Tag: IFTTT

#365daysofbiking Urban explorer

September 10th – Up in Pleck, Walsall I spited this brisk, urbane puss who was stalking ratty  in the rubbish on the opposite canal bank by Scarborough Road Bridge. Nervous at first, I thought he was going to run away, but he found his courage and faced me while I caught him on camera.

This large black and white puss may be rooting through the rubbish but he was neat an tidy and very lithe.

Clearly one has to look one’s best, even in the most grim conditions…

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#365daysofbiking Sun worshiper

September 10th – The weather is generally agreeable and warm at the moment, and there’s no finer indicator of than than passing on the way to work local sun worshipper Mr Miyagi (turtle wax on, turtle wax off) as I’ve decided to christen him.

He was sunning himself in his usual spot, head out and enjoying the day.

This feral yellow belly slider is becoming quite the local celebrity.

He’s a handsome chap for sure…

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#365daysofbiking Forbidden fruit

September 9th – In Darlaston, trapped in land I can see but never reach between two factory yards, the most splendid crop of rosy red apples.

They will windfall, and be eaten mostly by the local foxes and birds, every year the same.

I always wonder if they taste nice. I guess I’ll never know.

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#365daysofbiking Iron man

September 8th – Returning to Brownhills, I passed Morris, the Brownhills Miner, standing sentry as he has done for over a decade now.

I love Morris. I think most everyone does. It’s not the history for me so much as the technical achievement of his method of creation and the sheer skill in the metalwork.

A fine piece of art, and a tour de force of engineering for it’s creator, John McKenna.

And also, my beacon of home. This Iron Man is definitely a hometown hero.

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#365daysofbiking The night comes in

September 8th – Time at last for a ride out on a very pleasant, but distinctly autumnal Sunday afternoon. I headed for the Chase and Brocton Field, descending into Sherbrook Valley, then over to Milford for the restorative power of a Wimpy burger and chips.

On a whim, instead of heading back to Rugeley, I chose to return across the Chase up Abraham’s Valley and over the old ranges, and back through Hednesford in the gathering night.

The forest was as splendid as it always is is, and far less lonely than one would expect, with the sounds of deer, owls and other creatures scuttling around, it’s really quite busy.

A lovely ride reminding me that the nights really are closing in fast now.

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#365daysofbiking The night in my veins

September 7th – I headed over to a silent, deserted Chasewater not optimistic that I could get decent results out of the new camera.

However, having been in this position before, I thought I might sort it out and get used to the foibles of the new device.

The G5X is actually great, and I think it was mastered. Apart from the toad shots, where a bike light was used for illumination, all of the images were taken in almost total darkness by a variety of means and mode settings.

I think I’m getting used to it.

Riding back along the canal after being scared senseless by a stag crashing through the scrub at Anglesey Wharf, I nearly squished poor toad, but it obliged as a model before I popped him into the hedgerow for safety.

I love the night, it’s a lot more beautiful than people would tend to think. Nosey, unsubtle deer excepted.

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#365daysofbiking Violet ultra

September 7th – A busy day, so I slipped out late with a good opportunity to try and learn more about the Canon camera’s behaviour in low light.

This meant paying a visit to an old favourite – the brutalist portal that occurs every night in Silver Court, Brownhills when an ATM’s lights tun part of the 1960s parade of shops violet.

This still fascinates me as it’s so, well, dystopian I suppose.

An odd, hometown curiosity.

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#365daysofbiking Duck deluxe

September 6th – It’s easy to overlook the ubiquitous, humble mallard duck, but they are most beautiful birds if one looks closely.

This female spotted at Clayhanger overflow lives perfectly happily on the canal, and is usually seen loafing with others in a loose social grouping.

The plumage is actually really detailed complete with the underwing blue stripe.

I’m convinced that were they not so common, we’d cherish these affable, indolent birds a lot more than we do.

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#365daysofbiking Sick more?

September 5th – Whilst I obsess over galls on oaks and wild roses, other shrubs and trees have their own problems. Here on Clayhanger Common, this sycamore tree is affected by sycamore mites and tar spot fungus.

The curious leaf growths form on the leaf like a gall from the point at which mites feed on the leaf by the same mechanism that other gall insects imply – in the case of these tiny mites, their saliva corrupts the lead cell DNA to grow into a gall.

On the underside of the leaf, a tiny, fur lined aperture into the gall is used by the mite after it has grown to lay its eggs, and the gall is eaten by the hatchling.

This leaf also has tar spot fungus.

Neither harm the host tree to any extent.

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#365daysofbiking Berry well red

September 4th – Also in the bright berry department, this bright red example grows in similar urban situations as the firethorn, but has much more spread, larger berries in smaller clumps more evenly spaced.

I was surprised to find that it’s actually a type of cotoneaster – plant that I’m used to having tiny leaves and berries.

It’s certainly very beautiful and the birds are already clearly digging in…

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