July 16th – He was singing to me as I cycled away from Telford Central station. It took me a while to spot him, in the crown of a nearby Douglas fir. His song was so joyful and life-affirming, the thought of the wee chap kept me smiling all morning.
If you have a song to sing, sing it like nobody is listening – because it’ll make the day of the person who unbeknown to you, is.
July 15th – On the cycleways of Telford, the hedgerows, verges and scrubs are alive with life, blossom, and developing fruit. I was really surprised to note today that rowan berries all along the path were ripening well.
A bitter but sugar-laden fruit, rowan makes great jam and wine, and when ripe, will be devoured by hungry songbirds.
Bright orange, it’s one of the first berries to appear, and one of the most distinctive sights of summer. Great to see.
July 15th – Yes, well done – that’s how headphones generally work.
Telford railway station billboard on a grey morning. Advertising eats itself.
July 14th – A desperately grey journey home in fine rain. Totally uninspiring. Even my mates the coos of Jockey Meadows have – literally – moved on to pastures new, and the water meadow is recovering from their attentions. It looks good, although you’d not think it at first glance. But a lot of the invasive fast growing stuff has been grazed out, there’s lots of soft earth and mud turned by the lads and plenty of poo to spread the fertile love.
I love this land. It’s like a barometer of the seasons, and even without the coos, it’s fascinating.
July 14th – Called to Telford mid morning in soft rain, I was struck by how green and tunnel-like the cycleways to Hortonwood have become. The council here cut so far up the hedges, but the upper boroughs overhang and form an almost complete arch. Riding down them in even this grey daylight makes them an emerald delight, but in sunlight, they are magical green pathways, lined with foliage, fruits and flowers.
Beauty in the everyday.
July 13th – I haven’t seen these guys for a while , and my goodness, they’ve grown! These are the Watermead swan family from Brownhills, and they came over to see if I had any food as I passed Clayhanger Bridge.
I was glad to see they still number five, and interesting to see the very beginnings of adult plumage forming on the growing cygnets.
Here’s to another successful year!
July 13th – I headed to work on a sodden, rainy, wet Monday morning. It was a hard ride in humid conditions, when waterproofs leave you wetter from sweat than the rain they shield you from.
Pausing for a breather in Darlaston, I spotted the snowberry bushes in flower, spotted with raindrops. They captivated me.
July 12th – With it being so sunny, and no shortage of people around, I didn’t expect to see the deer at Chasewater. Fortuitously, I was wrong; there were three discrete groups, one with a young fawn, all browsing the North Heath.
They were largely tolerant of my attention, and were looking in good health.
A sight I still find astounding. Such beautiful creatures.
July 12th – A much better day. I got on top of, if not actually beat my technical issues. My stomach was improving, and I didn’t feel quite so bleak.
I spun out to Chasewater late afternoon, and rode the full circuit, which I haven’t done for ages. The sun was bright and strong, and the heaths and meadows rewarded me with bee buzz, grasshoppers ratting away, damselflies, birds and deer, as well as a wealth of flowers and fine views.
Just the tonic I needed.
July 11th – Everyone needs a hobby.
I fancy something even more radical, like rural bitching.
BrownhillsBob's #365daysofbiking 