June 2nd – Growing steadily, the swan family of mum, dad and 8 cygnets seem happy and contented, and the little ones are larger every time I see them.`Today I spotted them under the pedestrian bridge in Brownhills, and were clearly hoping I had some titbits for them. 

This is a large brood and I’m surprised they’ve all survived. The proud parents have clearly been doing an excellent job, and I notice the locals have really taken this family to their hearts.

A fantastic thing to see.

June 2nd – Coming home on a pleasant summer afternoon, I came around  the new pond then cut over Clayhanger Common. I don’t normally go that way, but it’s beautifully verdant at the moment, so it’s worth putting up with the anti-vehicle gates that are so irritating here. In the three decades since it was created, this place has matured beautifully, and it’s a real asset for the local area, and a testament to a period when local authorities were allowed space to take on large environmental projects – a period that has sadly now passed.

It does suffer a degree of antisocial behaviour, but is generally peaceful and well looked after. I know deer like to come around here, and was hoping to spot some but sadly, they were elsewhere today…

June 1st – I nipped home, then off out for a longer ride. I hadn’t been down to Blithfield Reservoir for a year of so, and thought I’d check it out. It’s still gorgeous. Stockwell Heath, with the lovely village pond was ace too. It was a day for head-down stoking the miles in, and I got a good sixty or so in and blew the cobwebs away.

The heron was loafing about all day, and I finally got a pic on my way home. He seems to have decided the canal by the winding hole at Catshill is his territory. He’s a fine bird.

June 1st – I took a mosey up to Chasewater to check out the second Craft and Farmers Market. It was larger than last time, and better spread out, but I was disappointed with the lack of produce. As a craft market it was OK, I guess, but I got a lot of feedback on social media after advertising the event on my main blog that this wasn’t a Farmer’s Market. I concur, and unless they get some produce, I don’t really think it should be called that.

It’s a fine effort, but it’s sad not to see more food there. Hopefully, things may improve as it establishes.

May 31st – He was in the middle of a busy lane at Shenstone Woodend, just sitting there. I spotted him by chance, and just swerved to miss him. I screeched to a halt and thought what to do.

He could fly short distances, but was clearly exhausted, and I couldn’t get him out of the road for love nor money. I know you’re not supposed to touch fledging chicks, but he was going to get squished under the wheels of the many vehicles that come this way.

I gently picked him up, and popped in in the hedge right next to where I found him. I hope he survived.

Anyone know what he is? I think he’s a tit of some sort.

Edit: Thanks to Fatuoussunbeams – he’s a blue tit. Thought he was, but after my recent dire attempts at botany I’m hedging my bets! Cheers…

May 30th – Later on, in Birmingham city centre, I noticed this curious ladies bike. Nice colour, virtually brand new, three speed. It’s Pinnacle, a brand I think may be unique to Evans Cycles, who have a branch nearby – this is a bike aimed at a specific market, and probably price point, too. I think it’s Shimano three speed, and the saddle, grips and comfort features like the adjustable stem are nice, but the brakes – callipers on a bike likely to be heavily loaded – are a bit crap, to be honest. The choice of a white chain and chain set are interesting, too. I’m also intrigued by the frame design; not quite a Mixte frame, it seems a bit pointlessly complex for what it actually is.

I also note the rear light on the seatpost that can’t actually be seen from the rear due to the carrier. Bit worrying that, and why I don’t like seatpost lights, which are often inadvertently obscured by overhanging jackets, too.

It’s a lovely thing, though, really. I’m interested in the way city bikes like this are evolving – they’re coming on a bit from the costly and huge Pashley hulks of a few years ago.

May 30th – Under the rumble and roar of Spaghetti Junction, beside a quiet, limpid canal, on an aqueduct above the River Tame, a little oasis of wildflowers in a built, otherwise hostile urban environment of steel, concrete and brick.

Lupins, poppies, ox-eye daisies, red campion.

That’s my Birmingham, right there.

May 30th – I spent the morning at work, then late afternoon, cycled into Birmingham to meet with a couple of colleagues. I headed down to the canal at Tyburn for a decent run, and followed the canal into central Birmingham.

One of the little-known features of canals that helped keep them open for years after their commercial value declined was the fact that under their embankments and towpaths, utilities found a direct route through cities for their pipelines and cables. By laying services alongside the waterways, many of the issues with traffic and complexity of installation could be avoided.

Along the canals here in Birmingham run gas, high voltage electricity, fibre optic telecommunications links, and petrochemical fuel pipelines. The keen-eyed explorer can often spot the evidence on the surface in the form of markers, bulkheads, valve access chambers and other infrastructure.

These small, concrete gas pipeline markers indicate a high pressure gas pipeline runs below, but also serve another purpose, as can be seen in this example which has had the cover prised off. The pipeline is metal, and to prevent corrosion, a system of cathodic protection is applied; a low voltage DC supply is connected between the pipe and electrodes – called anodes – in the ground nearby. The flow of current between the anodes and the pipe means that the anodes corrode sacrificially instead of the metal they’re protecting.

A similar system is being fitted to metalwork in the supports of Spaghetti Junction to protect it from water damage.

The markers – about 50m apart along the towpath – house junction boxes for the protection wiring and test points, and contain a magnetically operated switch for test purposes. Large brass studs in the side allow connection of test equipment. 

You can find out about cathodic protection here.

May 29th – Meanwhile, further on near the Pier Street Bridge, a chance to catch up with the flowers whose photos turned out badly the day before. Clover, the unsung hero of the pasture, meadow and verge is always beautiful, but very overlooked. Nutritious in fodder and attractive to bugs and butterflies, clover does it’s violet thing pretty much unnoticed. 

Another very common flower that goes unremarked is the ribwort plantain – it’s brown flower heads with the white corona don’t look like flowers, but they are. Exceedingly prolific this year, they’re everywhere that grass grows. As kids, we’d pick them at the base of the stalk and play conkers with them. I think they’re fascinating, and demontrate the utter diversity of plant life in the UK.

The damp conditions may not be improving my humour any, but that slug looks in fine fettle. Much misunderstood creatures, that I think are actually rather interesting.