Tag: windmill

August 8th – From Seven Springs I headed down onto the canal at Weetmans Bridge near Little Haywood, as far as Breretonhill, then back through Upper Longdon and Stoneywell. The canal was glorious on a golden evening, and I drifted lazily past narrowboats, clumps of Himalayan balsam and waterside gardens that were enchanting. At Longdon, I see the refurbishment of the windmill continues well, after seemingly being stalked for ages.
As I came through Stoneywell the dying sun caught the have step fields and rendered them precious.

May 31st – A wolf of a day again – a heavy wind and wet morning, but bright sunshine in the afternoon made for a short ride and some familiar views to test the Nikon. The zoom is a lot more tricky to get right than the older camera, but it gives way better results, I have to say. Those shots of the Cathedral from Shire Oak and Hammerwich from Newtown are remarkable sharp for the range. 

On the whole, the camera seems excellent, and most of my grumbles are with a particularly fiddly user interface, not inconsiderable weight and peculiar autofocus lag.

Oh, and terrible, terrible documentation. But on the other hand, wow!

January 10th – Over to Burntwood to get some shopping in, I went via the canal and Chasewater. Just at Home Farm, where Brawn’s Wood used to be, I noted a new gap in the hedgerow, stomped down. It didn’t look man-made, and there’s no beneficial human shortcut I can see here; but earlier in the week I noted deer footprints coming off Clayhanger Common near Catshill Junction Bridge and I thing they’re probably coming this way now and on to the fields at Springhill and Sandhills.

Further on, on this clear, hard and windy day, Hammerwich and beyond to Lichfield Cathedral were very visible and made interesting zoom photos. 

How I adore that view, and this stretch of canal.

December 20th – I came back up through Longdon and Farewell as I always do. It was a chilly day with a crisp wind but the sun was lovely, and the views over the village of Upper Longdon were gorgeous. Good to see the renovation of the old Windmill coming on now, too.

Nearby at Red Hill, the houses clinging to the hill are still beautiful, but stopping to photograph them I noticed I had an audience – one large, disapproving cat and a pair of prize pigs. 

A great ride. Really enjoyable.

April 19th – I was fiddling with a mechanical fault all day. I love my bikes, but the gears can be perplexing when not quite right. I spun out late to Chasewater, and unexpectedly bumped into a good friend while I was there, which brightened me up no end. On the way, I noticed the oilseed rape at Hammerwich was looking gorgeous. Still not quite peaked, it’s a lovely colour nonetheless, and I love how the tractor trails in the crop highlight the landscape contours.

As long as I live I’ll always love this changing, fascinating landscape.

January 13th – Hammerwich – whether viewed from the canal in Brownhills, or from within the village itself, is always iconic and beautiful, even during a headache-grey, freezing winter nightfall. Bitterly cold, I passed the still-derelict Meerash Farm, which I thought would be by now thriving again. In spring, someone bought this place, erected a fence, and proud new gates, and lived in a caravan by the decaying old threshing machine. Now, the caravan is gone, and those new gates haven’t been opened in a while. A great shame, the farm commands a great view.

In Hammerwich itself, the converted windmill and foursquare church are staples of the skyline, behind them the red lights of Lichfield and Sutton TV masts lurked in the grey mist. 

At the far end of the village, by the pool, the fingerpost for Brownhills was caught in the downlight from a streetlamp. I love this place so much. but it was dark, and cold, and the snow was smelling closer.

Winter, at last.

February 20th – Wednesbury has a life-size, fake windmill, and not many people know about it. I have no information on the edifice, or its origins, other that in sits in a garden near the top of Church Hill in the centre of town, is only about a decade old and exists as a kind of modern folly as far as I can tell. I investigated it today – I spotted it a good few years ago, but I had to go to Great Bridge today and had time to spare, so thought I’d go hunting. More on the main blog in the next few days.

You can’t actually get close to it – it’s in the garden of a remarkably ornate, somewhat architecturally eccentric house, and is only really visible in winter when there are no leaves on the trees. I’m told the owners don’t welcome enquiries, and the property is shut behind very tall, secure gates. Anybody have any more information? 

December 18th – A sharp, cold evening and rather dramatic sunset. Not having long, I headed out to Hammerwich to check out the views. Climbing up Meerash Hill, the ice was thick on the road, and the going on the ungritted country lanes of South Staffordshire was very treacherous. The tricky conditions were worth it, though, and rewarded me with some great pictures of the sun setting over Brownhills, and Hammerwich Church and it’s former windmill. A delightful place.