The parking spot is by a couple of houses and at 3am in the morning I didn’t want to wake anybody, especially as they might think they were about to be burgled and out comes the shot gun, it’s a quiet spot surrounded by farms. I think I managed to slam quietly enough, there were no loud bangs from any shotgun.
The plan was to shoot (pun intended) the Milky way over Innerpeffrey Castle, an old ruin dating from the early 1600s although a building of some sort is believed to have been here since the early 1500s. Having been here in daylight to check the area out I made my way hastily along the farm track under the light of my head torch and wriggled around the first gate a swing gate. Carefully I manoeuvred along a little further to the next gate which required hopping over a stone wall and continuing along the path that follows the River Earn.
Past tall dark trees and another swing gate and I was on site, alas there were more clouds then anticipated and with the light pollution lighting the clouds It was hard to see the Milky Way it being feint anyway. But after much repositioning now with the head torch changed to a red light to preserve night vision I managed to get a shot. It wasn’t the panorama I’d planned but it was somthing.
Innerpeffrey Castle under the stars
With a couple of hours to go to sunrise I thought I might as well break out the coffee and pastries to while away the time and sat on a convenient bench back on the river bank. I drank a couple of cups of hot steaming coffee and listened to the sound of the river in its relentless journey, glancing back at the dark copse of trees It struck me the the clouds seemed a little less, I could try a panorama shot from here that would take in just under a 180 degree sweep.
Milky Way over the River Earn
Success, the arch of the Milky way was there, it was feint and I wasn’t fully sure until after returning home and stitching the images together but there it was. I celebrated with another coffee, it was getting chilly and a slight ground frost was setting in.
Night gives way to day
I went back to the castle, a fine layer of frost on my boots to photograph the castle in the dawn light and await the warmth of the rising sun.
The sun is on the way
It was a beautiful morning as the light got brighter and the countryside started to awaken with the dawn chorus, I took in a deep breath of sweet air.
The sun starts to warm the old stone work
It looked as though the outing would not be a success, however this was not the case, it just turned out different and as is often the case a surprise. Oh for a time machine to see what this place would have looked like in its hey day. I made my way back to the car, still no sign of angry householders, my quiet car door slamming mustn’t be too bad.