July 19th – Ducking off work early for probably the last sunny afternoon of the warm spell for now. I hopped on the canal at Tyseley, then cycled into the city centre, and out via Smethwick, Great Bridge, the Tame Valley canal and Walsall. The canal was beautiful, and the scenery great, but my energy reserves were low and I found the going hard. I was reminded again, however, how green and beautiful our local waterways are, from inner city budleia to Smethwick’s hanging ivy; from the water lilies of Park Hall to the thistles of Rushall Junction. A great, but enervating ride.

July 18th – Commuting, security and bike racks. In preparation for tunnelgeddon hitting Brum at the weekend – when the city’s Queensway tunnels are closed for six weeks for refurbishment and traffic chaos is expected to ensue – Birmingham City council have been encouraging car or public transport commuters to take to their bikes instead. This is a good idea, and to support it, bike racks have been springing up around the city centre like mushrooms. It’ll be interesting to see what happens.

But then there’s what you do when you get to a rack. I was intrigued by the bike I spotted on the way to work this morning, which had no less than three locks wrapped around the seatpost. Only 2 looked like they were used regularly, and the third is made of cheese. That’s serious extra weight to be carrying.

An odd thing, indeed.

July 18th – Heading to work through the backlanes of Little Aston, I spotted these to lovely carpets of colour in the same field. They’re beautiful – one purple, one white. I had thought at first from a distance that they might be flax, but as soon as i got close I realised they were spuds.

There are a good few chips in that there field…

July 17th – Further up the road in less salubrious Tyseley, the incinerator that destroys Brum’s non-recyclable rubbish is still running flat out. A workmate said the other day that he hadn’t seen it running for weeks. I pointed out that you only see vapour from the flues in colder temperatures. The incineration is so thorough that very few visible particulates remain in the fumes generated.

The huge furnaces of the waste (sorry, ‘energy recovery’) plant overlook the lost gem of Hay Hall, hidden amongst warehouses and back-street lockups. This is why I love Birmingham: jarring contrasts around every corner.

July 17th – For the first time in what must be ages, I cycled through Acocks Green on my way to work. I love this delightful, tree-lined suburb. The streets of victorian townhouses are gorgeous in any season, but sparkled today. I love how busy the frontages are – jagged window and roof lines; the chimney pots. I could study this for hours.

July 16th – Another steady click in the escapement of summer, the willow herb is in flower. This tall plant with soft purple flowers is the king of the margins, the scrub and wastelands. It grows in any neglected spot, requires little from the ground, and spreads via familiar late-summer wind borne seeds often called ‘fairies’ by kids. The seeds are fluffily and white, and give rise to the colloquial name ‘Old man’s beard’. 

This part of summer is all about the transition from the yellows of spring to the blues, pinks and purples of high and late summer; nightshade, foxglove, lupins, buddleia, vetch, Himalayan balsam.

Right now, every day is a delight of new flowering.

July 16th – I noticed something today that’s puzzling me. I doubt many others have ever registered it, and even fewer probably care, but it appeals to my sense of lost history. I noticed today that Tyseley Station once had a lift, or at least, the evidence points to it.

I noticed some time ago there was a tower attached to the station building, contemporary with the rest of the structure, that had no apparent door or way in. It’s a few metres taller than the main building, and is about the size of a lift shaft, but there’s no evidence of it in the booking hall, where the tiles and fittings look original and undisturbed from new.

Down at track level on platforms 1 & 2, there is a low, bricked up doorway with a modern door built in. The platform island ramps down to it. It’s the only access to the tower I can see.

At pavement level, three sides of the tower are plain, and blank (the terracotta paint is covering graffiti, note the continuous texture of the brickwork underneath) – the other side of the tower can be seen in this image series from last week.

I do hope some passing railway buff can help with this. Was it a lift? If so, why? What did it convey? Who used it?

It’s an odd little mystery all of it’s own.

July 15th – I snatched a ride out at 3pm, and headed for Hoar Cross. I rocketed through the countryside of Longdon, Handsacre and the Ridwares, only stopping at the old church at Pipe Ridware to take a quick couple of photos. The pretty little building is now a theatre whose latest show was only a few days ago. 

I continued to Hoar Cross, and returned via the Needwood Valley,with the countryside looking gorgeous in the hazy, hot summer sun. I was hurrying a 35 mile journey and didn’t stop to take many photos, but it was a lovely, fast ride.

July 15th – I know nothing about fish whatsoever, but cycling along the canal at Brownhills, I noticed lots of them visible in the still waters. They aren’t usually this visible, I’m not sure if the sunlight is making them more evident, or the warm weather has drawn them to the surface. 

I have no idea what species they were, but there were plenty of medium and small sized fish, and a few quite large ones. The chap in the top photo looked at least 18 inches long.

A fascinating thing to see.

July 14th – I followed the track back to Ryders Mere. I hadn’t been this way for a while, and this relatively new lake – created as part of an opencast remediation 10 years ago – is maturing well. It was very quiet, with few around, and I was impressed at the number of damselflies, dragonflies and other insects there were around. The meadow was alive with grasshoppers. In the background, the gentle lap of water and calls of waterfowl. 

Beautifully tranquil.