A-Z 2021 Challenge - Photo Shoot: V - Viaduct, Turkey Vulture, Valhalla

 The Isles of Scilly have seen a lot of shipwrecks. The Valhalla Museum on the island of Tresco has figureheads on show recovered from some of the wrecks.

As you can see Valhalla is part of the National Maritime Museum.

Soaring high in the sky is this Turkey Vulture captured in the USA.

One of the sights that is hard to miss is the viaduct in the town less than three miles from where we live.

Yarm Viaduct crossing the River Tees

Nearly 700 metres long the viaduct, carrying a railway line, has 43 arches which dominate the town.

Larpool Viaduct in the Esk Valley ( a minnow with 13 arches)

Multiples - Thematic Photography

There is a watery connection running through my pictures this week for Carmi's 'multiple' theme.

Multiple boats and masts, and... at Fowey, Cornwall

On the Isles of Scilly my multiples have a maritime connection.

Ship Figureheads at the Valhalla, Maritime Museum in Tresco Abbey Gardens

Nature has multiples too. the first of which you may have seen before.

Ducks on the Clinton River alongside Rochester Park's Paint Creek Trail in Michigan

More bird multiples in Scotland.

Swans and their cygnets

Finally it's the turn of a magic basket.

Basket weave

There is even a water connection with this. Dirty clothes dropped into the magic basket magically reappear clean and bright in wardrobes and drawers after being washed, dried and ironed (where necessary).

For more multiple multiples you need to dash away with a smoothing iron to Carmi's Thematic-photographic-263.

Tresco Abbey Gardens - Sepia Saturday

In 2008 our children took my wife and I to Tresco on the Scilly Isles to celebrate our Golden Wedding Anniversary. One of the highlights of the trip was our visit to Tresco Abbey Gardens.

Tresco Abbey - 2008

With the garden theme this week I now regret not taking more photos while we were there, but here's a few.

The Abbey garden is now one of the foremost in the country. The whole garden is protected by a belt of trees that were originally planted in the early 19th century by Augustus Smith who had leased the island from the Duchy of Cornwall. Up to that time there had been no trees growing in Tresco. In 1990 a series of storms culminated in a hurricane that blew down many of the trees; since then over 60,000 replacements  have been planted to re-establish the shelter belt.

Central path leading to the Temple of Neptune

Somehow it seems appropriate that there is a statue of an early Earth goddess,

Gaia

Then we came across this rather splendid tree, all I need is a guidebook to tell me what it is.

It has not been manicured in any way; this is how it grows.

Also in the gardens is a museum with a collection of figureheads from ships wrecked on the islands.

Valhalla

Valhalla is now managed by the National Maritime Museum.

Statue of Children

This statue can be viewed at the end of a path between the Abbey Garden's trees.

But I'll admit you can't see it at all clearly in this shot.

But outside the garden, near the island's refuse tip there is no mistaking this greedy lot waiting for their meal.

Expectant Gulls

For more garden treats you need to fly off to SS 122