December 30th – The long exposure experiments continue, this one from the cycle and equestrian bridge over the A38 between Weeford and Little Hay.
The hope was to catch a vehicle turning off to Little Hay to the right, but time ran out.
A good excuse to return for another go. I’ve missed being out so much.
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#365daysofbiking Dead and buried:
September 16th – A grim, drizzly afternoon and a late escape. I went to see if there were any remnants of an ancient burial mound called Offlow near the hamlet of Swinfen, trapped in the A38-A5 interchange triangle, just south of Lichfield.
Apart from a rise in the general landscape, there was nothing but a cellphone transmitter, but I expected that as history says that Offlow was lost over a century ago to farming.
I returned via Lichfield over the Bridleway over the A38 up past Harehurst Hill, near Wall. The main road – pretty much a motorway in all but name – has left a much larger impact on the land than Offlow ever did – which is a bit sad.
February 5th – Long exposure experiments I’m not entirely happy with, taken from the A5 bypass flyover at Jerry’s Lane, Packington and the Alan Woollatt bridge over the A38 at Thickbroom.
For some reason these aren’t as sharp as my earlier experiments and I’m not sure why. The wiggle of the road as it winds up Rock Hill was also not as evident as I would have hoped.
I need more practice, and maybe to read a manual or two…
December 28th – The dry, still and cold day with a near cloudless sky made for an interesting sunset, with the light reflected off the haze and mist in the atmosphere rather than clouds, giving the colour a uniform, smooth transition.
Hammerwich, the A38 and Knowle Hill were all rendered precious by it. This was a very rare sundown these days and I was glad to witness it.
December 18th – the weather got progressively worse, and on my return I crossed the Alan Woollatt memorial bridge over the A38 at Thickbroom. I had to be back for an appointment, and it was raining steadily but I couldn’t resist long exposure photos of the rush hour.
Before this bridge was built – again, a side effect of the M6 Toll – I used to negotiate that road between here and the turning for Little Hay. It was murder.
Alan Woollatt was a great cyclist and a fine man who fought for this crossing. I think of him every time I use it, and gaze from safety at the traffic speeding beneath me.
September 27th – Having visited the farm shop, returned via Weeford and Little Hay. Autumn is really kicking in now, and even on this very dull, overcast day, the colours were lovely. By the drainage lagoon at Thickbroom, you’d never realise you were less than 15 metres from the A38.
The rooftops of Weeford – John Wyatt’s exemplar village, built as an advertisement of his architectural prowess – still fascinate me. From the high cemetery near the community hall, the view is commanding and beautiful.
I noted that the land north of Park Lane, between Shenstone and Little Hay is now almost totally given over to free range pigs, snorting and rooting through the brown earth. They must outnumber local residents by a healthy number, and their produce – a quantity of which I’d just bought – is fine and tasty.
I couldn’t help thinking though that if they ever got together and rose up, we’d be under porcine rule within a matter of days… perhaps Animal Farm wasn’t a satire after all.
November 24th – These little sets of steps near bridges are a mystery to many folk. They’re horse mounting blocks, intended for equestrians to easily mount or dismount their steeds as they use the bridge nearby, and rein their horses over.
This one, dedicated to the memory of great CTC cyclist Alan Woollat, is by the pedestrian bridge system over the A38 at Weeford. Before this bridge – which Alan campaigned tirelessly to get – cyclists, walkers and horse riders used to have to negotiate the A38 which was dangerous, even on a quiet Sunday like this. As a fringe benefit of the M6 Toll/A5 by-pass work, we got a few good bridges like this over local danger spots, and now we can all cross in safety.
Alan was a good man, and a fine cyclist. I think of him every time I use the bridge dedicated in his name.
November 18th – The night photos continue. Sorry if you’re getting bored with them, I am trying to vary them a bit, it’s just that I’m mostly on my bike right now when it’s dark, and today was no exception. I escaped for a spin over to Whittington at 4pm, and was captivated by the traffic when crossing the A38 footbridge at Weeford. Looking south, the top photo shows traffic on the A38 itself, Little Hay Lane and M6 toll, off to the right. The lower picture was taken on the flyover taking Jerry’s Lane over the A5 Bypass near Packington Moor, with Lichfield TV transmitter in the background. I’ve been trying variants of these for a while and these are the first such long-exposure shots I’ve been happy with. Oh well – should see some daylight tomorrow…
May 15th – Further into the same ride, I dropped through the lovely village of Weeford. It’s proximity to, and isolation caused by the nearby A38 puts many cyclists off coming this way. A new cycle & equestrian bridge and cycle route were constructed in 2005, yet few realise as it’s not on many maps yet. It really is a dream, and you never have to deal with the dreaded dual carriageway.
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