Tag: Meerash

#365daysofbiking Across the middle-distance

May 20th – I have featured the view over the Watling Street valley between the canal at Chemical Hill, Brownhills and Hammerich many, many times on this journal over the years.

It’s a view dear to me, and the skyline above the rolling slopes of Meerash, punctuated by that elegant church spire and former windmill make for a remarkable view from a former industrial town on the very edge of the Black Country.

I think what makes it special is indeed the in-between: There’s a busy dual carriageway, of course, a well hidden toll motorway too, and a former railway.

But this land also bore the Staffordshire Hoard and I’m sure is still holding on to great secrets.

It’s a fantastic thing to behold.

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July 1st – It was a great sunset, which I caught best from Meerash near Hammerwich. 

The sunsets lately really have been excellent.

I’m also a sucker for radio transmitters and sunsets – I find something really enigmatic about them.

A great end to not the best day, but a good evening outing none the less.

July 8th – At Hammerwich earlier in the ride, a disappointment. Flax had flowered here in characteristic blue a couple of weeks ago, but now it was over and I never managed to catch this stunning crop. But I had been told it was currently redeeming itself by showing a riot of poppies.

Well, it was and it wasn’t.

In fairness, in real life it’s gorgeous and well worth popping to look if you’re passing – but somehow, I just couldn’t capture it with a camera. Whatever I tried, the shots came out dull.

Oh well.

September 11th – Bumper update today as I had a lovely Indian summer ride out to Abbots Bromley, Newborough and Dunstall.

Here at Hanney Hay near Hammerwich, just down from Meerash Farm, a field full of strikingly green proso-millet.

I have no idea if the use is as animal or human feed, or even biofuels, but it’s a handsome, beautifully coloured crop.

Cheers to Tony Jakeman for the identification. I’ve never seen it before.

May 17th – Spring wends onward, despite somewhat indifferent weather. A late afternoon spin rewarded me with beautiful dead nettles and forget-me-nots. As a kid I can remember plucking the white blooms from the dead nettles and sucking the sweet, tasty nectar from the base of the blossom.

These days, I’d be careful to choose nettles from above dog leg height.

Meerash Hill at Hammerwich is a carpet of familiar, fluorescent yellow, and Mrs. Swan sits patiently with no little dignity on the nest at the Watermead in Brownhills, whilst just up the canal bank, Mr. Goose stood guard with paternal pride as his brood explored.

I love this time of year.

September 27th – As I returned along the canal, something remarkable happened. A rainbow formed. In the distance over Hammerwich from the canal, the sky went from blue, to dark, to blue again, and then moved to form the most incredibly vivid rainbow. It lasted about ten minutes, long enough for me to wonder if there really was a pot of gold at Meerash Farm, but then, as quickly as it formed, it dissipated. It left one cyclist transfixed. Remarkably, all this occurred with no rain where I was. Sometimes, you’re just in the right place at the right time, and today, this was the case. I was privileged to see this. Nature, reminding us that it holds all the cards and will perform when she’s ready.

Perhaps autumn isn’t so bad after all.

March 15th – No tyres are completely puncture proof (well, that anyone would want to ride) and today, I flatted. Just on Meerash Hill, near the abandoned farm at Hammerwich, as it happened. My tyres of choice are Schwalbe Marathon Plus and they’re damned fine rubber, with all kinds of protection inside. However, hawthorn spines are the work of the devil (or rather a master of evolution) and very, very tough. This one pushed clean through a 4mm band of rubber, kevlar and anti-thorn braid. Such is life.
Time for a pro-tip. I always carry disposable gloves in the toolkit. Weigh nothing, can be used several times, and stop the bars getting grubby from the oily fingers post-repair. They’re also excellent for picking up sharps inside the tyre; they snag on anything foreign, without hurting your fingers.  A quick patch up and I was on my way in no time.