January 6th – A damp morning errand took me across the Black Country to Great Bridge, and in the small border of a household garden near the town centre, these gorgeous flowers, spotted with rain.

It’s quite hard to find natural, optimistic colour at this time of year, but I’m so glad I did. I’ve been missing the simple joy of flowers for too long.

A real tonic.

January 5th – First trip to Telford of the new year and on a very cold morning indeed – but at least I was prepared for it unlike the night before. I was on a bike with decent tyres for the conditions, but thankfully the black ice was minimal anyway.

I stopped on the old footbridge by the station to record the sunlight thing down the track below – it was dawn-like and harsh, but had a beautiful quality that sunrises alone have, a sort of sharpness, unlike the mellow glow of a sunset. 

I must make an effort to record this bridge more – now planning is going ahead, it won’t be long until this curious, red steel structure is replaced by something more practical. Whilst it’s awfully dystopian – particularly at night, it does have a lovely photogenic quality about it.

January 4th – it has been a temperate commute in the morning, spoiled only by ten minutes of rain, but it felt reasonable for first day back, but in the evening my return was a shock. Not dressed for sub-zero temperatures, and on a bike without ice tyres, I gingerly picked my way through lanes and backstreets chilly and nervous.

That’s the trouble with having time off; you need to sharpen your commuting game on your return, because you get out of the habit.

January 3rd – I had to ip out to Screwfix at sunset, so again hopped on the canal. Nothing as interesting as the Goosanders, sadly, and having forgotten the camera, I chanced my arm with the phone at what was a pretty nice sunset.

Cameras on phones are getting better and better, despite the obvious limitations. I’m quite pleased with this.

January 3rd – Still rough this morning, I took a leisurely cruise on some errands, and was surprised to note on the canal near Pier Street this couple – Goosanders. I know they’re fairly common on the local lakes like Chasewater and Ryders Mere, but I can’t recall seeing them on the canal before.

Fish eaters, they must be a sign – like the kingfishers and herons – of good water quality and a good fish population.

They were fast moving, so apologies for the poor pic.

January 2nd – Well, this is it – the fifth anniversary of my continual cycling. Every day for the past five years – that’s 1827 consecutive days (2 leap years, don’t forget) – I’ve got on my bike and rode it. Maybe to work, maybe to the shops, or on a long ride. Often, when commuting, I ride more than once.

Of course, this isn’t the anniversary of the journal – I actually started in April 2011 as my contribution to 30daysofbiking, egged on by the lovely Rene Van Barr; but a dodgy pie laid me low with campylobacter at new year 2012 and I missed two days. So I started the clock again.

I believe I’ve shown it’s possible to ride a bike in all conditions, to all manner of places, and still find interesting stuff both local and distant.

I’ve got to the point where doing this is part of my daily routine, and I enjoy it – so I intend to continue. If you think it’s stale, old, or uninteresting, please tell me so, and I’ll consider your views.

I do enjoy sharing the ride, and love that people seem interested. I love being able to show you the things I find – like tonight, we passed through Fazeley Junction in the dark, and the Weighmaster’s house, old mill and beautiful moon – photographed by balancing the camera at full zoom on the bridge coping stones and leaving it on timer – made for wonderful, seasonal photos.

Thanks for having this odd little journal in your life. For everything I do online, this is probably the most heartfelt.

January 2nd – The weather was sunny and bright, but cold; the paperwork wasn’t finished and I was still unwell, but that feeding station at Middleton beckoned, so I went for it with a good pal.

We weren’t disappointed – these photos show a variety of great birds that constantly zip in and out, and also a bit of a rarity: a water rail. Not uncommon birds in themselves, but infrequently witnessed as they’re particularly secretive. 

A billet moorhen-ish, slate grey/blue, with a long red beak it was picking in the mud under the feeders. That’s quite a spot, so it made me feel blessed to be out.

Not all photos mine, but taken in the same visit. If you haven’t been to Middleton Hall and RSPB Middleton, get over there – it’s great.

January 1st – I wasn’t well, and didn’t go far. Not overindulgence from the previous evening – I partook of no alcohol at all on New Year’s Eve – but the recurring IBS I sometimes get, thankfully very rarely these days.

I was also drowning under a sea of paperwork I had to complete for work, which always drives me mad. At least the day was wet, so I didn’t miss good riding time…

I spun up Walsall Wood on an errand, and hopped off the canal at Hollander’s Bridge and took a quick shot of Binary Mews. It still disappoints me that the addresses here don’t go 1,10,11,100,101 etc…

Passing St. John’s, I forgot to note this year that the Christmas tree in the Churchyard – donated as it always is by the local councillors – was looking splendid this year with a new set of coloured lights. The generosity of the politicians is noted, and appreciated.

I welcome 2017, and a return to normality. When my stomach settles, of course.

December 31st – I looped back into Brownhills, and took in one of my favourite night photography muses – Silver Street and the canal at night. I never get tired of this, the interaction of lights, architecture and water are always lovely.

Looking back to the flats, soon this view will change. The market place – deserted for 5 years – will be houses, and as the development towards the flats completes, life and light will return to the canal side, transforming the character once more.

Change is what I guess this journal is all about, and as ever, I welcome it, as I grudgingly welcome 2017.

Happy new year to all readers and followers. Here’s to peace, prosperity and happiness to you all, wherever you follow me from.