Description
Spout Road Valley, Strabane, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland
In a small area known locally as ‘The head of the town’ in Strabane can be found this stunning woodland valley. Carved deep into ancient bedrock by a fast-flowing river burn over millennia. Other than a narrow winding road running along its edge, this valley remains as it would have looked like long before people even walked this island.
Colder weather has suddenly arrived here in Ireland and with it some of nature’s finest conditions for atmospheric scenes. Yesterday’s weather yielded rare photography conditions that I witness once every few years at most. Icy mist rolled down from the surrounding hills blanketing this entire valley all day long. However, mere minutes before sunset the cooler temperature shift caused the fog to roll further down to lower land at the valleys base, exposing its ancient woodland in autumnal bloom. Suddenly everything glowed amber & red as the sun dipped below the horizon, reflecting its warm tones to dance across the top of the mist to create this colourful scene.
The most memorable part was that as soon as the sun completely vanished, I watched this fog reverse and travel back up this valley again leaving everything back under a thick fog bank once again. It was almost like someone had gently folded back a giant blanket for 5 minutes to let sunsets warmth under it, then folded it back down afterwards to snugly hold it in. Nature’s behaviour is fascinating to watch 
