Tag: Park

September 5th – For the first time in ages, I had to visit Redditch, and passing through a wet, very grey Arrow Valley Park I came across a mystery: two five-foot long, narrow but heavy wooden boxes with hinged lids. Well made, they were just lying on the grass under a ticket. The boxes were sturdily constructed, with an internal lengthways divider and strong hinges.

The boxes were covered in what seemed like cement or masonry marks.

Then I spotted how they got here: a freshly disturbed patch of soil in the grass suggested someone had been drilling or undertaking some similar operation here. The cases would be tool or sleeve holders, their contents used, but forgotten by their owners.

I returned 3 houses later and they’d gone; I’d imagine these are quite costly items, so maybe their owner recovered them.

September 1st – Another evening working late, I managed to pass through Walsall Wood just as the sun was setting behind the pithead sculpture. It’s not a thing I’ve ever been fond of, as many people know, but it does make for an interesting view over the old rail line.

It was a beautiful sky and a lovely evening, but I was far too tired to appreciate it.

July 11th – I finished the working day with a meeting in Lichfield, and before facing an evil headwind on the way home, I took a look around the parks and open spaces of the city, which always look so good in summer.

From the Cathedral looming over the Memorial Gardens and Minster Pool, to the stunning lavender border in Festival Gardens, the gardeners are a credit to the city, they really are.

Take a bow folks, you should be very proud.

April 2nd – A cracking day. My seasonal clock a bit on the krunk, I went again to Shire Oak Nature Reserve to see if there were amorous amphibians getting busy, only to find none, but some spawn remaining. Clearly, I missed frog soup this year; however, some spawn under the overhanging trees that clearly couldn’t be reached by the dining heron I sacred off was, remarkably, hatching.

Yup, tadpoles are hatched.

There’s a running joke amongst my pals that one should be careful to check my hands for tadpoles and other wildlife slimies before shaking hands.

The cycle of life continues in a small corner of the town, largely undisturbed, as it has done for decades here. Poor heron had to go somewhere else for his tapioca meal, though…

March 28th – On my return, I popped through a very boggy Shire Oak Park to see if the frogs were busy mating here yet – sadly no evidence of that (although they may have been and gone, the spawn here tends to get eaten by foxed and corvids pretty quickly) but spring is here with green shoots, bright yellow gorse and a lovely, warming atmosphere.

This really is a gem of a place and so little known. Visit if you can, it’s well worth the time.

March 12th – Ah, the waterbirds of Birmingham are also getting busy. Cormorants, tufted ducks (not goldeneye as I said on Twatter), herons and Canada geese are all regrouping for the spring. Good to see the herons back, I haven’t seen many at all lately, and the prehistoric appearance of the cormorants is always a great thing to see.

February 24th – Darlaston is changing right now. In its parks – Victoria and Kings Hill – spring his here, and the first signs of a green summer are just seeping into the landscape. Daffodils, crocuses, primroses and snowdrops dapple the lawns and beds, and everything seems just a shade more alive.

I actually saw a honeybee today. It’s not yet March.

In the parks though, the peace is uneasy; a susurration of labouring diesel engines, the whine of hydraulics and the rupturing of concrete as nearby, the land the old Servis factory stood on is reclaimed for new housing. So much concrete on site to be pulverised, an army of fascinating machinery is working away at it.

Change is good. Chase is interesting. But the change for the greener lifts me the most.

February 16th – Not neglected at all, and a wonderful place to be right now is Kings Hill Park in Darlaston. Regular readers will know this place needs no introduction or explanation, and at the moment it’s alive with spring flowers – Daffodils both large and miniature, snowdrops, crocuses and primroses. And still, it’s only the middle of February.

If you have time, get up here soon. It’s a joy to the heart, and just the restorative I needed after the awful sight of Corporation Street Cemetery.

February 2nd – Kings Hill Park in Darlaston is a real treat at the moment, for the miniature daffodils, crocuses and finally snowdrops are in flower.

Spring has come already and it’s only the 2nd of February.

In all my days, I’ve never know daffodils and crocuses beat snowdrops into bloom. These past couple of years have seen some crazy seasons.

To see these flowers was a real joy to the heart.