Tag: Abandoned

April 11th – On Lynne Lane, approaching Lynn itself, stands another deserted house. The area around here seems to have a veritable plague of such homes, falling to wrack and ruin, with nobody to care for them. Last week I pointed out Keeper’s Cottage. I suspect the ownership to be the same person.

This bungalow has been empty for as long as I care to remember – certainly since 1982. It has survived remarkably well, and is a tiny little place that would make an agreeable home for someone. 

I took this photo today, as within a few weeks, this place will be invisible, shrouded in scrub and hedgerow. This abandoned bungalow only appears, Brigadoon-like every winter with the leaves shedding.

Another once fine house going to waste; another tragedy.

April 4th – On the cycleway from Telford station, this sad sight. It’s a BSO, or bike-shaped object and is the kind of bike one might buy from a supermarket, discount store or catalogue for a low price. BSOs are usually made from the heaviest depleted uranium, bad weld and cheese. They feature the cheapest, most poor quality components, as they’re generally sold to folk who won’t ride them much. 

They are bought by retailers in bulk for between £12-£20 each.

This machine – clearly abandoned on the way to work (it had gone by the time of my return) – had failed in a way common to such bikes; the wheels, built by machines with no human involvement at all – are usually very badly tensioned, and can collapse, or ‘pringle’ (think of the shape…) unexpectedly. This one was sudden and catastrophic, ripping the rear brake apart.

Never buy a cheap bike like this, even if you’re flat broke. Look for something better, secondhand. Some real bargains can be had with patience. Riding a piece of crap like this will put you off for life.

Hope the rider got to work OK.

February 24th – I passed the boat yard at Ogley Junction as dusk was falling. I note with some disdain that the dredgers and associated butties and tugs are still languishing here,12months to the day after the blue machine toppled over in Anglesey Basin, it remains abandoned with the other equipment – including a decent tug – brought in to do the job. Behind them, the white and yellow frame of a brand new, unused dredger called ‘Hamster’, left here at least four years ago by British Waterways and never used. Such machinery is extortionately expensive. Just who can afford to purchase it and then let it rust away, unused, to nothing?

Madness. And they wonder why the Canal & River Trust is struggling.

January 8th – The house that stands on the junction of Mill Lane and ForgeLane in Mill Green, Little Aston is still lying derelict, unloved and appears to be falling into ruin. This is a very large house in an exclusive, rural area. When occupied, it must have been worth at least £500,000, maybe more. I can’t even work out how such a property comes to be abandoned and left to vandals. This was once, clearly, a family home. Someone must own it, their must be a backstory. Nothing has changed here for years. Anyone know anything? It’s a crying shame.

October 4th – Telford Railway Station is a wreck right now, and has been for some time. I’ve always disliked it – not unpleasant in the daytime, with easy ramp access, but at night in winter it’s cold, lonely and desolate. I still wince at memories of waiting for late trains here in the freezing, snowy run up to Christmas 2010. The whole site was due a refurb, but half way through, the builders who won the contract went bust. Allegedly now restarted, I’ve yet to see anyone on site actually doing anything. A disgrace.

June 4th – A terrible day of botched plans and failed attempts. However, the riding was good. Heading out to Chasewater late morning, I noticed that as the abandoned swan nest on the canal near Sadler Road sinks, it’s now evident that they had eggs for sure. There seem to be three remaining, but some could have been lost to vermin and predation. I have no idea why they were abandoned. It’s silly, really, but this makes me very sad when I think about it. But it’s just nature.

March 9th –  A day off, and an afternoon pottering around Lichfield. I only noticed this one in recent months, it must be normally quite well hidden. Cresting Pipe Hill, over the old crossroads, but not quite at the new island, stands an empty, decaying house. I don’t know who owns it, or why it stands empty, but there’s a notice up pointing out that it’s not for sale or rent. Which, like the houses in Footherley, near Shenstone, is pretty sad. Houses should resonate to the sounds of life – there is nothing sadder than an empty house, particularly in a time when homelessness has increased 14% in one year. The owner should be ashamed.

October 10th – a bit of a grim landmark – this is my first normal-time homebound commute of the season on which I needed lights. A depressing milestone indeed. It seemed fitting, therefore, to feature this odd, unsettling landmark. I’ve been passing this derelict, abandoned and decaying house for several years. Situated in the plush, posh hamlet of Mill Green near Little Aston, it’s a huge house that would, at one time, have been worth at least £500,000. It’s rotting away, unloved and not evidently for sale. I have no idea how it came to be in this state – you surely can’t just forget or abandon a house of this value – yet someone has. This former home, between other, occupied houses of a similar value has lain like this for years. Does anyone know the story?

July 31st – Darnford Bridge Farm sits in the middle of a short, unnamed, decaying, unadopted cut through between the A51 Tamworth Road and Darnford Lane, just on the eastern side of Lichfield. Wedged in between a golf driving range and Lichfield Rugby Club, the farm has been derelict and abandoned for some time. I have no idea who owns it, or why it lies decaying as it so sadly does. The fabric of the farmhouse and building still seems quite good, and efforts have been taken to ensure security. Wonder what the story is?