Tag: rain

December 10th – In a bizarre twist of events, in an already hectic, busy day, I had to go to Leicester to collect something from a shop. This pre-christmas errand wouldn’t have been so bad, but I had to pop in to Aldridge on the way, and the weather was awful.

It started to rain before I set out – steady, but light. When I got to Aldridge, the errand I was on there proved to be pointless, so frustrated, I headed for Blake Street to get a train to Birmingham. The train, unusual even for a pre Christmas one, was heaving. I’d tangled with the crowds going to an Aston Villa home game.

Dishevelled and irritated, I hopped on a warm, peaceful train to Leicester, and as I found my way to the mall where the shop in question is, the rain was very nearly stopped. I locked the bike up, and completed my task.

Re-emerging from the electric glare of the Mall it was pouring with rain. I returned through a beautifully glistening city, alive with interesting bikes, shops, lights and a rather wonderful but slightly wonky Christmas tree. I was wet, but Leicester was gorgeous. I love that place, I really do.

Returning from Blake Street was a trial. There was local flooding. The Chester Road and Brownhills High Street were awash with standing water the traffic wasn’t handling well.

But I’d completed what I needed to. I felt better. Mission accomplished.

November 21st – I’ve not known a day’s weather so consistently, unrelentingly bad for a long, long time. It rained continuously from before I awoke, through my 7am commute, right up until around 6pm.

Riding to work was a battle. Despite waterproofs, a ride rendered 50 minutes rather than the usual 35-40 left me wet in places. I was miserable, cold and grumpy.

In Darlaston at teatime, the rain slowed, so I made a bolt for it. Mostly, the rain held back during my journey home, on flooded, waterlogged roads through a glistening, dripping, wet and cold town. 

Drivers were behaving in that terrifyingly single minded, selfish way they always do in bad weather; either travelling at ridiculously inappropriate speeds, or crawling. The spray was penetrating.

Thankfully, by the time I reached the Coppice Road junction on the Brownhills/Walsall Wood border, there was little traffic around.

I don’t think I’ve ever been so glad to get home, have a shower, and a mug of tea. I so hope tomorrow is better.

November 20th – A dreadfully great and damp afternoon saw me head out with a heavy heart – but hitting the fresh air, I took a spin over Brownhills Common for the first time in ages. it’s looking good, despite the autumnal decay; the heathland restoration here has clearly been beneficial, and it’s lovely to see so many self-seeded deciduous trees like oaks and sycamores growing well.

On to Chasewater, a circuit around the lake was wet but rewarding; the huge number of birds on the lake were mesmerising and the gull roost was massive. Fly Creek is flowing well with the recent rains and the area of the boardwalk crossing is as enchanting as ever.

As dusk fell, heading back to Brownhills, the blue light caught the canal at Catshill, and for a moment at least, was magical.

Sometimes, you set out for a ride in miserable weather and it turns out to be better than you’d ever imagine.

November 16th – Not sure what this large fungus actually is, but it was handsome and glistening with collected dew and rainwater as I passed through Victoria Park in Darlaston in the early morning.

To my sadness, the fungi haven’t been terribly prolific this year – some did explode into life late, like the fly agaric, but this year I’ve hardly seen any puffballs, very few shaggy ink caps and the brackets seem well down too.

I do hope the unusually dry autumn hasn’t scuppered chances of seeing rosy earthstars at Clayhanger again… 

November 10th – It was a very long, tiring day; I was in work early, and in the afternoon, made a couple of errands by bike in the Black Country and Wolverhampton. Whilst there, I was called back to work take on a very urgent job, so I hopped on the train to Coseley. Sadly, as I boarded the train, it started to rain, and it caught me in a downpour from Coseley to Darlaston.

I found myself starting work again at 5pm, soaking wet and cold. I finally got home around 10.

I love my job but sometimes it’s unrequited.

October 20th – Heading home along the canal through Pleck, another of those rare treats: a rainbow.

It hadn’t rained here that I was aware of and I guess someone in east Walsall was getting an unexpected shower.

Hadn’t seen any for ages, and this is the third this month. You can’t beat a good rainbow.

October 1st – Autumn landed with a bump. A saturated, wet day, and a short break in the rain saw me head to Lichfield on an urgent errand – and I got caught by the rain on my way back.

The landscape was wet. I was wet. The skies looked threatening. But Stowe Pool and that view remained captivating.

I was back to where I am every winter – I don’t necessarily want to go out, but I have to. It’s an imperative, get fresh air, exercise, and engage with the outside world – for the good of my health: mental and physical.

Some things make even the most horrible trip out worthwhile.

September 25th – A windy, wolfish day with lots of sun and a few showers. Riding wasn’t so great – I was still short of energy, but on the other hand it was beautiful to see the rainbow form over Hammerwich just after the rain passed through.

It’s been ages since I saw one this vivid.

September 21st – I’d had to nip to Birmingham late, and came back to Shenstone. There had been heavy weather about, but I’d managed to evade it al day.

When it caught me in the lanes on the way home, it wasn’t messing about. I was like a drowned rat.

Still, like summer rain tends to be, once I was wet through, it was quite enjoyable and not cold. And it hasn’t rained much of late, after all.

Lets hope it’s just a blip.