March 6th – The sun was shining, the day was almost warm, and at lunchtime, Kings Hill Park in Darlaston was the perfect place to chill out.
Spring flowers like crocuses and daffodils bobbed and waved in the breeze, and there was much bee buzz and birdsong… All to the accompaniment of an industrial Black Country town going about it’s Friday business.
A veritable riot, but a quiet one.
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February 7th – A test journey to work was tough, but so worth it: A stop for a break and a snack in Kings Hill Park rewarded me with gorgeous spring flowers.
It felt today, in that moment, that they’d made the extra special effort because they knew I was coming, that their admirer and champion was back.
Happily, the sun came too, and warmed my face.
Some things you just wish you could bottle for the darker days.
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October 28th – The descent into winter seems quite fast now: Heading off to get the train to Brum and onward to Telford on an early morning with frost on the ground and ice on the roads – and I’ve not got the winter tyres on yet, as the bike reminded me in an unguarded moment.
Stability restored, the sunlight streamed through the trees of Mill Green and despite the chill, rendered the day precious.
As welcomes to winter go, that wasn’t so bad.
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October 8th – Returning from Birmingham, caught suddenly in a shower on the platform at New Street Station, I was fascinated by the darkening of the sky, then the light catching the buildings as the end was in sight.
In all the mad, frenetic urban landscape, I love the power it still maintains to capture the light beautifully.
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September 25th – A better day after all the rain. On a soft morning with light, hazy sun and the smell of the canal and wet earth, the grim trials and disappointments of the previous weekend seemed a million miles away.
It was still warm, and I have to keep reminding myself that we’re only a whisker from October, and The Suck, the season until Christmas of night-time commutes where the conditions and driving are a nightmare.
Autumn is certainly on my shoulders but today, with my sleeves rolled up and the waterfowl chattering, I could kid myself I had a few more weeks yet…
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September 18th -The unusually fine, warm autumn weather meant probably the last public appearance for Mr. Miyagi, the local feral yellowfins belly slider turtle who lives in the canal near Clayhanger.
He was sunbathing happily in his normal spot with admires passing by gently as not to scare him.
For a discarded pet, he certainly has many fans. He’ll soon retire to the deep mud where the cold doesn’t get, before re-emerging in spring.
An unusual local celebrity.
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August 26th – I normally hate August Bank Holiday Monday – it’s seems to be the end of summer (although it usually isn’t). If it’s grim it’s the most depressing day, and when bright it can be hard to think of a summer passed.
However, today was fabulous. I slipped out in the morning heading for old hands – the countryside of the A515 corridor to Sudbury, the lovely villages between there, Ashbourne and Utoxetter and the Weaver hills, before returning via the Churnet Valley and Blithfield.
I was fast and the riding was good. I caught Sbnelston, the perfect little village in the Dove valley with it’s gorgeous, tree shrouded church; I sat at the top of the Weabvers, unusually with the company of picnickers. I saw the Moorlands edge village of Cotton shrouded in heat mist.
A cracking day that was just what I needed. A most excellent Bank Holiday.
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August 25th – The second day of remarkably good weather and so I headed to what’s become an annual fixture for me: The Alvecote Marine Heritage Gathering at Tamworth, where historic narrowboats rally for the three day weekend.
It’s hard to think of a better way to spend a sunny Sunday afternoon than admiring lovingly cared for ex-working craft and listening to their owners shoot the breeze.
It’s a great people watching event, with plenty of boater dogs too to entertain and delight.
A perfect afternoon.
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August 3rd – I got to Chasewater late on a generally overcast afternoon, and was surprised to find the light there magical.
I watched, as Joni Mitchell put it, the water-skiers glide and was captivated by the sunbeams through the break in the cloud.
Even the dullest days can provide moments of breathtaking beauty.
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July 29th -An old boss used to get really annoyed with me if I came in after a wet weekend moaning that the following Monday morning weather was sunny, because I was stuck at work.
He’d point out I’d be even more miserable had the commute been wet and cold.
He was right.
I noted that the robins pincushion galls I’d found a couple of weeks ago had expanded in number to three, and that they were growing well, showing lovely colours in the strong morning sun.
I felt sad I was indoors for most of the day. But old John was right, it was a whole bunch better than had today been like Sunday.
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BrownhillsBob's #365daysofbiking 