Tag: Brownhills

February 20th – Spring is encroaching. This evening, coming through Walsall at a close to normal homecoming hour, I started in the last vestiges of daylight and finished in the last vestiges of a gorgeous urban sunset.

I first spotted it as I came down the ring road, but couldn’t stop; by the time I got to North Street it was still strong, but although the photos are nice, I don’t think they quite did it justice. 

At Walsall Wood, onto the canal, and my long-time muse of Clayhanager Bridge at night. The dozing swans at Catshill Junction were also rather lovely.

This dusk interregnum as the days lengthen when winter draws to a close can certainly be very beautiful.

February 18th – A call in to Ogley Junction to see how the renovation of the footbridge is going, and it’s looking really good.

The shot blasting has finished, and the metalwork is being painted in black and white, and it looks splendid, I must say. Nice to see the approaches either side have been concreted too – the voids on either approach have been quite a challenge on a bike for some time.

The only thing bothering me is the missing bolt from the one repair plate brace – I do hope they fix that, but otherwise looking very good. It’s nice to see this historically listed bridge getting some love.

February 17th – Back in Brownhills, and another azure blue nightfall, which the Canon camera – to which I’m now really attached – really lapped up. I loved the way it picked up the warmth of the lighting on the Watermead estate over the canal from Silver Street and how that contrasted with the cool white of the LED street lighting up at Chandler’s Keep.

I’m sure there’s far more to find out and learn with this camera yet, I’m really loving it.

February 17th – Out just as the sun went down on an errand in Burntwood, hoping to catch a decent sunset as I returned via Chasewater, and thankfully I wasn’t disappointed. The day hadn’t been great and a number of things had gone wrong for me, but this was a really uplifting thing and I was glad to witness it.

With sunsets this good, can spring be far away?

February 10th – I’m liking the look of the houses going up on the old Brownhills market site right now. Hopefully, when complete they’ll bring lightness and a more populated feel to this once very open, wind-swept area of town, and hopefully also much needed footfall for the High Street.

Since the new houses became occupied on nearby recent developments, there has been a notable increase in people on the High Street, which can’t be a bad thing.

February 10th – An evening spin out turned out to be warmer than expected, but rain seemed to be threatening. The canal and towpaths were sodden, and  the paths and roads glistened in the headlight.

The flats on the Watermead, next to Coopers Bridge look lovely in the dark, the lights reflecting beautifully in the water, as did those of Tesco, itself looking unexpectedly attractive.

Either that, or I’ve been hemmed in too long…

February 6th – There I was, welcoming spring, and it looks like we’re in the coldest week of the winter so far.

Riding back to Brownhills it was cold and snowing lightly. I stopped on Anchor Bridge to record it, but you could barely tell. I don’t think this snow will amount to much, and it looks like warming up for the weekend, but I need to watch out for black ice in the morning.

Oh joy.

January 28th – The work on Ogley Junction Footbridge in Brownhills looks to be more than just a quick coat of paint. On the pontoon built a week ago, scaffold has now been built and looks set to encase the whole structure – possibly to screen it off fo shotblasting.

Crossing the bridge was still possible but tricky with a bike due to the bracing poles across the footpath, and I think this week the bridge will become impassible. 

I do hope they create a decent diversion, but at the moment, I’m not optimistic about that, as none was in force when I passed through.

The work carried out on this ageing bridge – one of only three listed structures in Brownhills – will be fascinating to watch.

January 26th – Friday meant a hectic day in Birmingham on business, then a frantic, frenetic dash back home for an important errand. I hit home, and set off to make the calls I had to at dusk.

Another way I’m liking the Canon camera is the clarity of even low daylight shots. It’s really pleasing me, like these grey canalscapes quickly snatched passing over Catshill Junction on my way to Walsall Wood.

January 21st – I did the things I had to do, and looped back around the canal and over Ogley Footbridge, which is officially closed for renovation, but as there’s nothing obstructing the towpath yet, is still passable.

A floating work pontoon has been assembled below the bridge, and protective barrier and a work compound set up.

I have a feeling this will be more than a cursory lick of paint…