A sea of clouds

 

On Friday 27th December 2024 I was lying in bed having a rare lie in to get over the Christmas and Boxing Day activities. The last memory I had before falling asleep was thinking about a cloud inversion picture one of the local photographers I know had put up on Facebook from the day before. Normally I would be scheming about trying my luck the next day at sunrise but I was feeling too tired to contemplate a crack of dawn trip up the Blorenge.

So I lay there in bed, snug as a bug in a rug and then decided to check my mobile phone. "Boom" there was some pics from my good friend and fellow photographer "Rushy Paul" being moved to tears staring out at a spectacular cloud inversion. In that moment it was like I had an electric shock and I jumped out of bed and made for my "Man Cave" - the spare bedroom which has all my toys - in my minds eye its like the Bat Cave and where all my kit is.

Then I was off in the car heading North to Blaenavon. In Pontypool it was thick with fog until I reached Abersychan. Here the sky above cleared and it was like being in a completely different world. The sun was shining and sky was a beautiful blue.

The Keepers Pond

Cloud Inversion as seen from the above the Keepers Pond.

When I reached the Keepers Pond that lies on the border between Torfaen and Monmouthshire it was glorious.

I put the drone up straight away and I could see that the whole of the Usk Valley was covered in a sea of clouds.

A Cloud inversion ( also known as a temperature inversion) is a weather phenomenon where warm air is trapped between cooler air layers, resulting in a cloud layer forming beneath clear skies above. This often occurs in valleys or mountainous regions. 

Locally the cloud inversion is known as the Dragons Breath. I have been lucky to see it on a number of occasions but never on this level - it was simply breath taking.

After a short flight I decided it was time to move to get a better view from the Fox hunters Car park and then further up to the trig point of the Blorenge and its ridge that overlooks Abergavenny.

Rushy and me at the Foxhunters.

At the Foxhunters grave I bumped into my friend Rushy who like me was overjoyed by the spectacle of it all. From here I made another short  flight with my drone before saying my fairwell to Rushy and heading onwards to the trig point claiming I was only staying out for an hour or two!( Which ended up being all day).

The Blorenge Trig point.

The Trig point looking East.

There were quite a few walkers about and all had mesmerised by this sea of clouds that had formed. From the trig point the Blorenge was surrounded by clouds and looking eastwards it stretched all the way to the horizon. Only the top of the Skirrid mountain could be seen which now more resembled an island in the a vast ocean of cloud. Across the Valley the Sugarloaf mountain was awash with cloud. This natural phenomena closely rivalled the Northern Lights I had seen in the same location earlier in 2024.

I pressed on and walked further to the ridge that looks over Abergavenny. The view from the ridge was absolutely tremendous.

Mouth agape, I looked across this sea of clouds and was amazed.

Up went the drone again. I have now started to do record al lot more video and find myself thinking more like a movie director these days - looking for good angles and trying to be more creative. I have a lot to learn but enjoying the steep learning curve.

Below is a video compilation I have put together. You can watch it on my YouTube channel.

The view was incredible and with no wind it was perfect flying conditions for the drone.

Wide multi shot pano of the valley below the ridge.

The sea of clouds

The Skirrid Mountain resembled an island.

View of the ridge.

After having a great couple of hours on the Blorenge, hunger and thirst got the better of me. I had run out of the house without having a cuppa or a quick bite to eat.

I walked back to the car at the Keepers and headed to Brynmawr and grabbed a cheeky McDonalds for lunch.

The mist was not dissipating and in fact appeared to be getting worse after my meal so I decided to stay out and find another vantage point for a different perspective.

I chose the Hafod and made my way down the mountain road to the old quarry at Darren-Ddu that looks over Clydach Gorge and the Usk Valley.

The cloud was low here and in fact when I found my spot that normally overlooks the Clydach Iron Works and the A465 it was shrouded in freezing cold mist.

It would prove to be  a "cool" location indeed as from here I could launch the drone up into the sea of clouds and then fly it close above for some great shots.

The old quarry - Hafod.

Multi shot panorama just above the clouds

The sun was shining brightly directly behind me whilst I was flying the drone and creating a "fogbow" but then I noticed something amazing - my own shadow and the sun behind me had created a rare atmospheric phenomena called a Broken Spectre.

Brocken Spectre - me.

 

The Brocken Spectre

Fogbow

A Brocken spectre is an optical phenomenon that occurs when your shadow is cast onto a cloud or mist, often from a mountain or high ridge. The shadow appears enormous and can be surrounded by a halo-like ring of light, known as a glory. This happens when the sun is low, casting elongated shadows and creating the illusion of a giant figure.

The name comes from the Brocken, a peak in the Harz Mountains of Germany, where this spectacle was first documented.

My final view point was going to take a bit of a walk further up the Darren mountain. I walked up through the mist to the Lonely Shepherd. 

From here I had panoramic views of the mist shrouded valleys below. I had run out of batteries for my drone so now I was back to using my trusty iPhone.

The Lonely Shepherd

The view from this remnant of the old limestone quarry was breath taking and well worth the walk up the mountain.

I must admit witnessing these rare atmospheric events will live long in my memory. It had been a real red letter day.