February 10th – I went to Telford. Hard work, a tough ride, but finding my wheels again.
Sadly, they were nearly snatched from under me on the Priorslee cycleway by an unusual hazard – huge cones brought down off the nearby pine tree by the previous day’s storm.
Normally soft and compliant, these were not ripe, but hard and slippery.
Quite an unexpected hazard!
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October 29th – In Telford again, and just by the Priorslee turnoff on the cycleway is a rather fascinating fungi colony growing from an old pine stump on a bank of conifers.
This fungi grows back every year on the same stump, and I’ve never actually found out what is is.
Any ideas, please?
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September 13th – Spotted on the footpath on a Wednesury industrial estate, these giant pine cones. Weighing in I’d guess at half a pound in weight, they’re actually quite sharp and abrasive and I’d not want one to land on my head as it fell from the tree.
Remarkable things, and lots of them; like conkers, at this time of year falling harvests can be the only decent reason to wear a helmet…
June 26th – A brighter day and on the journey to work, a small mystery.
A huge pine cone, eaten by something, probably a squirrel, lying on the canal towpath near Pleck.
It was lying under an apple tree, with no pines or conifers in sight.
Perhaps the grey bushy-tailed fellows commute a long way these days.
This year’s apple crop is looking healthy, though…
November 20th – I passed these pine cones on a roadside path on an industrial estate in Great Bridge. They are the largest I’ve ever seen – almost two inches in diameter and seven to eight inches long, they seem untouched by birds and squirrels. They feel quite heave and dense and wonder if they’re ripe or just premature windfalls from the recent storms.
Fascinating fruits that look almost prehistoric.
February 8th – At The Parade, as it bisects Brownhills Common, I note the thinning of the conifer plantations continues apace. Many of the invasive trees have now been removed, and light once again reaches the ground beneath them. This is essential work to restore the heath, and it seems to be being carried out professionally and with care.
The log piles by the roadside are huge and smell beautiful, it has to be said.
October 24th – The grim weather continues. Every commute is an effort this week – really poor visibility coupled with slippery, greasy roads and a fine, penetrative drizzle that soaks everything. I just want a clear, bright, cold day for a change. It’s also really, really difficult to take photos. The exposure on the camera slows down to sub-handheld speeds, and pictures are washed out and grey, just like the landscape.
Passing the junction of Forge Lane and Walsall Road, this is the old village of Little Aston, before the money moved in. These cottages, behind the venerable scots pine, are very old indeed. Just up forge lane, the original smithy still stands, up until a couple of years ago, still a blacksmith’s sop. Even on a grey day, it’s an attractive place hinting at a more rural past.
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