February 15th – Late afternoon, heading into Brownhills along the canal from Aldridge. The unseasonal warm weather seems to have returned, but the ice was still loosening its grip on the canal. As the last of it melted away, I noticed the fabulous crazing pattern it generated on the surface as it broke up and wasted to nothing. I was captivated by the fantastically complex patterns. The simplicity of nature can sometimes catch you quite unawares.
February 15th – One of the last vestiges of ‘old’ Park Street in Walsall isn’t actually to be found in Park Street at all – it’s in St. Pauls Street, just behind the old Bus Station Offices, themselves sited in what was built as the Victorian Blue Coat School. On a loading bay door, normally propped open with stillages, there’s a sign indicating that this is the correct entry to the bar of The Priory Hotel, which, as far as I recall, closed in the 1980’s. The access way now forms the loading bay to MacDonalds, but it is the clothes shop next to it that was the pub. Probably better closed, in my day it had a fearsome reputation. Now all that remain are this sign, classically 70’s Ansell’s brewery style, and the two odd mosaic artworks on the front.
February 14th – Hidden away in back street of Walsall, surrounded by factories, sits a real gem. The New Inn – or Pretty Bricks, as it is known, is a real, bustling Black Country boozer. Offering a variety of real ale, a real fire and a lively bar, this pub has been a staple of traditional ale aficionados for years. In the late sixties and early seventies, there was a folk club upstairs where acts like Billy Connoly and Jasper Carrott gigged. It closed for a while, but the hostelry has reopened, and seems to have a good future ahead. The ‘Pretty Bricks’ name stems from the attractive, tiled frontage. This is a pub worth journeying to.
February 14th – This is the stray horse problem Walsall Council claims it hasn’t got. To be fair, horses are cheap to acquire right now; market prices have never been lower, and any bit of common land around the Goscote Valley has a variety of nags tethered or just wandering free. These three forlorn animals – not one with access to water – were tethered within a short section of the cycle route running through the area. In total, there must have been about 15 of these unfortunate beasts, yet the council bafflingly announced recently that we don’t have a problem with this sort of thing. The council can’t actually do much. People won’t claim the horses if taken away, and the sanctuaries are, by and large, full. It’s a thorny, and worsening, issue.
February 13th – I see the new offices for Walsall Housing Group – the hived-off housing association that owns almost all of Walsall Council’s former social housing stock – are nearly finished. This inelegant, six and a half million pound edifice has undergone a protracted construction; the glass units forming the frontage were faulty and fogged up soon after placement, the manufacture being faulty. It’s notable that some panels are still cloudy. This ill conceived building seems to be fully lit at night, presumably at no small expense, and is completely devoid of public transport support. This could be considered an oversight considering WHG’s tenant profile.
That money would have built a lot of decent homes.
February 13th – It struck me as I returned from work late, that hospitals grow their own economic microclimate. All round Walsall’s new Manor Hospital, there are a range of convenience shops. More than average numbers of newsagents, cafes, taxi offices and even undertakers. Oddly, fast food outlets of varying degrees of healthiness also proliferate. I wonder if they’re serving the staff, or patients more? Here on the Pleck Road, business looked brisk, even at this evening hour.
February 12th – interested to see that someone is now keeping pigs in the paddock between the canal and Watling Street near Newtown, Brownhills. They look well cared for, and happy. There seem to be some different breeds there – wondering if the ginger ones are Tamworths. This is an interesting addition and shall watch them grow. They’re in the corner of a field that’s also home to a rather impressive flock of sheep. I don’t know who’s farming here, but I wish them well.
February 12th – Another headache grey day. The chill had lifted, but the canal was still frozen as I spun out at 4pm. It had been a grey, grim, dank and misty day. It felt warm, though, and as I rode up from Brownhills and over Catshill Junction toward The Anchor it felt oddly pleasant. I noted that the fishermen had broken the ice here so that they could fish – that seemed a bit hardcore. I pottered on, darkness descended like a muffler, bringing with is thicker mist. Not the best day for photography, and I didn’t see a soul. An oddly lonely, desolate ride.
February 11th – The best bit about February is the lengthening day, which gives way in clear times to fantastic sunset skies. These are a regular feature at this time of year, but tend to become rarer as spring arrives. These shots, taken from the foot of Lazy Hill on the Chester Road, near Stonnall, were taken at 5:30pm. Already, the nights are opening out. I can’t quite feel the stirrings of spring yet, but oh for the light nights, daffodils and green shoots again. Bring it on.
February 11th – A bitterly cold day, and one for a rest. I had some stuff to do at sundown, so headed up over Lazy Hill to catch what was quite a decent sunset. It’s always been a bit of a disappointment to me that the best views of the countryside below from this spot can only be accessed by trespassing. As with Lanes Farm at Sandhills, most of the ancient rights of way seem to have been removed by more modern landowners. This picture of Castlefort Hill – the hamlet of upmarket houses once known as Castle Gate after the accent earthwork atop the hill – was taken from the fields on the brow of the ridge, after hopping over a field gate. Most access points are blocked by barbed wire.
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