Images

February 3rd – On my way home on a perfect, bright winter’s afternoon. Tyseley Station in Birmingham is shabby and down at heel, but I like the fading industrialisation of the suburb, which is still very active and busy. Stood at the end of the platform, I noticed Birmingham’s waste incinerator running at full tilt. Opened nearly two decades ago, it was operated by Birmingham City Council for years, but now seems to be owned by Veolia, who’ve euphemistically branded it an ‘Energy Recovery Facility’. This plant incinerates household and industrial non-recyclable waste, 24 hours a day and generates energy in the process. Not an ideal solution, but better than landfill. 

February 3rd – It was a nice day today. First time I had to travel far for work this year – a meeting in Telford in the morning, and then I had to zip back to Tyseley to see someone mid-afternoon. It was very cold, with a heavy frost. As I dashed to the station at Shenstone, I was running late and couldn’t stop to photograph the gorgeous dawn. I’d already stopped to free up a frozen gear cable… Back from Telford at 1:30pm, I changed trains at Smethwick Galton Bridge. The view of the Birmingham Mainline from here is delightful, and it’s a long way up. I found myself fighting the urge to leave the station and cycle the canals of Brum instead.

February 2nd – I’ve been gradually aware that the Town Wharf area of Walsall – formerly the industrial area around Marsh, Station, Charles and Bridgeman Streets, is gradually being gentrified. This is welcomed by many, but I’m apprehensive. There’s much history – and employment – in these backstreets, and I’m concerned at the loss of both heritage and trading space. Buildings like the former BOAC works may not be beautiful, but they’re architecturally and historically important, and currently empty, they seem to be quivering before the arsonist’s municipal zippo.

This chimney is a case in point – already in the shadow of the steelwork skeleton of yet another block of thrown-up apartments, it surely cannot be long before this major part of the Walsall skyline is itself carried to dust. This is a huge local landmark. There has to be a better way, surely.

January 30th – Darlaston was similarly beautiful again. I love Victoria Park and this partof town – it’s so quiet and peaceful. I love the soft contours of the old railway cutting and the oddly delicate wooden footbridge. The green turf contrasts beautifully with the Victorian, four-square red brick townhouses. Once, steam trains thundered through here, now just walkers, a little local traffic and the odd, awestruck cyclist.

Just a minor point, though. Does anyone else get a slight Teletubby vibe from this landscape?

January 30th – This was the cold, clear, bright day I was hoping for on Sunday. Sadly, I had to go to work. On the whole, I’d rather have been throwing my bike around Cannock Chase, but then, you can’t have everything.

Today, for some reason, I chose not to take my usual route through The Butts and headed down to the Arboretum Junction. As I cycled past, I noticed the sunlight and haze over the Arboretum lake and decided to take a few pictures. Sadly, they all suffered from lens flare, but the view was gorgeous. Good to see the refurbishment coming on so well. The bandstand seems to be wonderfully restored.

January 29th – On the kissing gate at the entrance to the new pond at Clayhanger, I spotted this notice. Thought I’d feature it here, as anyone making such an effort to get the community together in any activity deserves a little support. I wish Garry and Jackie all the best in their venture.

I noticed also that the kissing gate had recently been expertly rebuilt by (I assume) the countryside and estates guys at Walsall Council. I also observed that the common itself was again spotless, and it appears that some coppicing is in progress. People have been working hard on the greenspace locally for a while now – there are refurbished boardwalks over on Brownhills Common and some brush cutting and thinning there, too. 

Thanks, folks, your work is much appreciated.

January 28th – It was a beautiful afternoon with a fantastic golden hour. Pottering around Brownhills, then into Lichfield, it was the longest leisure ride I’d had since visiting the Chase three weeks ago. It seemed very cold, but I guess this is just normal January, I’ve been softened by the unseasonably warm spell. Recovering well, I felt great, and I felt like I had some power in my legs. Cruising down Pipe Hill into Lichfield, I noticed that the only significant cloud in the sky was the plume of steam coming from Rugeley power station. Wonder if many folk noticed it and realised what it was?

January 28th – I’ve not mentioned much about the bike technology on this blog, which is a bit odd, really, because without it, I wouldn’t be able to ride like I do. One of my favourite innovations of the last ten years or so is the road disc brake. This model – the Avid BB7 – is designed to work with road, rather than mountain bike setups and levers. It is cable operated and stops you on a sixpence, wet or dry. There’s no rim wear, no rubbing, and the pads last for ages. Maybe not quite as good as a top-end set of hydraulic discs, but not far off in my opinion. All my bikes have disc brakes, fantastic things.

January 25th – returning late from work, I headed for a change, up through Pleck and over Church Hill. I stopped on the railway bridge on the Wednesbury Road. Although the metal footbridge was shaking well in the wind, I managed to get this pretty decent picture by standing the camera on the top of the guard rail. I love railway views at night. Luckily the wind was behind me, and I was soon home.