Montag, 20. Januar 2014

Sunday afternoon stroll in January


The winter 2014 in Germany is rather dully and grimly at the moment.

So far no snow or ice in the lowlands. Even the hills in the uplands haven't seen much snow this season of the year.

Currently the colour of the hill tops meanders something between a dark olive green and mud brown, depending on the incidence of light.

Incidence of light? What kind of light is he talking about??? We used to have sunshine even in wintertime here in Germany, but that was ages ago... ;-)

Generally speaking I would say the whole landscape is wraped in different shades of grey - and these shades of grey are far away from being erotically at all... ;-)

Yes - GREY - is the new (?) and dominant (!) colour of the winter season 2013 / 2014 here in Central Europe.


At the weekend the best bet is to stay at home, to lie on your sofa and pull the blanket above your head...

...or: you take your camera and try to find some fresh (grey?) air and some (other!) colours outdoors.

That's what we did on Sunday afternoon, after we overcame ours weaker selves.


Our Sunday stroll started at Bronnbach Abbey, located in the north of the valley of the Tauber, in the north of the state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany.

That's approx. 40 km away from my hometown.

We walked on the bike- and walkway along the river Tauber.


A first surprise and fortunate coincidence was our discovery of an old piety column out of the 18th century.

We have many of these piety columns and wayside shrines spread over the whole region.
That's the reason why our part of the country is (also) known as "Madonnenländle" - the (small) region where you find many pictures and statues of Madonna and many other saints.

This piety column was made from sandstone and built up in 1738 - so nearly 300 years ago!
And still in good condition, although sandstone is not very solid.


The first unexpected colour "explosion" we found in the middle of the grey was a shrub with bright red berries.
As far as I know / guess these are the berries of the Viburnum opulus - the guelder rose in winter time.


In the meanwhile we left the valley and climbed on of the hills above the river Tauber.
Behind the village of Reicholzheim we walked on the plateau of the hill, where the landscape looks like this.

Again we found vestiges of the past - this time an old station of the cross.



Quite unusually the stone crosses - again made from red sandstone - were embedded into a stone wall.

Continuing our way back to Bronnbach Abbey we found other colours and structures that attracted our attention...


...an impressive old oak...


...and a knobby old and moss-covered apple tree along our way.


The beautiful green colour of the moss we were able to photograph several times, especially in shady and moist areas of the wood.


On closer consideration / observation of the countryside we even spotted the beautiful structure of a scythed and ploughed corn field with its golden stubble.

That's always my experience:

No weather is too bad or no landscape is too dull - with a camera in your hand you become an explorer and you see and capture colours, structures or things that stay generally invisible for others.


To become an explorer you just need to conquer the force of gravity sometimes,
which is highest when lying on a sofa on a Sunday afternoon... ;-)

10 Kommentare:

  1. Greetings from cold cold Finland! ;) We had -20c for several days and now only -10c so we went for ice skating, me and my little boys. :)

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  2. Hallo Uwe!!!
    Im glad u overcame the laziness and took a walk outside to show us the fifty shades of grey of the German Winter!
    I watch Deutsche Welle here in Brazil and I have followed the mild winter news. I guess one can be relieved that it isnt so cold but also frustrated cause snow isnt there!
    Well, keep up exploring the landscapes, I love to see them here!
    And I totally agree: "no weather is too bad or no landscape is too dull - with a camera in your hand"
    Cheers!!!
    Márcia

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  3. Wunderschöne Fotos und Eindrücke! So grau wirkt die Landschaft gar nicht und die Beeren und das Moos sind ja fast schon eine Farbexplosion! ;)
    LG Mary

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  4. Hello, Uwe! Once you kicked off the blanket and started exploring with a camera, you must have gained momentum to become less likely to stop photographing. I like your eyes toward the various beauties of the season, especially the tree reflection on the icy water, red sandstone crosses embedded in the stone wall, and the landscape No. 5. Winter is not a dull season at all but brings us closer to simple joy of discovery and simple truth with its austerity. I prefer winter to summer.

    Regarding to your comment: In 1995, I was in Nara and felt very strong tremors. I was so shocked to have learned outrageously strong earthquake struck Kobe. Soon later I was watching burning Kobe on TV with dismay. One month later when I visited Kobe, I couldn’t believe my eyes to see collapsed highways, houses, stations, fallen utility poles, and so on. Now I’m happy with the revitalized Kobe while I’m sad as many familiar places are gone.

    Many foreign people from various different countries live in Kobe. Especially Europeans and North Americans would be customers to Grand Back but perhaps the clothes there would be a little big for you.

    Yoko

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  5. A lovely series! We have lots of snow, and frigid temperatures. I'd love to see something as green as that gorgeous moss!

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  6. Hello and welcome to Nature Notes. I enjoyed this scenic tour of your area. Yes, I feel that gray is the color here in NY, but I agree that getting out with the camera is the way to show more of the colors of nature. I haven't been out with my camera as it has actually been too cold and I don't want to harm the camera...Michelle from Nature Notes..

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  7. Großartiger post, die Mauer ist der Hammer, da muss ich doch auch mal hinfahren.

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  8. Wow! Such a wide kaleidoscope of colors! I must thank you for conquering the force of gravity else I would have missed drinking all this beauty! This is simply beautiful, I love your description -- complements the pictures so very brilliantly!

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  9. Thanks Uwe for your kind comment on my blog!
    I appreciate your photos too they make me travel somewhat, now that I am unwillingly sedentary!!
    The crosses in the wall are extraordinary and your tree pics stunning... not that easy to take photos of trees!
    Congrats and keep well

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  10. Beautiful natural images you have got there, lovely.

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