This Charming Man

The most beautiful day! 120 images have been blipped between here and Bantry. I had to go into Bantry to be assertive. I have been waiting for a week and a half for final proofs for calendar I am doing for the Sheep's Head Producers' Market. I hadn't intended to do the calendar but was asked if I would supply the photos, agreed and then the whole thing seemed to land in my lap. Anyway, committees have been involved so everything has taken ages, and now the printer had gone silent. Anyway it turns out he has been ill, but no one seems to have covered for him. He's ringing me tomorrow. I won't hold my breath.

Anyway Bantry Bay was looking drop dead gorgeous, far too good to get stressed about. I went down to the first pier and got a bit snap happy and then spotted a man getting ready for kayaking - in his bare legs! I was mindful of Kendall's very thought provoking blip from the other day - are you a nature or people kind of photographer? Me, I suspect I am more nature and here I was gasping at sheer beauty, but along came an interesting person. Blipping makes you bold. I struck up a conversation. What a charming man. He tries to kayak everyday and goes off searching for driftwood for his fire. Apparently there's tons to be had.He also fishes/digs for scallops and knew all the best places and techniques. Bare legs were fine too, you get used to the cold apparently. His yellow kayak looked irresistable against all that blue and did he mind me blipping him - 'not a bother!' Nature and people then. You might want to biggify as he paddles off towards Whiddy Island.

I treated my car to a much needed carwash, and then treated myself to a bit of exploration and decided to tackle a ringfort which had not yet been conquered - normally there are a lot of cattle. I scrambled over a gate into briars and thick mud but what an incredible place. Perched atop a drumlin it had the most amazing views out across the Bay, and was in sight of at least four other ringforts. It was bivallate (couldn't resist throwing that in - two ditched) and huge, now necklaced with all sorts of fairy hawthorns.

And now there's a sunset but I shall resist and have a cuppa and a mincepie.

This Charming Man