Tramlines 2014

I have been neglecting my blog - but it has been far too hot to sit inside on a laptop, and too bright and sunny to see the screen when I sit outside.  I have to say I have been loving the heatwave! 

Anyway - onwards!  Hubby and I made the most of this weekend at the annual Tramlines festival in Sheffield.  I love Tramlines as there is something for everybody and the whole city comes alive - the weather was perfect for it.  A lot of the action takes place in the city centre, but they make use of venues on the periphery too.  A programme would have been good to buy, but we decided to just wander around and discover things.

We started on Friday evening down at Kelham Island with the Everly Pregnant Brothers concert in the Fat Cat Pub car park - I think that this is the 3rd they have done now and it gets very popular.  It was a fantastic atmosphere and everybody had a great time.  The heat made this feel more like Spain than Sheffield.

 We had a great spot by the canal - just across from the stage.

 On Saturday, we started up in Endcliffe Park which had been turned into "The Folk Forest" and was packed with families enjoying picnics and more gentle music.  We walked all the way into town  and watched the hilarious street performers for a while.

 We took refuge in the calming, air conditioned museum when things got too hot.

 I spotted our favourite Shopping Trolley dance troupe - Granny Tourisimo.  These have me howling with laughter, but what makes me laugh more is the look on the faces and reaction of the crowd - especially blokes who are slightly tipsy (or worse) and can't work out if they are really old ladies!

 Every nook and cranny in the city has music of all genre's wafting from it.

 I had fun with my new camera! I love this effect - but I don't know how I did it!

 As well as the bands who were booked foe the festival, buskers set up.  These two young lads were great.  The singer had an amazing voice and drew a large crowd.  They were proper entertainers.

 We discovered some great new places

 We spent all day Saturday and Sunday in the city - it was exhausting.  But we finished off Sunday evening in the  peaceful venue of the newly renovated Cathedral.

 Our daughter was filming a band called "Screaming Maldini"  (they don't scream, they sing beautifully)

 We actually got roped into helping with the filming which was interesting!

 They made a beautiful sound and the large crowd loved them.  What a great way for us to finish off Tramlines 2014.

What a great weekend in my favourite city.

Baslow Walk

Last weekend, we did a fabulous walk through Baslow on the outskirts of Sheffield with the walking group.  The walk was billed at almost 6 miles and relatively easy.  Our group leaders definitions are often to be taken with a pinch of salt! 

 We parked up in the picturesque village of Baslow.  I promised myself that I would dip my toes in the river afterwards.

 The first part of our walk took in a steep climb through the village (and past some stunning houses!) .

 It was worth the climb as the views from the top were gorgeous.

 We could see right down to Chatwsorth - can you just see the house on the left hand side of the photo?

 I'm not the only person who stops frequently to take photo's - Hubby was convinced she was a blogger! (but she didn't know what a blog was)

 There are some amazing rock formations up here - this was called Eagle Rock.

 And surprisingly plenty of commemorative monuments!

 It was a really great walk - very hot, but plenty of walkers to chat to along the way and a pub stop half way round (which was very welcome!)

 We always take a group shot at the Trig Points

 This monument was dedicated to Horatio Nelson.

 And these are 3 of his ships....

 They all had their names carved on them.

 I never got my paddle - but we did manage another restorative drink in the pub instead.

 And a quick walk around the church yard before heading back home.

We'd had a great day - we love the walking group.

Precious moments

I love Summer and the long days.  Yesterday, we made best use of the light nights.  Hubby and the Dancing Queen had a day off work, the young man is home from Uni, so after I had finished work, they picked me up and we travelled across the Strines and Ladybower towards Hathersage.

 We stopped off plenty to admire the stunning views.

 The geologist gave us a run down about the lie of the land and why the hills and valleys were so - he seems to be learning a lot thankfully - the £9000 per year fees seem not to be going to waste!

 It felt wonderful to be up on the moors after being cooped up all day.

 We eventually landed at our spot for the evening swim at Hathersage Open Air Swimming Pool.  We swam from 7.30pm for above an hour - the water is lovely and warm.  As you can see, it is a perfect setting surrounded by the hills.

 Once dried, we all declared ourselves "starving".  Hubby had packed us a picnic and the DQ knew a nice picnic spot, so we threw the rug down on what seemed to be the top of the world and tucked in, just in time for the spectacular sunset.

 There is an awful lot of sky up here and you could make a career or hobby from cloud watching.

 We noted this massive bank of very thick cloud which hugged the central Peak and Pennine area - and the reason why Manchester can be a bit rainy.

 You could just spot the setting sun underneath it.

 Behind us though, the Sheffield side of the hills had a fantastic light show going on.

 Soon everything was bathed in a rosy pink glow.

These kind of times are my favourites. Precious moments indeed.