Tag: beautiful

January 28th – Bit of a rough photograph, for some reason, and I will return to this in future, as until recently, I didn’t realise how beautifully lit Darlaston War Memorial was at night. It really is gorgeous.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I know of few better places of remembrance than this one. Sombre, respectful, quiet and restrained, it is a place of dignity, and reflection and is a credit to Darlaston.

I must find out what happens to the camera when it does this…

January 16th – A day in Droitwich for a change. Cold, hard and clear, I set out before sunrise, and returned as night fell. 

I like Droitwich, particularly the railway station, which has a very sleepy, rural feel to it, despite being quite busy – I think part of the charm lies in the old-style mechanical signals that are still in use here.

The town itself is pleasant, and in places quite hilly with makes for interesting cycling.

It was a hard day’s work and I was glad to finish and that it was Friday, but not a bad end to the week, all in all.

January 13th – I know these are poor quality pictures, but I hope you’ll forgive me just this once because they show something astonishing: it’s a kingfisher, by the canal. That on its own is notable, but not remarkable; however this fellow was just in the bushes overhanging the Walsall Canal next to the Scarborough Road Bridge in Pleck, Walsall.

If Walsall were a city, we could call this place inner city; it’s one of the most densely populated parts of town, and not the kind of place one would expect to see such a glorious bird.

These were very hurried, very long range shots (30x zoom) on a dark, overcast day in a rain shower. A Community Payback team were working not 20 metres away. 

This is stunning to me. I never thought I’d see such a thing in a place like that.

A real find on a very grey day.

December 30th – I had loads of local stuff to do today, and very little time. Plus, I was having a bad day with everything failing, so I felt it probably wasn’t best to be out in difficult conditions. 

The feeling was compounded by a couple of intemperate drivers who hooted at my very existence.

The sunset was nice though, from Pelsall Road to Chasewater, it was gorgeous through all it’s phases; these are good winter sundowns right now. 

Sadly, the weather is to warm op over the next couple of days, so I think this is probably the last decent one until the weekend. But what a corker.

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 28th – A ride out on a frosty, hard and crisp day to Hints and Hopwas, returning via Whittington, Lichfield and Burntwood. The views were wonderful, the air clear and the golden hour seemed to last all day.

The roads were very icy, however, and even with the studded tyres, I felt wary. It was cold and my feet were numb, but this is the kind of icy ride I missed last year. Hopefully the cold weather will continue for a few days yet.

I climbed Crows Castle near Hints, and the views were stunning. The rolling countryside west of Tamworth has never lost its beauty.

December 22nd – With a light heart and the wind behind me, I returned via Walsall in mild drizzle. It was warm, and I had to stop to take off some layers – the weather has been crazy this last few days – windy, but blowing hot and cold.

We’ve just passed the winter solstice and this makes me happy. I’m in the darkness here and now, but from here, the days lengthen in that all too familiar sinusoidal acceleration pattern, and soon, we’ll have light and leaves again. Fact is, I’ve survived the closing in again, and this year, it barely affected me at all. Considering I was dreading it, that’s some relief.

Cresting the Black Cock Bridge, this conifer decorated beautifully with hundreds of lights demands attention. It’s so bright, so sparkly, yet not glaring like a lot of such things. It’s really, really beautiful. And it’s huge.

Such a gorgeous beacon of light in the darkness.

December 15th – A spin around the canal up to Pelsall on the way home, just to try and get a good angle on the sunset that was developing, and while pinning it down, it rained. 

An odd, cold evening that felt oddly airless and dank. But it was so beautiful, just the light, and water. I was glad to catch it, even if I did get wet.

December 13th – An excellent sunset. I needed to pop to Chasewater on an errand, and had intended to call to the supermarket in Burntwood, but left without a lock, which was fortuitous really. I noticed the beginnings of a good sundown while at the dam, and it improved steadily as I cycled back to Brownhills. From Ogley Junction it was gorgeous; strong, really strong pink and purple, yet by the time I got to Anchor Bridge it had dissipated into a light orange, and then darkness. It was fleeting, but gorgeous and had I gone to the supermarket as intended, I’d have missed it.

A fine evening to be out, and a very lucky strike with the sunset.