October 1st – Autumn is certainly coming to Catshill Junction and Clayhanger Coomon, as the deciduous scrub here turns golden. On this drizzly October evening, despite the murk, it looked beautiful.
I note the building taking place on the former Bayley House site is coming on well, but the sculpture on the far side of the water is being rapidly claimed by the scrub.
I do hope it doesn’t get forgotten there.
June 7th – Bad news, I’m afraid, but not totally unexpected.
I dived out in the rain, got something to eat, and as I left, the sun came out. As the landscape gently steamed, I headed to Chasewater along the canal. I saw the swan family, who had numbered 8 cygnets with mum and dad, were now down to 7. The lost one could have been predated by a fox, stoat or mink, or could have died of illness or other cause.
One of the reasons swans have large broods is due to the loss that’s somewhat inevitable. It’s very sad, but an unfortunate fact of nature.
The remaining family seemed happy and well enough.
Don’t be too alarmed, but it is sobering and a reminder that nature is red in tooth and claw.
June 3rd – I headed back to Brownhills along the canal, avoiding the rain-maddened traffic. Rounding Catshill Junction, I noticed that the sculpture here ‘Cycle of Life’ by Ron Thompson & Julie Edwards, is again being consumed by the scrub. This sculpture – of which I’m not a fan, to be honest – was unveiled in 2005 as part of the canal refurbishment; the position of the artwork is so far from the towpaths that the detail of it can barely be appreciated, and it’s always felt a bit of an afterthought to me.
Now, there’s a new development of flats and houses being constructed on the other side of the fence and the sculpture is more isolated than ever. I do hope the plans for the newbuild have taken this into account.
Ideally, it would be nice it the piece could be moved to somewhere nearby where the public can actually see the detail in the metalwork. A bit of a missed opportunity, really.
December 28th – Cannock Chase was great, but winter came in today; it was sunny, clear and cold. I really felt the winter in my bones. But plenty of folk were out enjoying it and it was beautiful, as only the Chase in winter can be.
The golden hour was enchanting, and caught the pines near Sow Street beautifully, as it did the heath at Rifle Range Corner. On the way back on the canal, the sunset was beautiful, and the evening light even made the canal at Armitage look a picture of tranquility.
By the way, if you’ve lost a cuddly stuffed toy horse and/or a pair of specs, they’re sat on a post at the back of Seven Springs car park. It’s unclear whether they’re normally together, or just met in their loss…
Weather gods, more of this please.
December 22nd – It was a day of silly observations, really. I have no idea whatsoever why anyone would need to point out with some permanence where the roof to their stable was. But they did. Odd.
A couple of hours later, I spotted this stray, lost pumpkin, beside the London Road in Canwell. Unharmed but clearly aged, I have no idea how it got here; there are no shops or even houses nearby. What’s even more troubling is it isn’t the first such vagrant gourd I’ve featured on the blog, there was the one I found in Acocks Green…
Some days are just bloody weird.
October 8th – I noted today as I passed that the Wheel Inn is still derelict, and slowly rotting away. I had thought the former pub – or at least, the land it stands on – may be in for a renaissance a year or so ago, when the new gates went up beside it, and some attempt was made to clear the yard. Sadly, this has not been the case, and the building remains forlorn, unloved and an eyesore.
I wish whoever owns this once fine boozer would take responsibility and either demolish or renovate it. It stands on Lindon Road, a grim welcome to Brownhills for any arriving traveller. I wish the owners could be forced to clean it up.
August 15th – If you’ve lost a lion, he’s just behind the wall that separates The Sidings from the A460 Rugeley Road at Hednesford. He didn’t seem aggressive, but I kept my distance, just in case.
July 5th – I keep passing this graffiti on the canal side at Wolverhampton. I don’t know what they were thinking, or why. For some reason, it always makes me smile.
April 5th – Oh man, Friday was grim. It had not been a great week, and this day just crowned it. Coming home weary of the wind, exhausted from work and flat from life’s battle, I took solace in leaving Shenstone with the wind behind me. It was getting warmer, and there was just a hint of spring in the air. Pouring myself liquid down the backlanes, I passed Keeper’s Cottage, at Footherley. Gently collapsing into it’s own space, the barn will soon be gone, and I suspect the house will follow. Vadalised, unloved and decaying, this house has been empty for as long as I remember.
It shouldn’t be so. This would make a fine, welcoming family home. It’s a crime to let it just slip away.
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