madoldbaggage:

I made a bad turn today. Rode down the canal from Longwood Bridge and instead of turning left and going onwards to Sandwell Valley, I turned right and headed towards Tame Valley Junction. I’ve never rode the bike along this stretch before and don’t intend to again. There isn’t much to recommend itself here. The normal drone of the M5 and M6 that you tend to get in this neck of the woods becomes a high decibel nuisance and a personal nightmare for me are heights and this part of the canal is very high! Closing your eyes because of vertigo whilst riding next to a canal is a daft thing to do but the roads and railways were so far below me I had no choice but hey ho, I didn’t crash and I didn’t drown.

The other thing that bothered me about this part of the canal network was the sheer filth, rubbish and litter filling the canal. It was a sorry site.

The pictures of the lilies etc were taken near Gillity Bridge. The other is the view of the M5/M6 interchange from on high.

I gave it two miles but was so dispirited I turned around and returned the way I had come.

July 23rd – I found myself commuting to Leicester this week. This means an early run to Lichfield Trent Valley, a change at Nuneaton and cycling from South Wigston. This is a journey unique in the British railway system in that it features the two worst stations in the country (apart from possibly Hale and Dovey Junction). However, this year, South Wigston has been a delight. I have no idea who, but someone has been guerilla planting flowers on the scrub on the northbound platform. Earlier in the year it was a riot of grape hyacinths, bluebells and primroses. Now it’s a peculiar but delightful yellow unknown flower, roses, budleia and foxgloves. Beauty in such an unexpected place. It can’t be cultivated, because it’s still just scrub.

July 22nd – Can there be anything finer than to be in England, in Staffordshire, on a sunny, warm Sunday Evening? I shot over the Chase again, this time over the ancient hill fort of Castle Ring, then dropped into Stonepit Green, and descended to Colton via Stile Cop. Heading out via Blithfield Reservoir, I called in at Hoar Cross, Scotch Hills and Dunstall, returning via Walton on Trent, Croxall and Lichfield. A great ride, and a great way to spend a Sunday evening. A lovely day.

July 22nd – Chasewater is returning to normal. A hot summer Sunday at last, and the place was packed. People cycled, strolled, played games with the kids or just took the air. Boats were sailing, even a rowing boat scudded over the water. Levels continue to rise. It’s like watching a dear old friend recover from a debilitating illness. Wonderful.

July 21st – Summer is rolling on, and the Himalayan Balsam had started to appear. This prolific, invasive species loves damp, marshy conditions like riverbanks, streams and wetland, and crowds out anything it grows near. Reaching 2 to 3 metres in height, it bears a pretty, white and pink flower, and has a familiar metallic scent that’s quite unpleasant. It’s lovely to look at but an environmental menace, quite unlike the roses I witnessed further down the canal in central Rugeley, growing on canalside waste ground. Aren’t they gorgeous?

July 21st – A spin out to the Chase, then down on to the Canal through Rugeley and the Trent Valley. The journey out was hurried and rushed, but my descent was more relaxed and enjoyable. At Etchinghill, in Rugeley, I stopped to take a look at this field of rapeseed ripening in the warm sun. Although the pods and seeds have formed, they haven’t ripened yet. When ready, the plants are dead and yellow, and the seeds black. They are, however, already heavy in unsaturated oil. Used for a multitude of culinary purposes, rapeseed has a name-related image problem. Look for canola, or as Walkers Crisps term it, ‘Sunseed oil’. This plant is a brassica, and as such, the seed pods make it unusual.

madoldbaggage:

Running with Dragonflies and swimming with sharks


If I had stopped every time I wanted to take a photo today, the ride would have taken me all day. What a stunning day and so many lovely things to look at. All the way along the canal I was chasing dragonflies, they flew with me, in front of me, to the side of me, everywhere. Breath taking. At Hollanders Bridge I could have swum with sharks….so many  anglers sitting on the banks with nothing in their nets and the sharks were there all the time!

Warsaw => Walsall: More flowers in the Guerilla Garden

warsaw-walsall:

Yesterday we finally got on to plant new flowers on the patch that had been dug up about 2 weeks ago. It’s looking good, isn’t it?

We also did some weeding, spread some slug pellets out and did our best to kill the ants eating the dahlias!

New plants have been donated by…

Warsaw => Walsall: More flowers in the Guerilla Garden

July 20th – Summer arrived. I went to Aldridge to get some documents scanned, and I travelled up the canal. If you’ve not been lately, take advantage of the good weather, and stroll up the towpath. The wildflowers – already magnificent this year – are now in top gear. Beautiful. Celandines, brambles, orchids, vetches, worts and many I can’t identify. All there, just trying to get noticed; and accompanying it all, the buzz of honeybees stirred by the warmth of the sun.

At last, I am in England, in the summertime. Bliss.