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  • Unlike Ty Uchaf, the farm below, these quarry buildings high up on the hillside are filled with lush grass and are open to the skies. Although ruins, they seem clean and tidy, and their views are stunning and expansive. However, these buildings mark what was obviously a busy quarry level, with a steep railway incline and winch tower just to the east of these units.
    GD000793.jpg
  • With the light behind, especially from sea level, this headland looks striking, but ultimately just like any other rocky cliff, but in the right light, and from above, a series of massive quarried levels and terraces become visible, revealing that the whole headland has been scarred by man. You can make out the seriously-steep quarry track in this image but what you can’t see is that this headland is now a huge sea bird colony.
    GD000775.jpg
  • Last minute blast for a walk and some snaps after yet another dreary June day. Hints of sunshine broke through blankets of mountain cloud so we went for a coastal walk along the Strait. The clouds opened more and more and pools of sunlight illuminated the hillsides. For just a brief moment, literally seconds, the sunset flood lit Castell Penrhyn in the foreground. The castle was built by Lord Penrhyn, from the profits of the slate industry. Impoverished slate quarry workers worked in horrendous, dangerous conditions to facilitate this.<br />
<br />
UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD002492.jpg
  • Our ancestors were collecting copper here 4000 years ago and below the surface there are huge caverns and miles of passageways hewn away by men with pick axes. The quarry saw it's most prolific excavation in the eighteenth century when the export of copper made this area very rich, The nearby port of Amlwch Harbour flourished as world demand for this fine grade copper increased. It was why the area became known as the Copper Kingdom.
    GD001183.jpg
  • A last minute decision to slog up Mynydd Mawr on a mixed weather day, resulted in just the most fantastic hour of weather watching from it's summit. I was utterly gripped by the continual theatrical change being played out across the Snowdonia Range. If it were not for my friend feeling rather chilly I think I'd have braved another hour or so of just sitting and watching.<br />
<br />
UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD001534.jpg
  • Abstract landscape in the Dinorwic Quarries near Llanberis, Snowdonia.<br />
<br />
UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD000366.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD000770.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD000769.jpg
  • Wales highest mountain, Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) hides under sunlit cloud in the background, but the rounded slopes of Mynydd Mawr sit in the middle shot, whilst the craggy narrow Nantlle Ridge can be seen to the right. The deep scarred landscape in front is the Rhosgadfan quarries, now disused.<br />
<br />
UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD001050.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD000752.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD000776.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD001205.jpg
  • This was one of those beautiful mornings with clear, low light and stunning saturation of colour. I had walked with my friend (and book producer), Jonathan, up to the top levels on the Trefor side of the valley to get a view back down at Y Nant. The sea appeared crystal clear and almost tropical in colour whilst the sunshine just ‘clipped’ over the steep quarried hillside to differentiate the levels. With the village nestling in centre frame, this image, along with its sister image, ‘A Different Level of Amazement’, used on Carl Clowes’ guide book cover, epitomises the full layout and topography of the place, showing it in all its glory – however, for most of my visits,the weather and atmosphere were altogether moodier, and in a way more dramatic and impressive. In this glorious weather it was easier to forget the mists of the past whilst revelling in the warmth and beauty of the present.
    GD000792.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD000781.jpg
  • When viewed from a distance, in this case from the quarries of Carreg y Llam, the village of Y Nant sits quite high above the beach on a raised terrace which is actually the valley floor. Despite my comments about ‘A Valley Exposed’, this raised terrace offers relative safety from powerful winter seas and can afford reasonable shelter from cold north-easterly winds. In the sun, this valley can also be remarkably warm.
    GD000806.jpg
  • A shattered landscape, blasted, gouged and ripped apart by mans material need, lies abstracted in the gorgeous warmth of evening sunlight, the quarrymen long gone. <br />
<br />
Today a different form of quarry workers assault the slate faces, roped up, drilling, clipping, sweating and shouting to each other in the carved out quarry levels. <br />
<br />
The multitude of tough labourers who faced hardship and danger in this industrial landscape are now but echoes in the shadows and deep pits. From the faces of smooth slate in now abandoned quarries, come the sounds of excited chatter and exhilaration as modern day climbers fill the void that has been left.<br />
<br />
UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD002373.jpg
  • From my book Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)<br />
<br />
This book is available for purchase here on www.glyndavies.com
    GD000710.jpg
  • From my book Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)<br />
<br />
This book is available for purchase here on www.glyndavies.com
    GD000704.jpg
  • I am always fascinated when nature reclaims areas and structures created by man, and this was no exception. A small tree is now growing out of the concrete floor, and grasses are forming a carpet. The rather pretty-looking wooden roof is still half-intact, and forms the roosting place for local choughs. I entered this building for the first time one dusk and disturbed two of these rare birds. They let out raucous squawks and shot out over my head. I’m not sure quite who was the most alarmed, but thereafter I always looked up first to avoid more surprises!
    GD000794.jpg
  • My shadow is included to give some sense of scale to this huge area of industrially scarred landscape. This area has been mined for 4000 years, not 400 but 4000 years! It was once Britain's largest exporter for the precious metal Copper and was known as the copper kingdom. Hundreds of tall ships used nearby Amlwch Harbour to export the material. Now it is unused, though the quality of this ore is outstanding.
    GD000048.jpg
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD001217.jpg
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD001218.jpg
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site, Blaenau Ffestiniog
    GD001219.jpg
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD001216.jpg
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site<br />
<br />
No this isn’t filtered, this was shot in torrential rain that was back-lit by intense evening sunshine setting over the Irish Sea. I’d been checking out the climbing routes in the Dinorwic Quarries, waiting for the sun to come out from banks of heavy cloud, when I noticed a glow on the crags behind me. I rounded the corner and the sky was on fire. A first few drops of rain dappled the slate slabs around me so I hurried to the edge of the levels and rapidly set up my camera before the heavens opened up on top of me. I grabbed perhaps 10 frames in total as the sheets of rain moved across the hillsides. I also saw and managed to grab a shot of a most glorious rainbow behind me.
    GD002393.jpg
  • This is a huge area of industrially scarred landscape. This area has been mined for 4000 years, not 400 but 4000 years! It was once Britain's largest exporter for the precious metal Copper and was known as the copper kingdom. Hundreds of tall ships used nearby Amlwch Harbour to export the material. Now it is unused, though the quality of this ore is outstanding.
    GD000673.jpg
  • The early morning sunshine cast an almost perfect shadow of one of the huge cog-wheels onto the nearby wall. It was fun to line up all three elements, linking shadows to reality. The visible shadow is a metaphor for so much of what one ‘feels’ at Y Nant; there is nothing ‘actually there’ but nevertheless we sense things and can sometimes even believe we are seeing things. The history, the topography, the remnants of what was, and the present landscape all blend together at Nant, and this blend for me at least is its ‘spirit’.
    GD000790bws.jpg
  • Like a creased piece of paper, this huge concrete retaining wall has folded outwards, and is now leaning precariously over the gravel slope. I was impressed that once a crack appears in such man-made solidity it soon spreads and weakens the whole structure.
    GD000784.jpg
  • Just above the village, which contained its own bakery, shop, school and chapel, there were also farms and, of course, industry. It is quite fantastic that so much of what was needed to sustain life was found within the immediate area.
    GD000778.jpg
  • Another interior of Tŷ Uchaf. Every room had its own fireplace.
    GD000772.jpg
  • Another bitterly cold day: you can see the hail storms in the distance. You can just make out the village at the middle left of the image. The storms were intense, and freezing cold lasted all day. I trudged up to this industrial incline and noticed a huge hailstorm heading my way, dark and threatening. I decided not to get completely bombarded, so sheltered under the incline building, with its huge view out to sea. I kitted up with over-trousers and gloves and ensured my kit was clear of any holes in the ceiling above. As I sat there watching the light levels drop rapidly, like a solar eclipse, a huge buzzard landed on a post just ahead of me. He hadn’t noticed me at first, but then turned his head and saw me. After a moment he turned back to face the hailstorm, but did not fly off – we both seemed to be acknowledging what the other was doing! The hail came and bombarded the hillside, but five minutes later it stopped and the light levels started to increase once more. He turned once again to look at me, properly eye-balled me, and then slowly took off down the valley. It was an amazing shared moment, both of us humble witnesses to the power of the heavens.
    GD000692.jpg
  • GD000655v2.jpg
  • From my book Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)<br />
<br />
This book is available for purchase here on www.glyndavies.com
    GD000711.jpg
  • In the summer the hillsides were transformed from dull, earthy, bracken-covered slopes into lush, green carpets of grass and ferns. The shallow waters immediately off the shore reflect vivid turquoise, green and blue light- waves from the clear sunlight, creating an incredibly welcoming picture of this normally imposing coastline. After taking this shot, I went for a refreshing swim in the crystal-clear waters, and if had not been for the slightly cool sea temperature, I could have been abroad!.
    GD000800.jpg
  • I found the huge sweep of the bay, the plunging cliffs and the vast expanse of sky an awesome vista to behold. The knowledge that workers had carried on a very dangerous occupation in such a precipitous environment, often in awful weather conditions, was daunting to even consider. At the same time, perhaps, like the shepherds who walk stormy mountains or fishermen in rough seas, they also found something very elemental and humbling to be gained from working in these environments, something which goes beyond simple romance.
    GD000753.jpg
  • Alongside the wood, a small river flows down to the sea from the cascading waterfall of Y Graig Ddu. Through the often stunted and twisted trees at its edge, the old farm of Tŷ Uchaf can be seen, no longer inhabited, but still worked by a local farmer. The sudden downpour of light on the fields created a vivid separation between the open higher ground and the cold,dark,tight-packed mass of trees behind me.Ty Uchaf was like a Wuthering Heights to me, dark windows looking out over the valley and a sense of harshness and foreboding about running a farm in this remote isolated valley.
    GD000756.jpg
  • Although the image depicts a sunny and spectacularly dramatic landscape, you can see, brooding offshore, very heavy weather conditions. In strong westerly and northerly gales, the tiny village of Y Nant is remarkably vulnerable to harsh weather, sitting as it does on the most seaward edge of this wide coastal valley. Enjoy the warmth of summer, for in winter it is a different story
    GD000807.jpg
  • From my book Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)<br />
<br />
This book is available for purchase here on www.glyndavies.com
    GD000705.jpg
  • Iwas just fascinated by the hard, angular patterns of wall and shadow in this old industrial construction, and the softness of the scoop of cloud overhead. On such a warm day it made me smile.
    GD000785.jpg
  • In an abandoned quarry village, high up in the windswept mountains of Wales, sits a derelict old chapel with it's roof timbers now collapsing inwards but still pointing skywards. It is only the spirit of the workmen in this busy slate quarry that remains, the valley is silent and desolate.<br />
<br />
Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD001175.jpg
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD000056.jpg
  • It's hard to believe that our ancestors were collecting copper from here 4000 years ago, Beneath our feet there are huge caverns and miles of passageways hewn away by men and pick axes. The quarry saw it's most prolific excavation in the eighteenth century when the export of copper made this area very rich, The nearby port of Amlwch Harbour flourished as world demand for this fine grade copper increased. It was why the area became known as the Copper Kingdom.
    GD001180.jpg
  • Our ancestors were collecting copper here 4000 years ago and below the surface there are huge caverns and miles of passageways hewn away by men with pick axes. The quarry saw it's most prolific excavation in the eighteenth century when the export of copper made this area very rich, The nearby port of Amlwch Harbour flourished as world demand for this fine grade copper increased. It was why the area became known as the Copper Kingdom.
    GD001181.jpg
  • It's hard to believe that our ancestors were collecting copper from here 4000 years ago, Beneath our feet there are huge caverns and miles of passageways hewn away by men and pick axes. The quarry saw it's most prolific excavation in the eighteenth century when the export of copper made this area very rich, The nearby port of Amlwch Harbour flourished as world demand for this fine grade copper increased. It was why the area became known as the Copper Kingdom.
    GD001182.jpg
  • Unbelievably beautiful shapes, colours and textures in a cliff of slate in the Llanberis slate quarries. It was more reminiscent of an oil painting than a disused quarry face.<br />
<br />
UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD002396.jpg
  • Up to 10 x 10" on A3 prints only<br />
<br />
Wonderful abstract patterns of historical slate steps in the Dinorwic Quarry, slowly being reclaimed by nature.
    GD002658.jpg
  • Available as A3 & A4 prints only<br />
<br />
Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) in winter, from the Dinorwic Quarries, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD000010.jpg
  • From my series of images documenting the changing character of the vast derelict slate quarries near Llanberis & Dinorwic as nature & modern life reclaim this huge industrially scarred mountain-scape. The quarries closed in 1969 but the sheer scale of the industry is still apparent, and without doubt there are visual & spiritual echoes of the Welsh workmen who risked life & limb working there. It seems only right that these incredible, surreal and industrially transformed landscapes have now been given UNESCO World Heritage status.
    GD002666.jpg
  • From my series of images documenting the changing character of the vast derelict slate quarries near Llanberis & Dinorwic as nature & modern life reclaim this huge industrially scarred mountain-scape. The quarries closed in 1969 but the sheer scale of the industry is still apparent, and without doubt there are visual & spiritual echoes of the workmen who risked life & limb working there.<br />
<br />
UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD002638.jpg
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site<br />
<br />
The massif of Snowdon tries to hold back an enormous fog bank from the Irish Sea, but clouds and fog spilled over nevertheless. Through short breaks in the fog, brilliant sunlight blasted the quarries on the mountainside opposite, separating and dividing the landscape into multiple layers of tone, colour and shadow. In a manmade industrial landscape like this, the whole scene looked more like something from a Hollywood film set.
    GD002372.jpg
  • One of 3 winning entries in the 29th SUN (Shot up North) Awards for full time professional photographers<br />
<br />
I had been looking back through some early work and was amazed at how much snow we had in the winter of 2006. Amongst the more natural-looking snowy mountain images I’d taken from the top of Moel Eilio was this one of the Dinorwig Quarries below Elidir Fawr. I was fascinated by the cool purity of the winter snow gently trying to smooth over the vast, ugly, man-made scarring of the mountain’s lower regions.<br />
<br />
The image has almost literally been sliced in half – the softer, wild and windswept upper reaches, and the angular, fractured blackness of the quarries below. Of course, the quarries hold their own fascination in terms of human history, culture and tenacity, but sometimes it’s only from a distance that you realise just how much destruction has gone on. Equally, it’s almost comforting to know just how much beauty still does exist, even within areas that have been so exploited, as here in Llanberis.<br />
<br />
UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD001235.jpg
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site<br />
<br />
A fleeting burst of light during an overcast, mizzly day in the Welsh mountains.  The light glowed briefly over Llyn Peris before skipping at speed over the levels of the disused Dinorwic slate quarries and then disappearing altogether.<br />
<br />
It’s strange studying these old industrial workings, where men blasted away half a mountainside around half a century ago, but then seeing so many people using the quarried levels for climbing, walking, mountain biking and general sight-seeing. In a way it’s a really positive thing that so much fun has come out of so much destruction, and hardship for the quarrymen of old.
    GD002339.jpg
  • Clinging to the edge of a cold mountain slope, stand the remains of a once thriving but dangerous slate quarrying industry. Tonight though, it was quiet, calm and tranquil, only the gentlest of winds blowing up the valley. Apart from the sound of ravens it seems a huge change from what once was. Even the train was silent in the thick winter snow.<br />
<br />
UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD000967.jpg
  • Trawsfynydd Power Station from the vast slate quarries of Blaenau ffestiniog.  <br />
<br />
Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD001213.jpg
  • Trawsfynydd Nuclear Power Station from the vast quarries of Blaenau Ffestiniog, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD001212.jpg
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site<br />
<br />
Just after the fleeting dramatic light a few minutes earlier, bursting through the mizzly blanket above the Welsh hills, a delicate ghostly vapour now enshrouded the deserted quarrymen’s huts high up in the Dinorwic slate quarries.<br />
.<br />
It’s strange studying these old industrial workings, where men blasted away half a mountainside around half a century ago, but I’m also grateful that we have access to this place, and an opportunity to stand and reflect on our history and a way of life long gone, in this country at least. If we don’t consider the past, how can we possibly learn how to go forwards?
    GD002340.jpg
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site<br />
<br />
At dusk, the last shreds of evening sun illuminated a low wall desperately trying to hold back a mountain-sized flood of waste slate. It seemed curiously futile but in the beautiful light I also saw how the rough structure has done it's job for decades, against all odds
    GD002612.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD000791.jpg
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site<br />
<br />
The most incredible sunset over the industrial relics of the Dinorwic slate quarries in Snowdonia. It was so peaceful up there, absolute silence as I studied the clouds gently mutating in the rich sunset over Yr Wyddfa, Wales’ highest mountain.
    GD002441.jpg
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site<br />
<br />
The massif of Snowdon tries to hold back an enormous fog bank from the Irish Sea, but clouds and fog spilled over nevertheless. Through short breaks in the fog, brilliant sunlight blasted the quarries on the mountainside opposite, separating and dividing the landscape into multiple layers of tone, colour and shadow. In a manmade industrial landscape like this, the whole scene looked more like something from a Hollywood film set.
    GD002371.jpg
  • Garnedd Elidir & the Carneddau<br />
UNESCO World Heritage Site <br />
<br />
Watching an Attenborough documentary as I write this, and it's clear that the damage we cause is everywhere and it's increasing. It's so much easier to focus on the beauty, to pretend everything is OK, but we are such a destructive, consuming species. <br />
<br />
I was thinking too, about the mental damage going on through lockdown, in so many ways, but for many, through wrongly being denied access to nature and what healing power it has left to give us. So many of us have chosen to live a much more economically challenged life to be closer to nature and landscape, for me at least because being out in nature is the only true means of me maintaining spiritual and mental balance. The governments say they are doing this to keep people safe, but the mental damage they are causing is considerable and very real. I don't think there has been much wisdom or foresight applied by those in suits, to how to keep people safe mentally without any undue risks to health in other ways. This damage is real for me, and will last my lifetime. There was zero need to ban so many sensible and regular outdoor folk from doing their covid safe activities, it was easier for ministers to make blanket rules but to the detriment of many people's well-being.
    GD002588.jpg
  • Shooting into sunshine bursting through broken cloud created an incredible contrast. The shiny slate reflected almost as much light as the lake & sea, so everything else seemed dark in comparison. I've chosen not to lighten the shadows, but to enjoy the contrast instead.<br />
<br />
UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD002637.jpg
  • From my book Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)<br />
<br />
This book is available for purchase here on www.glyndavies.com
    GD000706.jpg
  • The sun lies, there was NO warmth up here, just a severe and bitterly cold wind blowing from the East over the Carneddau. Slices of sunshine simply skimmed right off the snow surface and was lost in the air. The only compromise was the perfectly rounded and deeply satisfying contour of Moel Wnion in the sunlit distance.
    GD001055.jpg
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site<br />
<br />
Stunning rainbows formed behind me as late evening sunset burned through sheets of rain moving across the mountains. It was so tempting to concentrate on the back-lit rain in front of me, but when this was going on behind my back I couldn’t resist a snap :-)
    GD002394.jpg
  • It was strange to be standing in sunshine one one side of the valley, looking towards the banks of fog rolling over the hillsides opposite. The bustling town of Llanberis looked so tiny below the crazy swirling weather above.<br />
<br />
UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD002369.jpg
  • An early morning shoot from the hills of Yr Eifl on North Wales most Western tip, the Lleyn Peninisula. The clouds were stormy looking and threatening rain, but the sunlight between showers was crisp and beautiful and sculptural.
    GD001438.jpg
  • An early morning shoot from the hills of Yr Eifl on North Wales most Western tip, the Lleyn Peninisula. The clouds were stormy looking and threatening rain, but the sunlight between showers was crisp and beautiful and sculptural.
    GD001437.jpg
  • Tantalisingly close, legally impossible but the lure of the mountains is powerful and emotional - they are a siren calling through the breeze. That’s all, a ten minute breeze separating me from my spiritual sanctuary.<br />
<br />
UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD002472.jpg
  • Whilst waiting for my rock climbing partner to arrive, I couldn’t resist shooting this amazing morning sunshine illuminating striking cubist-looking slate crags. I saw them as huge landscape sculptures erupting from the dark grey slate waste all around.<br />
<br />
UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD002395.jpg
  • As is the way with my days off these days, there is no rush ever. Jan works long days and even longer nights in an intensive care department and there is NO shift pattern at all to allow a person’s body clock to plan the week. Her need for sleep catch up is vital, so I have learned not to expect a 7am leap out of bed, and instead to respect her body clock readjustment time. It doesn’t stop me getting fidgety however if the light looks amazing, and the day is going by :-)<br />
<br />
It was Sunday however, and for Jan a rare Sunday off, so whatever! The weather forecast was for brightness, light cloud, zero chance of rain and plenty of sunshine later. We could do a lazy leisurely hill walk later with no worries about the elements or timings. I didn’t really absorb the additional information I skimmed through on the mountain weather forecast though, which indicated freezing level at summits and 45mph winds. Nevertheless we threw in our Paramo’s and Rab wind proofs just in case, along with two flasks of steaming hot coffee.<br />
<br />
At about 2pm we started the one hour drive towards the distinctive pyramid shaped mountain called Cnicht. I haven’t done it for couple of years and I love the mountain (approximately 2200 feet). I have done it from the very meandrous North side and also from the shadowy East facing quarry valley of Cwm Orthin, which was today’s plan as I wanted to show Jan the old quarry workings. However, as part of her prep for some bigger mountains in the next few weeks she said she’d prefer a steep ascent, so we headed for Croesor on the brighter West side instead. This was a first for me too which was nice, making our way up the classic West ridge.<br />
<br />
We decided to have a cuppa and a sandwich in the cafe in the tiny, sleepy hamlet of Croesor but the cafe was so asleep it was closed! I was really surprised, this being the Easter break and a car park packed with walkers’ vehicles. We started up the long, bouldery woodland track before exiting right up towards
    GD001736.jpg
  • As is the way with my days off these days, there is no rush ever. Jan works long days and even longer nights in an intensive care department and there is NO shift pattern at all to allow a person’s body clock to plan the week. Her need for sleep catch up is vital, so I have learned not to expect a 7am leap out of bed, and instead to respect her body clock readjustment time. It doesn’t stop me getting fidgety however if the light looks amazing, and the day is going by :-)<br />
<br />
It was Sunday however, and for Jan a rare Sunday off, so whatever! The weather forecast was for brightness, light cloud, zero chance of rain and plenty of sunshine later. We could do a lazy leisurely hill walk later with no worries about the elements or timings. I didn’t really absorb the additional information I skimmed through on the mountain weather forecast though, which indicated freezing level at summits and 45mph winds. Nevertheless we threw in our Paramo’s and Rab wind proofs just in case, along with two flasks of steaming hot coffee.<br />
<br />
At about 2pm we started the one hour drive towards the distinctive pyramid shaped mountain called Cnicht. I haven’t done it for couple of years and I love the mountain (approximately 2200 feet). I have done it from the very meandrous North side and also from the shadowy East facing quarry valley of Cwm Orthin, which was today’s plan as I wanted to show Jan the old quarry workings. However, as part of her prep for some bigger mountains in the next few weeks she said she’d prefer a steep ascent, so we headed for Croesor on the brighter West side instead. This was a first for me too which was nice, making our way up the classic West ridge.<br />
<br />
We decided to have a cuppa and a sandwich in the cafe in the tiny, sleepy hamlet of Croesor but the cafe was so asleep it was closed! I was really surprised, this being the Easter break and a car park packed with walkers’ vehicles. We started up the long, bouldery woodland track before exiting right up towards
    GD001737.jpg
  • As is the way with my days off these days, there is no rush ever. Jan works long days and even longer nights in an intensive care department and there is NO shift pattern at all to allow a person’s body clock to plan the week. Her need for sleep catch up is vital, so I have learned not to expect a 7am leap out of bed, and instead to respect her body clock readjustment time. It doesn’t stop me getting fidgety however if the light looks amazing, and the day is going by :-)<br />
<br />
It was Sunday however, and for Jan a rare Sunday off, so whatever! The weather forecast was for brightness, light cloud, zero chance of rain and plenty of sunshine later. We could do a lazy leisurely hill walk later with no worries about the elements or timings. I didn’t really absorb the additional information I skimmed through on the mountain weather forecast though, which indicated freezing level at summits and 45mph winds. Nevertheless we threw in our Paramo’s and Rab wind proofs just in case, along with two flasks of steaming hot coffee.<br />
<br />
At about 2pm we started the one hour drive towards the distinctive pyramid shaped mountain called Cnicht. I haven’t done it for couple of years and I love the mountain (approximately 2200 feet). I have done it from the very meandrous North side and also from the shadowy East facing quarry valley of Cwm Orthin, which was today’s plan as I wanted to show Jan the old quarry workings. However, as part of her prep for some bigger mountains in the next few weeks she said she’d prefer a steep ascent, so we headed for Croesor on the brighter West side instead. This was a first for me too which was nice, making our way up the classic West ridge.<br />
<br />
We decided to have a cuppa and a sandwich in the cafe in the tiny, sleepy hamlet of Croesor but the cafe was so asleep it was closed! I was really surprised, this being the Easter break and a car park packed with walkers’ vehicles. We started up the long, bouldery woodland track before exiting right up towards
    GD001735.jpg
  • As is the way with my days off these days, there is no rush ever. Jan works long days and even longer nights in an intensive care department and there is NO shift pattern at all to allow a person’s body clock to plan the week. Her need for sleep catch up is vital, so I have learned not to expect a 7am leap out of bed, and instead to respect her body clock readjustment time. It doesn’t stop me getting fidgety however if the light looks amazing, and the day is going by :-)<br />
<br />
It was Sunday however, and for Jan a rare Sunday off, so whatever! The weather forecast was for brightness, light cloud, zero chance of rain and plenty of sunshine later. We could do a lazy leisurely hill walk later with no worries about the elements or timings. I didn’t really absorb the additional information I skimmed through on the mountain weather forecast though, which indicated freezing level at summits and 45mph winds. Nevertheless we threw in our Paramo’s and Rab wind proofs just in case, along with two flasks of steaming hot coffee.<br />
<br />
At about 2pm we started the one hour drive towards the distinctive pyramid shaped mountain called Cnicht. I haven’t done it for couple of years and I love the mountain (approximately 2200 feet). I have done it from the very meandrous North side and also from the shadowy East facing quarry valley of Cwm Orthin, which was today’s plan as I wanted to show Jan the old quarry workings. However, as part of her prep for some bigger mountains in the next few weeks she said she’d prefer a steep ascent, so we headed for Croesor on the brighter West side instead. This was a first for me too which was nice, making our way up the classic West ridge.<br />
<br />
We decided to have a cuppa and a sandwich in the cafe in the tiny, sleepy hamlet of Croesor but the cafe was so asleep it was closed! I was really surprised, this being the Easter break and a car park packed with walkers’ vehicles. We started up the long, bouldery woodland track before exiting right up towards
    GD001734.jpg
  • On these exposed Welsh hillsides once existed a large granite quarry, blasting rock form various levels to ship to Liverpool. Nowadays the quarry is long gone, the hills are quiet, but amongst the long lush grassy hillsides you come across hundreds of old remains of the industry which once existed here, providing employment and indeed a community for the quarrymen and their families.
    GD001203.jpg
  • As is the way with my days off these days, there is no rush ever. Jan works long days and even longer nights in an intensive care department and there is NO shift pattern at all to allow a person’s body clock to plan the week. Her need for sleep catch up is vital, so I have learned not to expect a 7am leap out of bed, and instead to respect her body clock readjustment time. It doesn’t stop me getting fidgety however if the light looks amazing, and the day is going by :-)<br />
<br />
It was Sunday however, and for Jan a rare Sunday off, so whatever! The weather forecast was for brightness, light cloud, zero chance of rain and plenty of sunshine later. We could do a lazy leisurely hill walk later with no worries about the elements or timings. I didn’t really absorb the additional information I skimmed through on the mountain weather forecast though, which indicated freezing level at summits and 45mph winds. Nevertheless we threw in our Paramo’s and Rab wind proofs just in case, along with two flasks of steaming hot coffee.<br />
<br />
At about 2pm we started the one hour drive towards the distinctive pyramid shaped mountain called Cnicht. I haven’t done it for couple of years and I love the mountain (approximately 2200 feet). I have done it from the very meandrous North side and also from the shadowy East facing quarry valley of Cwm Orthin, which was today’s plan as I wanted to show Jan the old quarry workings. However, as part of her prep for some bigger mountains in the next few weeks she said she’d prefer a steep ascent, so we headed for Croesor on the brighter West side instead. This was a first for me too which was nice, making our way up the classic West ridge.<br />
<br />
We decided to have a cuppa and a sandwich in the cafe in the tiny, sleepy hamlet of Croesor but the cafe was so asleep it was closed! I was really surprised, this being the Easter break and a car park packed with walkers’ vehicles. We started up the long, bouldery woodland track before exiting right up towards
    GD001733.jpg
  • One track leads to a blinding but beautiful sunset, the other leads to instant death where cars join others which have drowned in crystal clear but dark quarry lakes.
    GD001051.jpg
  • Yet, despite all, there was a surreal if melancholy beauty to the place. This once tourism-fronted seaside town, this once also busy quarry town that has seen better days, is topped by ancient standing stones and open windswept moorlands. The often-quiet hilltops offer solitude and spectacular views, Eryri behind, Anglesey and the Irish Sea in front, a sea quilted with colours and shadows from the vast skies above. I’ve stood at the Druid’s Circle, high on the flat peak and I’ve spoken to the stones, literally, for they listen without judgement and they hear you. I see figures in their form, and in the low wet mists when no one else is around, they will move in the vapour. Up here, high above the shadow-nestled town, it is expansive and liberating, bright even in cloud and with wings you could swoop over the darkness of Pen to the sunlit sea beyond, perhaps in Summer actually catching some warm sun rays which catch the huge sandy beach skirting this shadowy habitation.
    GD001709.jpg
  • Nominated in 10th (2017) International Colour Awards (Nature category) <br />
<br />
A huge snow blizzard sweeps over a green Irish Sea towards the tiny hamlet of Nant Gwrtheyrn, once the centre of a busy granite quarrying community on the North coast of the Llyn Peninsula, Wales. This is now a post industrial landscape of abandoned granite quarrying buildings and levels. The hamlet is now a Welsh language and conference centre.<br />
<br />
From my book Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)<br />
<br />
This book is available for purchase here on www.glyndavies.com
    GD000707.jpg
  • 3 Edition A1 - 5 Edition A2<br />
<br />
Crisp afternoon sunlight spills across remnants of ancient stones in a lost valley. This valley and escarpment was once home to a thriving quarrying community, and long before that a handful of fishing folk, and long, LONG before that, it was home of exiled Brythonic leader Vortigern, who betrayed Britain to the Saxons.
    GD001058.jpg
  • After the harshness of the crags and cliff sides, the angular edges of the quarried levels and the tidy angles of the village itself, these large and beautifully rounded boulders seemed almost organic, and the way they spaced themselves evenly across the fine pebbles of the beach gave them a lifelike character of their own. It was hard to resist simply running my hands over the beautiful smooth curves, much as you would with a Henry Moore sculpture.
    GD000796.jpg
  • Quarries at Moel Tryfan, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD001150.jpg
  • I’ve always been fascinated by the way nature reclaims so much of what man has altered, constructed or destroyed. Here at the Dinorwic slate quarries, wonderful little copses and patches of woodland have sprung up between the walls, railway tracks and buildings that were part of this huge slate industry. <br />
<br />
On a warm evening with only the sound of a Blackbird’s song to lighten the sounds of or heavy footsteps, it was hard to imagine the noise and industry from just a few decades earlier, as man blasted into mountain.<br />
<br />
UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD002440.jpg
  • The narrow lane winding up through the slate quarrying village of Deiniolen, disappears over the ridge but in the distance the Snowdon railway track leads us up to the summit of the highest mountain in England and Wales
    GD001038.jpg
  • I was under the weather. It was 7.30 in the morning and I was out in my van, driving on impulse and letting the will take me to wherever. <br />
<br />
I very rarely go near Llanberis these days even though I used to spend so much time climbing in the quarries. I could almost hear the clipping of karabiners as I basked in the healing warming sunshine. It was so peaceful. Wisps of cloud hung at the valley head and the morning light created a regression of tones from foreground to background, silloueting Dolbadarn Castle, a true castle of the Welsh princes. <br />
<br />
As a child Llanberis was a magical place, and the departure point for several walks up Snowdon with my Dad. The steam trains were always a gripping fascination, their historical looking enginesbelching steam as they prepared fpr the chug up the steep railway to Snowdon’s summit. <br />
<br />
Here today though, alone and thinkimg about my parents, and age, and my pwn past, Llanberis was as beautiful as ever, but so much of my vision was memories of what once was.
    GD002181.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD000767.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD000766.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD000764BW.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD000762.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD000755.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD000754.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD000751v2.jpg
  • After the harshness of the crags and cliff sides, the angular edges of the quarried levels and the tidy angles of the village itself, these large and beautifully rounded boulders seemed almost organic, and the way they spaced themselves evenly across the fine pebbles of the beach gave them a lifelike character of their own. It was hard to resist simply running my hands over the beautiful smooth curves, much as you would with a Henry Moore sculpture.
    GD000795.jpg
  • After the harshness of the crags and cliff sides, the angular edges of the quarried levels and the tidy angles of the village itself, these large and beautifully rounded boulders seemed almost organic, and the way they spaced themselves evenly across the fine pebbles of the beach gave them a lifelike character of their own. It was hard to resist simply running my hands over the beautiful smooth curves, much as you would with a Henry Moore sculpture.
    GD000788.jpg
  • After the harshness of the crags and cliff sides, the angular edges of the quarried levels and the tidy angles of the village itself, these large and beautifully rounded boulders seemed almost organic, and the way they spaced themselves evenly across the fine pebbles of the beach gave them a lifelike character of their own. It was hard to resist simply running my hands over the beautiful smooth curves, much as you would with a Henry Moore sculpture.
    GD000787.jpg
  • "Two of the last few stumps of the cargo jetties stand defiantly against the continual battering of the sea, the last tiny reminders of the link with the sea, from an industry long gone and a community dispersed"<br />
<br />
From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD000768.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.
    GD000763.jpg
  • From my book<br />
<br />
"Nant Gwrtheyrn - Y Swyngyfaredd (The Enchantment)" available here on my website<br />
<br />
The deserted valley and quarrying village of Nant Gwrtheyrn, North Wales. Now restored as a Welsh language & conference centre.<br />
.
    GD000760.jpg
  • After the harshness of the crags and cliff sides, the angular edges of the quarried levels and the tidy angles of the village itself, these large and beautifully rounded boulders seemed almost organic, and the way they spaced themselves evenly across the fine pebbles of the beach gave them a lifelike character of their own. It was hard to resist simply running my hands over the beautiful smooth curves, much as you would with a Henry Moore sculpture.
    GD000786.jpg
  • A frozen lake in a huge slate quarrying valley in North Wales. The evening sun on the distant mountains and the delicacy of the ice patterns on the lake balance the scarification of this once beautiful valley.<br />
<br />
Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site
    GD001121.jpg
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