December 27th – Another foul day. Overcast, misty and cold, it came on to rain in the afternoon, with the lying, dirty snow still stubbornly refusing to shift.

I went out – togged up for it this time – to Chasewater to see just how good the ice tyres were. A blast down the bog boardwalk proved them grippy, as did the surefooted handling on wet mud, slush and ice.

Rolling resistance is high though, and they’re very, very noisy.

A decent ride though, in very poor conditions.

Boxing Day – Sometimes, you do something on impulse that seems a good idea, and it’s terrible. This was just such an occasion.

Snow was forecast. I enjoy snow; I love to be out in it, especially when it’s actually snowing; it saturates my senses and I feel connected to the world; I love the way it plays with the light, and the memory of place.

The snow came late afternoon, so I threw the studded snow tyres on the bike and went for it. The snow was very wet, but beautiful. The bike cam died due to not being charged. The mud on the canal was something else. Snow got on the camera lens and I had no dry cleaning materials to hand. 

Then the snow turned to heavy rain. I had no aquapac for my electronic stuff.

I got soaked. Really wet. The rain was searching, and entered every not-quite shut zip and pocket flap. I felt cold, wet and down.

It had bean beautiful I was glad to catch it. I spun over to Chasewater, and was planning to loop over around Hammerwich. But the rain was just too horrid.

On my way back, I took the line of the old railway along the bypass at Chasetown, to the rear of Anglesey Basin, and saw the deer footprints in the fresh snow. I forgot being wet and cold and followed them – the animals had come up off the bypass, and headed over the scrub to the copse at the back of the cottages, presumably laying low for shelter. Bless them.

That perked me up, but oh boy, this was a horrid ride.

Boxing Day – Out for a quick spin before the rains came in, and I headed to Stonnall Church, as I’d not been there for ages. It’s a lovely little church, mostly brick but with a stone extension on the rear. It looks such a homely little church, and the grounds surrounding it are full of curiosities – from the views of the surrounding village and hills to the sad, headstone-less grave under the hedge at the back. There’s a curious little war memorial made out of nails, and some of the most fascinating weather erosion I’ve ever seen.

Yet you could pass this church – high on the hill beside the road – and never notice it were there.

Christmas Day – Castle Ring is a bit of a Christmas Day ride tradition for me. It’s a great, reasonably short ride with killer climbing and great downhills that can be completed in an hour or so to work up an appetite before lunch. Today was another cold clear day, but the wind was quite nasty – not heavy, but wearing. The sun was lovely though, and warm on my face. 

The view, and the sight of the Chase in it’s winter jacket was gorgeous. Even after all these years, I still find it breathtaking.

It was clear, however, that rain was sweeping in from Staffordshire. Out on the plains of the Trent Valley, the sunlight highlighted a band of grey mist, and some darkly threatening clouds seemed to be rolling in.

Thankfully, the wind was assisting on the way home and I just beat the rain.

Christmas Eve – On the way back I also had to nip into Walsall Wood, and dropping down from Shire Oak Hill, the sunset view over the Black Country to the South West caught my breath, as it often does. Considering the time of day on Christmas Eve the traffic was quite heavy, but it did feel very much like Christmas.

Greetings of the season, everyone!

Christmas Eve – Down into Lichfield on a last minute errand, it was a gorgeous day – bright, clear and getting colder. It actually felt like Christmas. Lichfield wasn’t as busy as I expected, and I easily got the things done I needed to, although against a bitter wind the ride back was harder than it should have been. The lanes and fields around Wall looked wonderful, and the bright emerald green of winter crops in the fields was a nice surprise. From Aldershawe, the Old Lady of the Vale looked beautiful, too.

I was quite taken with the Dutch roadster parked up in town; it looked new, but the the owner was clearly intending to haul a load with it. A nice looking bike.

December 23rd – Tired, horrid day, washed out. The end of a working day. Heavy with a headache, buffeted by the wind, and finding the roads hostile despite the lighter traffic, I headed home from work for the last time in 2014.

I whipped the camera out as I waited on the lights at the Arboretum Junction, and as I usually do, watched the traffic move past in a blur.

Only the clocktower and the traffic light remain constant. 

I was glad to get home. Glad to finish the year. And so, a holiday, family time and fun, and then a new year.

That’ll do; that’ll do.

December 22nd – With a light heart and the wind behind me, I returned via Walsall in mild drizzle. It was warm, and I had to stop to take off some layers – the weather has been crazy this last few days – windy, but blowing hot and cold.

We’ve just passed the winter solstice and this makes me happy. I’m in the darkness here and now, but from here, the days lengthen in that all too familiar sinusoidal acceleration pattern, and soon, we’ll have light and leaves again. Fact is, I’ve survived the closing in again, and this year, it barely affected me at all. Considering I was dreading it, that’s some relief.

Cresting the Black Cock Bridge, this conifer decorated beautifully with hundreds of lights demands attention. It’s so bright, so sparkly, yet not glaring like a lot of such things. It’s really, really beautiful. And it’s huge.

Such a gorgeous beacon of light in the darkness.

December 22nd – A day at work in Darlaston, then nipping into Brum on an errand. New Street Station is mad at this time of year, and the lousy revamp is crippling passenger flows. Stood at the end of the platform for blessed space waiting for the train to be made available, I took a couple of shots. I love the differing lights here, the colours, surfaces, angles and textures.

I guess most folk would dismiss it as ugly, but I think it’s curiously beautiful.