October 27th – These berries are profuse all along the cycle paths of Telford, and I don’t really know what they are. Glossier and rounder than cotoneaster but similarly pea-sized, they come in colours from deep red to light pink and yellow. The berry-heads are very dense, yet the birds don’t seem to bother with them.
Anybody know what they are?
October 26th – My return was indeed in darkness, and I must get the feel for night photography once more. But at least I get to experience that wonderful atmosphere of railway stations at night again.
I’ve missed that. Hello darkness my old friend,
October 26th – British summertime ended this weekend, which means my evening commute is abruptly plunged into darkness, but for a short time at least, the opposing morning journey is in the light once more.
When I passed Grove Hill this morning, the sun was well up and with the green on the lower slopes and soft light, this could be a spring morning in April.
October 25th – The fungi are still going strong. On the common I found plenty of fly agaric at various ages, from globular and spotty fresh young caps to plate-like washed out pink and smooth. I also found a shroom I didn’t recognise, and had to look up. This is certainly a cortinarius, either cinnamon or bicolour. They’re a lovely chestnut, almost chocolate colour, and the gills are fascinating.
I’ve never seen them before and my big book of fungi says they’re fairly rare, so I’m quite pleased spot them.
October 25th – This momma deer and her two calves – a yearling and this year’s – were happily browsing on the common when I spotted them. Nervous, all but the little one hid for a while, then braved my camera.
Lovely creatures, in good health, by the looks. I loved the colours in the youngest’s coat.
October 25th – The Parade, Brownhills. The main route over the common, and so I’m told, once the line of a colliery tramline.
These trees in neat rows are younger than me. I remember harsh winters, when these trees were saplings, and the council used to erect snow-break fences down here.
The hard winters seem rare now, and the trees are large and beautiful. It’s not their fault that they make me feel old…
October 24th – Passed through Aldridge as night fell. i’d been running an errand, and had to get shopping in. The sky was clear, and if I’d been in a place with a decent view, I think the sunset was pretty good.
It felt cold, though, that onset of winter kind of cold. I could see my breath form clouds of missed, and the air felt hard, brittle and clear.
Appropriate, really, that British Summer Time ends tonight, and the darkness that haunts me returns.
Ah well, bring it on…
October 23rd – Here’s a security tip for cyclists with disc brakes. The other day I noted that you can’t make your bike theft proof, but you can make it fiddly and a pain to steal, hopefully putting off all but the most determined thieves.
Some of the best deterrents lie in novelty; professionals will come with tools usually to smash D locks or cut cables, not both. You can make your D lock more effective by ‘filling’ it with as much bike as possible (thieves often use bottle jacks to break them open – they can’t if there isn’t room for one).
This yellow item probably isn’t that secure, but it’s effectiveness lies in the way it works: they’re sold online as disc brake locks for motorbikes and they have a plunger that latches through your brake disc, rendering the wheel unable to turn. In addition, there’s a piercing, vibration-activated alarm inside – so if the bike is handled roughly, it screams the place down.
It’s small, compact, thieves probably wont want to bother with it coupled with other locks, and it costs less than a tenner. What’s not to love?
October 23rd – Unusually, I’ve passed through Birmingham New Street Station a lot this week. It doesn’t really get any easier, and although it’s home, and something I’m fond of, it’s still difficult: down on the platforms it’s still 1970, and all the posh lights and fascias can’t change the fact that even in the nicest weather it’s dark, dingy, cold and often wet.
I often look at folk on the other platforms, and wonder where they’re headed, and if they’re as ambivalent about this place as I am…
October 22nd – Time for a seasonal warning. After raised winds and heavy rain, what can be better than riding through freshly fallen leaves? At Telford, the cycleways are thick with leaf litter, and very beautiful.
This is a cause for caution as well as awe. These leaves retain the rain from the day before, and still contain enough sap and resin to be slippery and form a soapy, friction-reducing goop the will steal your wheels from under you in a flash.
Where the leaf-fall is on busy roads, the pulp mixed with diesel can be like black ice.
Enjoy the beautiful scenes – but hey, be careful out there.
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