Tag: hot

August 3rd – A tiring, heavy day at work followed by a call in south Birmingham saw me labouring up the Chester Road from Four Oaks station, headed for Burntwood for a family thing.

The sun had gone in for a bit, but the almost oppressive heat has returned. It’s as dry as old bones once more, but it’s different now; last time it was sunny, and baking – this is more of a dark, claustrophobic heat.

I still adore it though. Stood at the edge of a wheat field on the Chester Road under Castle Hill – one of the last few waiting for harvest locally – I looked up to the hamlet of Castle Gate, and over to Lazy Hill and the dramatic sky.

Only in the hottest, driest, sunniest summer for decades could my family have an outdoor get together and manage to get a dull, overcast day for it.

Such is life!

July 11th – I haven’t seen much of Old Sam, the King of kings Hill lately. He had taken to sleeping on the grass in in the gardens around the old folks flats where he lives, but the gardeners came one day with their mowers and blowers and I only saw him a couple of times after that.

I needn’t have worried. He’s found a shadier spot, just out of my normal sight for the really hot days.

I notice someone had given him a bowl of water, and he was concentrating on washing, and despite my calls and invitations for strokes he studiously ignored me and got on with the important business of fur maintenance.

I adore this crotchety old lad.

June 25th – Riding home from Shenstone it seemed like the hottest afternoon ever. Of course it wasn’t, but I was tired, the hay fever was giving me hell and energy was low.

I notice now that the haymaking is ongoing, in great weather for it, a the Footherley Brook looked as gorgeous and changeless as it must have done for decades.

I was quite impressed with the image quality of the cathedral view from Shire Oak: for a camera with limited zoom that’s not a bad image at all.

August 28th – I suppose inevitably, the forest is gearing up for Autumn which does seem to be encroaching a little early this year, with early examples of fungi making an appearance. I was particularly surprised by the red fly agaric – the classic spotted toadstool – which don’t normally appear for at least a month yet. The sulphur tuft (thanks, John!) were particularly pretty.

But the sun streamed through the trees, the bugs buzzed and it was quiet – and on a day when I normally feel that summer is over, I had a great ride.Perhaps it’s not over yet.

May 26th – A lovely, warm shirtsleeve ride to work on a gorgeous morning, with the wayside wild roses fully in bloom and bees busy, even at an early hour.

I know I keep saying this, but this is what I look forward to all year. I know many don’t enjoy the heat and humid conditions can be wearing, but this really is the best kind of day.

September 15th – I had to visit Tipton of a hot, humid and hazy afternoon. The traffic was intense and the atmosphere oppressive and thick, but glancing over the canal bridge near Owen Street, the canal looked beautiful in the soft sunshine, and near a disused arm bridge, two young lads were fishing in a scene that couldn’t have changed much for decades.

The Black Country has a knack of showing its beauty when you least expect.

July 19th – I’ve been largely ambivalent about the odd project to resurface the canal towpath between Walsall Town Wharf and the Bentley Mill Way aqueduct. It’s a decent enough job, I guess, but I don’t feel the surface is that much of an improvement, and the loose gravel and untreated under bridges are problematic. But there is something that’s beautiful.

When the contractors remade the retaining walls to the steps at the Scarborough Road Bridge in Pleck, they planted wildflower seeds down the embankment, and at other spaces on the towpath.

This has resulted in stunning little urban patches of sunshine like this, so wonderful on what was the hottest commute of the year so far.

Thank you to whoever, for the act of beauty and foresight.

March 23rd – The towpath resurfacing between Walsall town centre and Bentley Mill Way continues, as I noted earlier in the week, tarmac is being laid on top of compacted ballast. It’s a nice enough surface, but I’m still bemused by the pointlessness of it all.

Today I passed as they work crew were filling a butty with hot asphalt, ready to spread and roll. The ease with which it tipped from the excavator bucket and the steam that billowed suggested it was very hot indeed – and it made me wonder how it was heated – in the yard or from the place it was produced? I suppose the limestone grit it’s made from has quite a high specific heat capacity, so it must hold heat awhile.

One thing I always love about hot tarmac is the smell. It’s one of the really strong smells I recall for some reason from my childhood, and one sniff of it and I’ back in the schoolyard.

Funny how smells do that to you.

July 26th – Taking it easy with the foot, it’s clearly not going to heal quickly. It was a lovely hot day, however, and I needed to get some shopping done, so I gently pootled into Lichfield in the afternoon.

Riding down Pipe Hill I expected a cooling breeze. It was actually like being blasted by a hot-air hand drier. The day was the hottest I think I’ve known for a while, and the impression the languid, green town had on me was restorative and relaxing.

Lichfield may well be up it’s own arse, but it is beautiful in places.