May 29th – At Bentley Bridge, in Darlaston, I noticed these workboats pulled in to the bank. Two tugs and a dredger, they seem to be engaged in some heavy canal-cleaning by the looks of the buttes in the distance. This is good to see – these waterways have been kept very clean in recent years, and it’s good to know the spending cuts don’t seem to have affected this vital task yet. Long may it be so.
June 20th – As the summer progresses, the flowers change. I notice in the last week or so more and more wild roses seem to be in bloom. The delightful cerise blooms were growing amongst the reeds and long grass at the side of the canal near Bentley Bridge, Darlaston.
June 6th – Heading into Darlaston on the canal near Bentley Bridge, I saw these guys (there are actually two on the boat) doing sterling work fishing litter and junk from the waterway. People don’t realise there are regular rubbish sweeps like this going on, and the guys doing this work – hard, messy, often rather unpleasant – deserve much more credit than they get.
The whole waterway from Walsall to Darlaston is currently alive and dense with water lillies. This is clearly due to careful care from guys like these. Gentlemen, I salute you.
May 12th – not a half mile away, on the Canal Bank near Bentley Bridge cemetery, the rushes are in flower. These vivid yellow water blooms will continue for some weeks, complementing the colour provided by water lilies and other canal bank wildflowers such as orchids. This is the reality of urban wildlife; hidden, often unknown and strikingly beautiful. Get out there and enjoy it.
May 12th – Still just managing to avoid the rain. Here at Bentley Bridge, near Darlaston Green, beautiful foliage and a placid canal mixes with post industrial dereliction and heaps of scrap at Haniel Metals. Welcome to the darkest, deepest Black Country.
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