Tag: Stonnall

September 29th – A long morning involving a trip to Telford with a stop off at Tipton on the way. I set out in a damp, windy landscape, but there was clearly a better day on the way and the clearing weather lifted my grim mood.

Passing Grove Hill on the Chester Road at Stonnall, the sky was neatly divided between day and night, clear and cloud, bad weather and good.

And the light, clear, fine day was winning.

September 28th – Although not as dramatic, the following sunrise was also beautiful as I rode through Mill Green. I love the shape and drama of pylons and radio masts at any time, but against a good sky they always look fabulous,

It was a good ride into a challenging wind, which is developing an all too familiar chill at the moment.

The year really is closing in fast now. 

September 27th – It was clear when I left work that there was going to be a good sunset, and it reached it’s peak just as I hit Brownhills. An absolutely stunning sundown, I haven’t seen the like for a good while – the sky appeared to be on fire, with the dying red light reflected on the underside of mackerel clouds.

A great benefit of the shortening of the day is riding home in sunsets like these.

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.

September 20th – It was so beautiful on the way home that I decided to take a spin around Stonnall and Shenstone, just to catch the golden hour.

Although Autumn’s feet are well under the table now, there’s still plenty of green with freshly planted crops in the fields and leaves not yet turning.

But oh, it gets dark so early now…

September 13th – One benefit of the shortening days is the comment colliding with sunrise and sunset. As I left for work early in the morning, the sky was so beautiful I decided to take the long way to work and travelled down through Stonewall and Mill Green just to catch it.

I wasn’t disappointed. 

There are some benefits to the closing summer, after all.

August 5th – An early evening drop into Stonnall to call on a mate on the way home from work took place under some remarkably threatening skies. There were a few spots, but rain didn’t catch me however, and I was reminded near Lynn of the spectacular panoramic beauty that occurs unexpectedly in the local countryside.

Harvest seems to have stalled for the moment, and crops still languish in the fields, adding a welcome golden hue to the landscape. Despite the weather, it really is high summer now.

July 30th – I see the horse chestnut leaf miners are back with a vengeance now. A moth lays eggs, whose larvae burrow through the large leaves, eating them and leaving huge brown scars, which suddenly appear around this time of year. A relatively new problem, it doesn’t seem to hurt the trees, but it causes premature leaf fall, and they look bad. 

Experts are assessing links between this and the canker also affecting many of these stately, arboreal giants.

It’s a great shame, I love these trees and hope this ugly affliction soon passes. I cycled a loop around Shenstone and Stonnall and I don’t think there’s an unaffected tree anywhere in the area.

July 3rd – Ragwort, or stinking willie, is currently abundant in scrubs, verges, towpaths and edge lands throughout the area. It’s a lovely yellow plant that really isn’t appreciated as much as it should be. Although quite poisonous to some creatures (including horses) it’s not a serious danger to humans, and is so beautiful sunny and yellow.

It may be a week, but like dandelions, it’s one of the most beautiful plants of the summer.