December 9th – In Darlaston itself, a reminder of the great architecture present in this underrated town. Darlaston Police Station is a beautiful building, more ornate than any police station I’ve seen. It scans foursquare in a quiet, tree-lined side street overlooking Victoria Park.
On this chill winter morning, the low sun through the trees make me stop and take a good look.
If you’ve never visited Darlaston, please do. It’s a wonderful, unassuming place, full of gems like this.
December 9th – A better day today, for sure. For starters, it was dry, sunny and cooler – it felt like a real winter was coming. We’re getting really close now to the winter solstice and the start of the opening out – yet we’ve barely had a true frosty morning. This year has been odd.
I was further cheered to note that at James Bridge, on the Walsall/Darlaston border, the hard work by planning enforcement officers and the Environment Agency has led to the clearing of the mess here on the field next to the River Tame. It had been in use as a store for general building materials and assorted debris, apparently without planning approval. The whole site looked a mess and seemed to be little more that a glorified fly-tip.
The site isn’t completely clear yet, although it’s much, much improved. It’s good to see action to remove the blight and a possible source of pollution to the recovering river.
Nice work. Thank you.
December 8th – A grim day in which everything went wrong, including leaving home with a flat camera. At work, I recharged it, but I left for home in steady rain and got as far as High Heath before I felt motivated to use it.
Today, the ride in had been dogged by wind and a mechanical issue, work itself had been a succession of protracted difficulties and conflicts, and the ride home was wet and I was without waterproofs. I stopped in a deserted, wet Green Lane, this desolate view is exactly how I felt.
Tomorrow will be better. It has to be.
December 7th – Another fine commute on a dry but windy morning, and again, it felt warmer than it should. Victoria Park in Darlaston is gorgeous at this time of year; it’s contours, slopes and features – including the remarkable footbridge – look wonderful in the low winter sunlight.
A fantastic place that’s well worth a visit.
December 6th – Morris had a little Vegas in his soul.
We should all have Vegas in our souls. Rock on, Morris!
December 6th – A late spin around Chasewater, and the railway caught my eye. Finished for the day, the carriages were left on the platform for cleaning and the engine in the sidings further over towards the shed. I loved the light, the open doors and the gathering dusk. There was a real atmosphere of abandonment, as if everyone had just disappeared in some 1950s rush hour sic-fi movie.
I was lucky to catch this.
December 5th – I wanted to take some night shots of Aldridge, which felt quite Christmassy), but realised my tripod was at home. Out of 20 or so handheld shots, this was the only one to be anything close to usable, and this only just.
But it does convey the atmosphere.
Oh well, maybe next time.
December 5th – A day of high winds and blustery squalls, I left it until late afternoon to get some shopping in. Choosing Aldridge mainly so the wind would blow me home, I rode up the canal, but the towpath were so muddy form recent rains that riding them was a chore; the cloying mud stuck to my tyres and jammed in my mudguards. A real battle.
These hardy canoeists made up for it though. A beautiful scene.
December 4th – Similarly, when I passed the canal junction at Walsall further on my way to work, I hopped off the ring road and on to the pavement to take this one from the Smiths Flourmill Bridge.
It’s early in the morning, the sun is low, and the two constants of Walsall – the waterway and that huge Victorian chimney stand as markers to the place I love.
A great morning ride.
December 4th – A better day, at last. It was a bright, warm morning with blue sky, sunlight and a lovely golden winter atmosphere. I sped past Jockey Meadows, then did a double-take, stopped, and got out the camera.
After the weather of the last week or so, a real tonic.
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