Snowdogs by the Sea

Boomer

At last we had a local Wild in Art Trail!  As you know we have become big fans of these trails and until now we have had to journey away from our home county in order to find one.  To be fair it was probably only a matter of time until one came to Brighton and when it came it was the theme of Snowdogs.  I'm not entirely sure why this was the theme chosen but it may have had something to do with local author Raymond Briggs and his famous creation 'The Snowman', which is still shown every year on television at Christmas.

Beach Huts

As with the zebras it was only myself and youngest daughter for this trail and we started out at Hove Lagoon for the first snowdog.  We didn't start too well actually for we found this one quite tricky.  It was called Boomer and eventually found it inside the café.  The dog was dressed up like a cassette recorder (remember them?) as a tribute to his sponsor Norman Cook aka Fat Boy Slim.  This DJ is now popularly associated with Brighton and is a massive supporter of the local football team.  He also happens to own this café so perhaps it wasn't any great surprise that we should find Boomer there.

Hove Promenade

Our route then ran along the seafront towards Brighton City Centre.  It was quite obvious that we weren't going to manage to see all of the Snowdogs on foot on this first day.  The shortest route between them was apparently more than 10 miles and we only had a limited time available.  I therefore devised a route that would find the most that we could with a view to coming back the following week to find the remaining ones in the car.  Thus we skipped number 2 and headed for number 3, the rather lovely fuzzy Snowbrador by Medina Terrace.  It was at this point that we realised that it wasn't going to be easy to get pictures with each one of the dogs for there seemed to be dozens of other people on the hunt too.  Perhaps it was because we walked the trail while they were still pretty new and the weather was still very warm.

Palmeira Square

Number 5 was next (there were 45 in total) and this was in Palmeira Square.  We discovered that we would have to quicken our pace between the dogs for we seemed to be caught in with a bunch of people that wanted to linger at every dog and clearly that was going to slow us up considerably.  This one was called Dave the Dog and had a motoring theme - this was probably about the sponsor rather than its location for I expected it to have a floral theme to fit in with the floral clock, which is housed in the middle of the square.  After our quick detour inland it was back to the seafront to see Pebbles back on the promenade.  This was a much more appropriate theme for it fitted in with the nature of the beach, which is famously made of shingle (much to my disappointment as a child).

Pebbles

As we continued towards central Brighton we passed the bandstand, still looking resplendent after its makeover a few years back (in fact I couldn't be sure whether it might have had another one since then?).  Flower was stationed outside (number 7) and number 8 was by the i360 a little further on.  Long time readers of my blog may remember me mentioning this installation being planned when I came last time a few years ago.  Well, now it is completed and despite the teething troubles since its summer opening, it is becoming established as a popular tourist attraction.  The original intention was that it would help pay for a replacement West Pier, but looking at the state of the old thing I cannot imagine it ever being rebuilt now.  My daughter and I looked longingly at having a go on the i360 but the queues were enormous so we continued on our way.  Bobby, the police dog (number 8) was keeping guard on the masses.

Flower

A little way past the i360 and we headed inland through the modern shopping centre of Churchill Square where we found one inside and one outside.  Getting pictures of both was quite difficult although the one outside was due to a very chatty cleaner who seemed to be acting as a personal groom to the little fella.  She explained that she needed to keep him spruced up as he was very popular.  He was called Blot the Dog.  The one inside recalled the Mod era of Brighton, which a nod to the film Quadrophenia, which was filmed here and recorded the struggles between the mods and rockers who fought on the beaches during the 1960s.

i360

We had a bit of a walk to the next ones which were situated at Brighton Station. Smart Vibes was outside and was the first we had seen for a while that did not have a crowd with it.  We grabbed a piccie and headed inside to find Newshound.  This one was plastered with some of the more comedy headlines that have been featured in local newspaper The Argus over the past few years.  We amused ourselves for a few minutes reading them before moving on.

Newshound

We headed next down to The Level to see Gizmo (number 41).  This was quite lonely in the middle of the park and we had all the time in the world to spend with him.  What struck me about The Level though is how much more of an attraction it now is.  A café and play area have been installed in recent years and the whole place was alive with visitors.  The last time I came to this part of Brighton I remember it being quite drab and a bit unloved.

Brighton Pavilion

St Peter's Church was next and Dudley (no.40) outside.  This unfortunate dog was the first to hit the headlines when it was graffitied within days of its installation.  It had been repaired when we visited but the underlying damage could still be seen.  The offender was named and shamed in the Argus and he claimed that he thought that he was contributing to the artwork.  Honestly!

Horatio - The Bathing Beauty

We wound our way back through the vibrant North Laines area.  This was always my favourite part of the city in which to shop as it has all manner of eclectic shops selling stuff you wouldn't find anywhere else.  If anything these shops have become ever more cosmopolitan although sadly I note that the prices have skyrocketed too.  We were on a mission this time though - no time for browsing inside or even window shopping.  We found Frank (no.32) and had to wait our turn once again before pushing on to Snowman's Nightmare (21) at the other end of the shopping area.

Pier Clock

A cluster of Snowdogs were to be found around the Dome and the Royal Pavilion and these were hunted down next.  I love the Pavilion - it is perhaps the most preposterous building in the UK and was built as a royal palace for George IV when he was Prince Regent.  He loved Brighton and made this his home during his short reign in the 1820s.  The Pavilion is styled as an Indian Palace and looks rather ridiculous even by today's standards, let alone what it must have looked like when first built.  Its life as a royal palace didn't last too long - Queen Victoria couldn't wait to get rid of it and the building is now owned by the city council.

Bella

Next stop was the Lanes.  This famous part of Brighton boasts extremely narrow streets and some high end shops.  We checked off the dogs that we lurking in the Lanes although this took quite a long time as again we dealt with a plethora of young children draping themselves all over the bases longing for their pictures to be taken.  I cannot really think of another trail that has captured the imagination of so many people.  My daughter and I had already concluded though that we preferred the zebras from a few weeks earlier.

Pier View

We worked our way back to the seafront and from here it was to be a straight run to Brighton Marina.  What we hadn't bargained for was a huge motorcycle rally and the road along the seafront was absolutely chock-a-block with gleaming machines, mostly very expensive looking.  There were lots of hairy looking men and women in tight leather gear admiring each other's machines and generally having a great time.  I'm not overly keen on motorbikes but even I could see the allure of these machines.

Motorbikin'

We popped along the pier for some respite from motorbikes and found Grrrace and Palace Pup (28 and 29).  The latter wasn't so easy to find and we ended up going all the way to the end of the pier before discovering her about a third of the way back.  She was rather ignored by other visitors; perhaps they all thought that she was part of the furniture?  Under the Sea (number 30) was getting a lot more attention but then it was stationed at the entrance to the Sea Life Centre and was therefore seen by every visiting child who went in.

Bike Rally

For the remaining part of our walk we passed more than a mile of motorbikes lined up.  I have never in my life seen so many lined up in one spot.  They weren't just English either - there were plenty from continental Europe and especially the Netherlands.  The rally was starting to wrap up though - some people were already roaring away and the din was unimaginable.  We were pleased for a short detour into St George's Church in Kemp Town, where we escaped for a few minutes to check out Smiley (no.34).  From here it was on to Brighton Marina to pick up the remaining cluster.

Brighton Marina

Brighton Marina was constructed when I was a boy.  It is quite an astonishing piece of engineering and one that I am not sure would be built today.  It is one of the largest man-made marinas in Europe and rather brutally occupies a space at the bottom of the cliffs at Black Rock.  As a marina I am not sure it was overly successful since much of the harbour space has been filled in and is occupied by shops and restaurants.  There were three Snowdogs among the shops and a unique one to finish off with; one made out of sand by the artist 'Anonymous'.  It was very sensibly fenced off so that it couldn't be ruined by vandals.  This marked the end of our walking tour seeing the Snowdogs.  It was a pretty comprehensive look around the city and we got to see most of the main sights.  We also saw 35 of the 44 dogs on foot with the remaining ones in a car tour the following week.  Sad to say that one was missing (Sparky no.42) and one was in London at Victoria station (45 Brighton Belle).  On the whole a satisfying walk and I have no doubt that the success of the initiative will bring a different trail in a couple of years time.

Sand Dog

Marwell's Zany Zebras

Zebastian the Seabra

Following the success of the Go! Rhinos trail in Southampton organised by Marwell Zoo a few years back they came back with another in 2016, this time involving Zebras.  The Rhino Trail was set out to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the opening of Marwell Zoo and I think this one is merely a sequel.  The sculptures were sold off at the end of the season for charity and raised over £100,000 for conservation.  There were 47 zebras along the way, 15 more than the 2013 rhino trail.  They were a little more spread out than before and new areas were explored, notably around the southern part of the city close to the docks.  Additionally there were a whole lot of smaller zebras that had been decorated by schools and community groups as well as a couple outside the city.  We focused on the large sculptures as we only had a few hours to complete the trail and the small ones were mostly in shops, some of which were closed on Sunday.

Canute Building

Our walk started at Ocean Village, to the south east of the city centre and close to the cruise ship terminals.  It was still early and so there weren't many people about.  We found the first sculpture easily; a rather dandy one covered in fish called Zebastian the Seabra.  It certainly was a good start!  Sadly its near neighbour wasn't so lucky as it had been removed for repair.  We weren't to know at the time but this was a theme for the day.  It was good to see a change of scenery for this part of the trail - although the buildings and docks have been regenerated it was clear what the heritage was as the footway still had the rails embedded where the dockside trains would once have plied their trade.

Rio

We headed on to Queens Park, crossing the old dockyard branch line on the way.  I was very surprised when a train actually crossed the line behind us as for all the world it looked like it was disused!  Queens Park was an agreeable little green space - we didn't come here last time.  Luckily all the zebras were in place - Henman (a rather whimsical piece); Rio (a celebration of Brazil for the Olympics) and Zayla.  The last one was the least interesting so far but looking at the caption it looks like this one is better viewed at night rather than a bright sunny day.  Apparently it creates an ethereal stripey look at night when the lights go out.

Detail on Reggie

Across the road from the park is a reminder of the passenger lines that called Southampton home.  Union Castle House is a fine looking building although sadly the passenger shipping line for which this was the headquarters is now long gone as are the classy looking ships that largely sailed to South Africa.  One shipping line still visiting the port is P & O and one of their ships was in on the day we were there - the rather classy looking Arcadia.  We got a good view of her as we came upon Seafaring Zebra on the dockside.

Arcadia

Last time we came to Southampton we enjoyed the city walls and in the vicinity of the Town Gate were another crop of zebras starting with the excellent Reggie.  This one featured a zebra monarch hiding small icons of famous kings and queens of history which fascinated us.  Next to the Town Gate was ZZ Top, which pleased my daughter no end as the zebra was made to look like a piano.  I did have to explain to her who ZZ Top were though!  Sadly the zebra did not sport a massive beard...

ZZ Top

From here the rhinos came thick and fast as we headed around towards Mayflower Park.  Next up was Biff sponsored by Biffa Waste (looking very much like his rhino counterpart), and inevitably perhaps Zebra Crossings showing a design complete with belisha beacons.Southern Gold wasn't quite in the same location as Reggie Rhino but the design was the same - a scene of sailing boats out on the nearby Solent.  This was possibly the last zebra that we truly had to ourselves - our early start had meant that few people were out doing what we were doing until now.

Ziggy Zebra all at Zee

Following the numbers of the zebras seemed a little counter-intuitive at this point for we could see what we thought was the next one further along the street, only to discover that there were several more that we should see before that.  One of them was a nod to David Bowie, who sadly passed away earlier in the year.  It was called Ziggy Zebra All at Zee and featured a number of cartoon ships.  The head was emblazoned like Ziggy Stardust. 

Ziggy Detail

The trail took a zig-zagging course through the narrow streets of the Old Town and back on to the QE2 Mile for a short distance, catching more zebras along the way until we got to the rather astonishing Holyrood Church.  This 14th Century Church is now a reminder of the horror of World War II as it remains a ruin after being bombed during the Blitz in 1940.  In 1957 it was dedicated as a memorial to the sailors of the Merchant Navy and makes for a magnificent tribute to the bravery of those men.

Gatehouse

Remarkably a little further away is the church of St Michael’s, which emerged from the destruction of the city completely unscathed.  It is now the oldest building and the only one of the original churches that remains intact within the walled city.  Outside was a rather lovely Chinese style design called Carpe Diem, which we had plenty of time to admire since most people seemed to be inside the church attending Sunday morning service.

St Michael's Church

We passed by the Tudor House and down a narrow path through the City Walls to reunite ourselves with Snappy, the zebra we had seen from afar when we were at Zozy Zebra.  After the flurry of rhinos (we had already seen 17 at this point) we headed towards the West Quay Shopping Centre via an outlier near Ikea called Captain Stripes, which was a rather patriotic beast with Union Jack type stripes.  We found our way into the West Quay Shopping Centre and picked off the two inside - the nattily dressed Zoot Suit and the buzzy Ze-Bee.  We didn't linger in the shops as by now my daughter felt like she was on a mission and was anxious to make sure we kept to time! Holyrood Church Outside the shopping centre and we walked along perhaps the best preserved section of the City Walls, which date from the 14th Century and were built on the orders of Edward III, perhaps inevitably to repel the French.  Given how much modern building there is in Southampton it was surprising but pleasing to see the old walls still taking pride of place in the urban landscape.
Bargate

Feeling fortified by lunch we continued our route along the city walls, which had been knocked about a bit to accommodate modern developments.  However, the magnificent Bargate is still intact and nicely restored to take pride of place on what is now the main shopping street. I wonder what mediaeval forces would have thought of that?  Since our last trip in 2013 there looked to be no progress with the Bargate Shopping Centre, which was still derelict.  The shopping centre was only opened in the late 1980s but following a chequered history it finally closed its doors for good a few years back and is boarded up.  Given the current economic climate I can’t see it being taken over as retail space again any time soon and looks like staying a blot on the townscape for some time to come.  On a happier note the two zebras on either side of the gatehouse were receiving a good deal of attention from passing shoppers.

Zeffe

From shopping to the park, our next zebras were to be at the bus station and the park opposite.  Sadly all we found were concrete plinths but no zebras as they had been taken away to be repaired.  Despite the signs asking people to stay off them, much of the damage to the rhinos appeared to be caused by people ignoring the notices and posing for pictures on the backs of the mascots.  Sadly these sculptures seem to attract unwanted attention and are vandalised regularly - obviously the fact that they are there for charity doesn't seem to matter to some.  At this late stage in the zebras being out I suppose that sadly we might have expected a few absences...

Civic Clock

The play area in the Park was absolutely rammed with children and families. Unlike last time we came when I had both daughters this time the one I did have was more focused on finishing than worrying about going on the equipment.  Feeling a bit stymied by the lack of zebras we escaped back into the shopping street and to the hybrid Zeffe, the winning design in a local radio competition and showing what a zebra with giraffe markings might look like. 

Who's You?

From the shopping street to another shopping centre – it seems that Southampton is remarkably well served by them.  In this one (Marlands), we seemed to hit the mother lode, for not only were there several of the original zebras (including ones that needed to be brought in from the street to protect against vandalism) but they had been joined by a number of the smaller ones painted by school children and community groups.  To be honest they were as good and imaginative as some of those painted by professional artists.  We spent a good deal of time in the main concourse of the centre and then in the Zany Zebras HQ, which was in a shop at the back.

Fantastic Mr Fox

We still had more than one third of the zebras to find after leaving the shopping centre but the remaining ones were concentrated around the civic heart of the city, being in and around the Civic Centre and the adjacent parks.  Sadly these were the ones that had suffered the most and many of them we had already seen in the shopping centre after their removal to protect them.  Walking round the parks was pleasant but mostly it was completion of the trail and looking at the flower displays that persuaded us to continue.

Zebbie-Go-Round

Unlike last time there was an additional loop to complete as there were some extra ones placed out on the way to the railway station.  Perhaps the most eye-catching was Frederic, a rather dandy looking creature ready to go on the stage at the Mayflower Theatre, which he was located outside of.  Daughter rather liked the next one too as the stripes were replaced by pens and pencils.  It all looked rather back to school for me!  The last one was a kite design outside the railway station.  From there we went and had some lunch and drove to the last one at Southampton FC's football ground at St Mary's which we thought was a bit too far to walk to.

Frederic

This turned out to be a most enjoyable walk and a rather different experience to last time with the rhinos.  Having only the focused daughter with me meant that we completed it far quicker!  The people behind the trail really had done their very best to show off the best of Southampton City Centre.  Adding some extra sculptures went down well with us, especially as it meant that the trail was extended a bit.  We particularly enjoyed seeing the historic buildings at the south end of the city and the manicured and colourful gardens at the northern end.  On the whole the trail was a great advert for the city and the zebras kept us entertained along the route.  It was sad to see some had been removed and pleasing to see that some of the designs of the rhinos had been popular enough to retain for the zebras.  I have no doubt that following the success of this trail we might well see a different animal featured in 3-4 years time.

Shaun in the City

The Shauns I Found

Two years ago Bristol hosted Gromits and the unbelievable success of that charity fundraising event prompted the organisers to turn to Shaun the Sheep as the next character from the Aardman stable to repeat the exercise.  This time there were 70 Shauns put out in Bristol, to follow the 50 that were placed out in London earlier in the year.  Sadly I had missed them so I did not want to lose the opportunity to revisit Bristol.  Hence on my way to the south west I detoured to Bristol and did the trail around the city.  No children with me this time so I had high hopes of seeing all the ones in the city centre and perhaps even time to check out some of those placed in outlying districts.

Jarsberry Ram

It was a rather grey morning; perfect for this kind of exercise.  The organisers had set the Shauns out on 9 different trails this time and I started out with the Harbourside one.  I parked at the western end of the old docks and walked down to The Pump House, once an important building for the docks but now a popular pub.  Being early in the morning I was able to check out the first Shaun of the day without worrying too much about customers.  Last time the Gromit here was Gromberry - Gromite dressed up as a strawberry.  There was a pleasing parallel then when I encountered Jarsberry Ram - Shaun dressed as a raspberry!

Bristol Docks

I crossed to the south side of the docks and attempted to take the route that we had used last time around by the boatyards.  Unfortunately for me it was too early and the path had not yet been opened and so I had to retrace my steps and take the rather less interesting route along the road.  I did get to have a close look at a very large catamaran being painted so the trip wasn't entirely wasted. Luckily on the other side of the boatyard I was able to regain the dockside path and passed by the early morning sweeping crew doing their best to make the area spick and span before the visitors started arriving for the day.

Pirate Captain

The walk along the dockside is one of the best urban walks I know and even on a gloomy day like this the colours of the houses on the opposite side of the dock really made up for the greyness.  I soon passed the second Shaun, Sgt. Shepherd, a play on the Beatles character and looking a bit like Paul McCartney!  This was probably the last Shaun that I was able to inspect without being hindered by other vistors.  By the time I got to the next one, Lotus, outside the Aardman HQ behind the SS Great Britain I had to wait my turn before I could get a photo.

Tug

I didn't pause too long to look at SS Great Britain as no Shaun outside and I have already visited a couple of times.  It is a fascinating place to look around though.  Onward I went past all the former sidings of the docklands railway to the M Shed.  Outside the museum was Pirate Captain and he definitely had the air of Jack Sparrow about him.  The detail was really good, with a big bushy beard and a small bird taking shelter in his hat.  This was the first Shaun I came across that had significant interest and this set the tone for the rest of the day.  In fact I was really surprised at how huge the interet was in all the Shauns.  Whole families were out on the hunt for Shauns and most were doing the App that went with it.  At each Shaun you could scan a QR code and it would bleat at you to confirm that you had found it. Someone had some imagination - it certainly made me smile!

On The Waterfront

While on the dockside I took some time to look at some of the non-Shaun stuff.  The old steam crane was being started up for demonstrations later in the day, the black smoke suggesting that the fire wasn't very hot yet.  On the opposite side of the dock there were screams every so often as mad people were bungee jumping from a crane.

St Mary at Redcliffe

The next Shaun was probably the one I had the hardest time finding.  Baahbershop was not in the location suggested on the map but a couple of hundred metres away.  I really had to tour round the neighbourhood to find it but eventually found it outside some hoardings advertising the latest regeneration project for the docks area.  I rather suspect that the docks will look even more different in a couple years time when this area is redeveloped.

Bristol Express

I crossed the swing bridge at the eastern end of the dock.  Lucky for me that I missed work that was about to start on the bridge for it is to close for a good long time for refurbishment.  I picked up six more Shauns on the opposite side of the dock in quick succession including a couple of particularly good ones - Beach Boy and On The Waterfront.  All were thronged with people and this slowed me up considerably.  Yet, the rest at each one was fairly welcome as pounding the paved streets can be quite tiring very quickly.  Beach Boy was the last of the Shauns on the Harbourside Trail and my next one was the Temple Trail.

Temple Church

I found myself in Queen Square - a very upmarket little oasis with King William III at the centre sitting astride his horse.  This statue is a grade 1 listed building apparently - an accolade not likely to ever be afforded to the temporary art installations on the Shaun trail.  The Shaun by his side was a green and yellow affair which was far less interesting than the one tucked away in the corner which showed Shaun dressed in the robes of the judiciary.  It rather suited him!

Bagpuss Shaun

The rest of this trail was through the district of Redcliffe and took in the enormous church of St Mary, Temple Meads station and the regenerated area to the west of the station.  Of particular note were three Shauns near to the station - the very imaginative Bristol Express dressed like a railway scene and celebrating the old ways of getting to Bristol. Great West Shaun also celebrated the railway but this time he was dressed as an engine.  The final celebration of transport was Rosie where Shaun was dressed like a canal narrowboat.  The navigation from London finally ends here and there were a few narrowboats around that had obviously completed the journey via the Kennet and Avon Canal.

Lamb Chop

Before leaving the Temple Trail I got to look at a sight in Bristol that I had not previously seen; the rather amazing Temple Church.  This bombed out church has been left as a poignant relic in its ruined state - not unique by any means and in fact not even unique in Bristol but somehow more haunting than some of the other churches that I have seen in a similar state.  The flush of brightly coloured flowers alongside the bright pink Sheepish added some much needed colour to proceedings.

Shaun on the Cob

I crossed the river to walk the Old City Trail - this was based around Castle Park and the nearby shopping areas. This part of the walk took me into Cabot Circus - a modern shopping centre housing Bagpuss Shaun (a rather strange combination of children's characters it has to be said).  Outside this shopping centre  was the main shopping area for Bristol and even though it was a Sunday it was thronged with people.  There were a few Shauns scattered around this area including one at the bus station that amused me because it was Shaun jointed into Bristol portions.  Outside the bus station was an old time busker playing the accordian - a sight I hadn't seen in a good many years.  He didn't seem to be doing it for money either - just the love of the music.

St Nicholas Church Gardens

Some of the best Shauns on the trail were on this section of walk - the colourful Maisie and Friends stiing outside the children's hospital, the Test Card and perhaps the best one of all - Shaun on the Cob.  Just along from here I finally stopped for lunch at a rather wonderful little stall that sold falafels and other middle eastern type food. From the shopping area I headed back into Castle Park and the gardens of yet another bombed out church.  This was a good moment to pause and take breath.  There was a good array of flowers and I really enjoyed this little oasis before moving on to St Nicholas Market across the road.  The stalls here were largely closed as it was a Sunday but the atmosphere of the place seemed timeless.  The Shaun that was perhaps the most work to put together was inside here - Woolly Wonderland, which seemed to be entirely knitted.

St Nicholas Market

I briefly found myself back at the head of the docks as I transferred from the Old City Trail to the Heritage Trail which headed up towards Clifton and the older part of the city.  There was less emphasis on the cathedral this time around as the only Shaun was outside the frontage and the first that was in two pieces.  As Shaun Arthur trying to get to grips with Excalibaar could really only be in two pieces!

Woolly Wonderland

I headed up Park Street and dived out into Brandon Hill Park where I expected to find From Dusk until Shaun at the top near to the Cabot Tower but was caught out as when I climbed to the top I found myself looking down on it - feeling highly irritated I got to the bottom on the other side and was confronted with the slowest family yet who seemed to want the piece all to themselves.  All of us waiting were getting rather annoyed by their slowness but they never seemed to get the hint.  I managed a couple of quick snaps before heading up to the Cabot Tower.  I was pleasantly surprised to see that the tower was free to access and so I climbed to the top.  Even though it was rather a grey and overcast day the views from the top were amazing.  There were plenty of other people having the same idea and it was a bit of a squash at times.  The tower was built in the 1890s to celebrate 400 years since the sailing of John Cabot from Bristol to the New World where he discovered what was to become Canada.

Park Street

Having puffed my way up and down the tower I headed over to the museum to visit the next two Shauns hosted inside.  The museum once again had one designed by Nick Park, the creator of Shaun the Sheep.  This had some of the original drawings from the early cartoons on it and was fascinating to look at.  With 70 Shauns to decorate some of the designs were really innovative and the one in the Foyer was mesmerising as it had colour changing LEDs inside it.  This trail was a particularly short one as I quickly picked off Thunderbird Shaun, Rex and Flock n' Roll before heading over to Clifton.

View From Clifton Bridge

By the time I got to Clifton I was feeling weary and I took the pragmatic view that there were a couple of the Shauns on this trail that were just too far to walk to.  With the combination of the trails that I have been on I had walked more than 10 miles and on hard pavements I was beginning to feel it.  Nevertheless the thrill of crossing the Clifton Suspension Bridge was too much to miss.  Leaving it to the end was probably a good move on my part for it made for a really good finale to the walk.  I popped up to the Observatory first, passing a natural rock slide on the way that seemed to be extremely popular.  The view out over the gorge was spectacular although the river in the bottom was a rather strange sight as the tide was out.  At low tide the river barely has any water in it and it is rather astonishing to think that a major port could have built up around a waterway that is unavailable for such a long time.

Clifton Bridge View

The walk across the bridge to find Isembaard was a bit of a procession.  The bridge is pretty narrow and there isn't a lot of room for a walkway either side.  Nevertheless the number of people on the bridge did not detract from this engineering marvel.  The view is astonishing and more than makes up for the fact that there is only a relatively thin deck of metal holding you up so high above the gorge.  Having walked over and back I dropped down to the Avon Gorge Hotel.  On the way I passed the bride and groom from an Indian Wedding up here to have their pictures taken.  They looked so lovely and  colourful in the wedding outfits and I hope that the pictures taken did them justice.  I also wandered past the former cliff railway that enthusiasts are trying to reopen.  I wish them well in that endeavour as it looks like a very long term project indeed.  I had to walk through the hotel out into the beer garden to catch the next Shaun, which was rather an odd experience and one I didn't care for.  Outside the hotel was a lion from an old trail.  Thankfully the lion and Shaun were kept at a safe distance from each other :)

Clifton Railway

After the hotel there was only one more Shaun to get - they helter skelter one in the middle of Clifton.  As with so many of the others on the trail it had a healthy number of visitors to come and look.  In fact I would say that the numbers out on the trails massively exceeded what we remembered from Gromit a couple of years ago.  By now it was the middle of the afternoon and I had seen 46 of the Shauns.  Not content with that I picked off a few in the outer part of the city that were too far to walk to - hunting mascots is pretty addictive!  The auction comes up soon and I think there is every likelihood that the organisers will exceed the £2m they raised from the sale of the Gromits.  I wish them every success as I thoroughly enjoyed hunting them down in the Bristol streets.