birthday bike

 

7th Nov.

Mary is still a bit crocked for running so we planned a bike ride on her birthday. Pretty much the same route as last time although we did the circuit at the far end of Dalmeny in the opposite direction for variety. The weather was nearly great. More hazy than sunny. It felt it had the potential to break into a fabulous day at any point, but just stopped short. 

If you are used to running then suddenly being on a bike makes the scenery and miles whiz by. It was no time till we were out the cyclepath to the Cramond Brig. A kingfisher flew by to mark the occasion for the birthday girl but it didn't hang about for a photo, diving into the bushy shrubs at the side of the Almond never to reappear.

Also under the bridge was this little grebe (dabchick). I got the large camera out to get a better photo than last time but the light was pretty rubbish as was the photo. It was also a good way away. I am still not smitten by these birds but their relative rarity means I'll get the camera out if one is spotted. I think this was the only time I made the effort to get the large camera out.

fly photobomb

Queen Mary, King Tom

At this track up the hill (most of the way to S Queensferry), we turned and headed back. It saves going all the way to South Queensferry. I thought Mary was very polite not saying anything as some kid walking down the hill walked directly in front of her, whereas a step to the side to let her past as she cranked up the steep hill would have been what a well behaved child might have done. The mother - 2 yards away also said nothing. Ahh there's the reason for an ignorant offspring. Kid also did same to me. All you can do is roll your eyes and cycle on. The near vertical track up to the top road makes you breath quickly and sweat. Even without selfish people blocking the whole road.

We were turning left to head back towards the big house but I suggested we first have a look at the punk bushes further East another 200 yards. Their eyes light up randomly. Worth a quick photo or 2. Then back along and down the long swooping hill to Barnbougle Castle.

I ran out of steam trying to cycle up this hill
in too high a gear with a camera in one hand.

at this junction there were an extended family of more than a dozen pheasants 
who seemed to have set up sleeping quarters in a large pile of lawn mowings

the river was very high

as was the tide at the estuary

never seen the water so high on the causeway

Now this made Mary and I smirk a bit. A young couple dressed in evening wear were posing on the beach while a pro-photographer was doing a photo shoot of them in a waltz clinch. It may or may not have been shades of Vettriano. The umbrella was being used as a reflector and not in the shot. It nearly blew over and was deftly caught by the dude in evening gloves. She looked frozen through and losing the will to live, in bare feet and thin evening dress. (There was a baltic breeze and the sun was no longer keeping things warm.) Also I don't think they had reckoned on the high tide as there was precious little beach left on which to stand. Mary and I got all this in the seconds it takes to cycle past. There was no singing butler. 

I liked this inadvertent art. Very Christo and Jeanne-Claude. But with the broken wire net also doing a fine impression of a wave breaking and cascading over the rocks. I have just been googling Christo and Jeanne-Claude. An interesting couple who have been doing large scale artworks for ages. Famously wrapping things up. Like the Berlin Reichstag or a part of the coast near Sydney, Australia. They do not use public money; instead raising funds through selling preparatory drawings and the like, quite an art form in itself. As well as the paperwork necessary to achieve such permissions. 24 years of lobbying for the Berlin piece. How many have the stomach for doing that sort of "art." Their last piece was wrapping up L'Arc de Triomphe in Paris. (Link here) I had heard this had happened and saw some distant photos. I even thought up a joke to ask my Parisian pal: was there a big unveiling?

However it is worth a look at all the photos and videos on the official website. Holy shit it was a massive project. I had half wondered what would have happened if they pulled any horse heads or ornaments off while casually tossing some fabric over it. They very much anticipated all of of those scenarios and more. Going to great lengths to protect the ornamentation with steel cages before draping over huge swathes of specially woven fabric and specially commissioned rope. (And yes it is all recycled afterwards.) That must have been expensive you say? 14 million euros apparently!

Quite an art project! Over 1000 people involved. Sadly Jeanne-Claude died in 2009 and Christo himself died in 2020 without seeing L'Arc de Triomphe wrapped, although the project (first contemplated in 1960) was underway before he died. I wonder if his gravestone is wrapped? 

I didn't see L'Arc de Triomphe in person but it looks very impressive. I'm not sure it was the best ever use of money, manpower and resources but it was a lot better than the awful Mastaba floating in the Serpentine. I think the world was a more interesting place for having them in it but the works are definitely divisive and provoke both strong support and condemnation. It is worth a scan through past projects. Umbrellas and curtains and lots of wrapping. (Not a huge amount of variety away from the theme of wrapping though.) None of it really lights my candle but they are exciting large scale events and sometimes it takes a fanatic or maybe a visionary to get past the point of "I can't really be bothered". Or maybe just a giant ego and a load of cash. I like some of these more than others and I think they do span the genre from rubbish to impressive.

For the artists; they do seem to spend a lot of time congratulating themselves about being marvelous artists and I wonder did they have day jobs where they did stuff that was worthwhile? Like playing music, making bicycles, learning carpentry or doing a proper day's work. I suppose there was quite a lot of admin and fundraising to do but it seems like quite a lot of self indulgence as well. I'm glad they didn't find try to monetise the Paris project or sell tickets. That makes me like them more. Although ϵ14million is a LOT of cash. I can't decide if it was money well spent.

As we cycled home there were several people in Wardie Bay. I can't quite understand how this toxic wasteground has become a place of recreation. There were 3 folk in swimming. Wet suits I think. This wind surfer was on a very fancy hydrofoil board. Windfoiling I believe is the name of the sport. Looks like an ironing board. Too cold to stop and get decent photos.

I don't think the Trinity tunnel on the cyclepath used to be lit. Well done the council  - you can now see if you are going to run over anything the dog left behind.