February 16th – On a misty, hazy mild and sunny lunchtime I crossed Kings Hill Park on a quick run out and stopped to gaze at Church Hill and the twin sisters of Wednesbury.
The view changes subtly though the years – new buildings replace old ones, trees grow and are felled, factories and buildings like the old Carcraft site fall in and out of use.
But overseeing all, those twin, beautiful spires, watching their industrial, urban flocks for over a century each.
This is a view that never ages.
February 1st – An odd morning. I had to go to Tipton, then Telford and as it was raining when I left, I headed to catch the train. Sadly, assuming the service I caught stopped at Tipton when it didn’t, I ended up at Wolverhampton. With a 30 minute wait in store and the weather clearing, rather than hang around, I hopped onto the canal at Horseley Fields and rode to Tipton on the canal.
Ninety minutes and a breakfast later, I took a train to Wolverhampton, and then one from there to Telford, so I did a sort of loop around the north Black Country.
It actually felt springlike at Wolverhampton, but the picture doesn’t convey it at all. But the weather was warm, and dry save for a strengthening wind, and there was a definite joy in the spring flower shoots on the towpaths and verges I passed.
February already – where did January go?
January 27th – On a mid-morning errand I spotted this magpie on the cycleway around Wednesbury Parkway. Oddly confident, it hopped and pecked in the frozen grass just a few feet away from me and the bike, his antics charming and fascinating, like any corvid.
Magpies seem to get a bad press, but I quite like them. They’re intelligent, resourceful birds that are actually surprisingly colourful when you catch them in the right light.
January 12th – Passing throughGreat Bridge in the last of the light, the weather was grim and the traffic horrid – the promised snow had also passed through and the only trace of it was overlooking the Black Country from Turner’s Hill.
For a moment, snow on the hill – no more than an icing-sugar dusting – was beautiful.
I hope we get some more.
December 7th – And when I reached Tipton – busy with rush hour traffic – I found a delight of street, shop, Christmas and traffic lights all blending into one magical, beautiful electric night.
Just when you think you’ve seen it all, the Back Country steals your heart anew.
November 2nd – I was lucky to pass through Darlaston tonight as the sun set, and the view over the landscape – today, a genuinely black Black Country – was beautiful; once, this view would have been marked by chimneys, stacks and furnaces; this evening, house lights, clear air and the glow of sodium discharge made the urban sprawl look like glowing embers of a fire that caught the clouds alight.
Watching on, like a sentry, the cellphone tower; constant, contracted, monitoring, trading it’s hundreds of concurrent conversations with the ether.
And there I stood, camera in hand, caught for a moment in ideas of technological progress and the beauty of the place I love.
October 24th – Something out of the ordinary picked up by the ride cam as I hopped on the canal at Moxley on my way to Great Bridge on an errand at midday.
Riding the canals, you get used to seeing rats occasionally, but this small one was absolutely frantic to get somewhere safe, and repeatedly tried to jump over the wall, but each time failed.
I understand people not liking them, but they really are fascinating creatures.
October 24th – All of a sudden, Autumn has exploded into vibrant colour, and the Black Country, from Darlaston’s quiet majesty to the postwar estate roads of Tipton wear the season’s overcoat beautifully.
There was little wind, and in the stillness, leaves tumbled freely and carpeted footpaths, towpaths and roads. I hate the darkness autumn brings, but it is beautiful out there right now.
Get out and enjoy it if you can.
October 17th – I’ve passed through Ocker Hill and Toll End a fair bit lately, and I’ve noticed this house at the top of Toll End Road near the island.
It’s old. I think it’s older than anything in the immediate vicinity, and of what looks like a very un-black country design; the only thing I can liken it to around these parts is the old White Lion in Caldmore Green, Walsall.
Does anyone know the history of this curious house please?
September 29th – The brightness increased at Tipton in the early morning, where I came across this wonderful bed of flowers. I don’t know what the blooms are, but they are absolutely gorgeous, a riot of colour and an absolute joy to stop and appreciate.
A few bees still pottered between the beautiful colours, and the scent was lovely. Not entirely what you’d expect when you hear the name ‘Tipton’.
I love the Black `country, I love this place with all my heart. And this is an example of why.
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