Tag: bypass

July 29th – Returning from a ride out on a grey evening threatening rain I came through Chasewater and was heartened to note a group of deer browsing the grass on the Rugby Club by the Chasetown bypass. The herd was disjointed, with six adults spread around the pitch and a fawn getting some rest on the far side.

The animals were calm, inquisitive and not particularly troubled by my attentions. I noticed what good condition they were in and how shiny their coats were.

I’m also amused by the idea of some visiting rugby player going face down in the Chasetown turf during a tackle and getting a face full of fresh deer raisins.

Can’t be many pitches where that’s a hazard…

March 17th – I popped into Lichfield to do some shopping on the way home, and in the failing light, noticed the field of lambs and their mothers on the bypass near Waitrose.

Healthy, happy sheep and their new offspring graze, play and doze contentedly. These guys really do have cute in shedloads, and really are worth stopping to see.

After a really grim, groggy week, seeing this fresh life enjoying being alive was a tonic to the heart and soul.

February 5th – Long exposure experiments I’m not entirely happy with, taken from the A5 bypass flyover at Jerry’s Lane, Packington and the Alan Woollatt bridge over the A38 at Thickbroom.

For some reason these aren’t as sharp as my earlier experiments and I’m not sure why. The wiggle of the road as it winds up Rock Hill was also not as evident as I would have hoped.

I need more practice, and maybe to read a manual or two…

January 21st – An experiment with long-exposure photography was fun with these thirty second exposures. The first was off the footbridge over the Chasetown bypass, and the gentle undulation of the structure clearly affected the image. Better from the crossing of the M6 Toll, which is a much harsher image since their change to LED lighting.

November 6th – I saw the deer on the scrub between Chasewater Dam and the bypass – just the two, what I assume to be mother and child. They were contentedly loafing, and although interested by the human attention, they didn’t seem nervous, at least until a dog appeared.

I’d not seen he dear at close quarters for a while, and on a wet, grey and very cold-seeming afternoon, seeing these graceful creatures cheered me up.

February 7th – The season of sunsets continues, with a lovely hazy one that I chased from Lichfield to Hammerwich. It was a beautiful, ever changing sky, and sadly, it was passed by the time I got to the spot I really wanted to see it from.

But, as it happened, the pictures didn’t turn out to bad.

January 8th – Unexpectedly, Dazzle Ships on the Chasetown bypass. For those unfamiliar with either the concept of dazzle camouflage or the concept album by electronica band OMD, Dazzle Ships were regular ships painted in bright, geometrically random and almost cubist designs in the First and Second World Wars. Through a periscope, surrounded by light glinting off waves, it was a very effective scheme for obfuscating a vessel’s speed, heading and location.

The idea was pioneered by artist Normal Wilkinson. You can read about it here. The Dazzle Ships album is a lost classic, too.

At Chasetown, the camouflage was just shadow and sunlight through a steel bridge, but a fascinating series of contrasts caught just by looking right at the perfect moment.

January 10th – On the way out, I caught a golden sunset over a very choppy Chasewater. It was the sort of metallic, harsh light that’s beautiful and only happens on windy, cold deep winter days. 

On the way back, it was cold, and as I crossed the footbridge over the Chasetown Bypass, I was reminded of how beautiful nightfall was here. The distant, windy sweep of cars beneath my feet; countless lights stretching into the distance; the lights of Sutton Coldfield transmitter on the horizon, a constant, stable, reassuring reminder of the endless continuity of day-to-day life.

A beautiful but cold day to be out.

December 18th – a half day, and chance to nip on an errand to Whittington. The weather was horrid – drizzly, hot and very windy, so I wound my way through the backlanes of Shenstone and Weeford. Heading up Jerrys Lane, i stopped to look east over the A5 bypass to Tamworth. One of the few decent road projects to spin off the M6 Toll, it has cured the traffic issues on the nearby old A5 and A51 beautifully. 

I rode on this just before it opened, but never took any photos. I wished I had – the views from the brow of Rock Hill over Tamworth are extraordinary, particularly at night. But this road is more of a motorway than the M6 Toll, and I wouldn’t dream of cycling it now.