look in. And shouldn't anyway, because white bread is even worse for them than it is for us.

It will probably be cleared up by our excellent Harrogate Borough Council clearing-up people, but it would be a lot better not to put it out in the first place.

There are plenty of good websites on how to feed wild birds in summer. This one is sensible and comprehensive:

http://www.rspb.org.uk/makeahomeforwildlife/advice/helpingbirds/feeding/whentofeed.aspx

But please don't leave food out on the Stray.

Such weird weather!

And here's Slingsby Walk in the rain:

Lunch at the West Park

It was nice. No, honestly, it was. My companion and I had the seafood sharing platter, she had a glass of white wine, we both had coffee to finish (mine a double espresso, hers a latte). Things that should be hot were hot, things that should be cold were cold. There were scallops in their shells with a sort of cheesy crunchy topping, goujons, prawns, smoked salmon, brown bread and butter, lemon, sauces, and other stuff that I've probably forgotten, The service was unobtrusive and professional, the environment was pleasant and comfortable (a bit noisy, but not enough to be a nuisance), the view over the Stray was lovely. There was really nothing not to like.

My problem with it was just that - it was nice, it felt like a standard product that was produced to a consistent standard (and what do I expect in a fairly big hotel/restaurant?) and it felt to me as though there was something lacking, though I'm really not sure what.

Though I do know that, to compare chalk with cheese (such a weird expression), I much preferred the Jamaican street food at 10 Devonshire Place - far less professional, much more fun, and to me it tasted better.

I'd be interested to hear other people's views.

Straying from the subject ...

Sorry about the dreadful pun, but, following yesterday's post, here's a much better photograph of a cormorant.

It was taken at Staithes by Frances Fletcher (who retains copyright) and is entitled "Does my bum look big in this?"

Irresistible.

Quite surprising!

I saw a cormorant flying over the Stray this morning, looking a bit confused. Possibly I'm the only person who's interested ...

Not my photograph - the blue sky is a bit of a giveaway.

Posters on the Stray

The poster advertising the Fair seems to have struck a chord, so I thought I'd have a little wander round to see how many other posters there are on the Stray.

There a quite a few:

These monstrosities have appeared recently on a whole lot of rubbish bins. I think they're hideous and almost certainly unhelpful. Almost all dog walkers are brilliant at picking up after their pooches, and the few who don't aren't likely to be deterred by this.

This is the Fair poster, showing clearly that it's definitely on the Stray.

I've got a feeling this doesn't count. It's a huge poster welcoming people to Christchurch, but it's inside the church wall facing out on to the Stray. It may conform to the letter of the law, but I'm not sure about the spirit. Sorry it's such a rotten picture - too much traffic for me to cross the road there, and I couldn't be bothered to walk up to the crossing.

Poster advertising the Sewing Room. It's pretty but still a poster.

This poster has been there for months, as you can see from the date! It's on the hospital railings so it may be arguable that it's not on the Stray, but it's time it came down.

And this isn't a poster, it's just a lovely evening.