After my last few days travels today’s very much been a lazy Sunday. I’ve travelled nowhere – unless you count a trip up the hill to the local pub! Dawn’s been full on at work so has really kicked back whilst I’ve got stuck into home projects. After the miserable weather I’d experienced in the Chilterns I was relieved to enjoy a sunny Sunday in the Pennines which encouraged me to get out in the garden and deal with some of the unwanted stuff that’s sprung up. We have a row of Sycamore trees on the opposite side of the road to us and this year their offspring have been as invasive as an invading army. I’ve never known a year like it in the 13 years I’ve been here but I’m assuming conditions must have been perfect for them this winter. De-weeding done I spent more time splitting up a yellow Iris I rescued from canal dredging many years ago. I planted some in our front garden but it’s extended its underground tentacles so far I’ve had no option but to sever them and chop it back. They won’t be wasted. I’ve potted some, other bits have gone to grateful neighbours. All I have to do is work out what I’ll plant in the space.
Right, enough from me tonight. There’s plenty to read and see in my past few blogs. Right now – as It’s Sunday – I’m going to have a night off after leaving you with the picture of the day which is something chosen at random from my Zenfolio website. I put in flora into search and came up with this. I spotted these Ceanothus flowers on one of my local walks during the early days of the Covid lockdown. What a weird time that feels now.
I’ve a small favour to ask… If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/
Hooray! The rain’s stopped here in the Chilterns. Instead (according to the forecast) we’re in for a day full of dull cloud and no sunshine. Looking out of the skylight in my room in the pub we stayed in last night that certainly seems to be the case. Even so, there’s plenty of HS2 sites to see in the area and as we travel Northwards so I’ll post a few pictures through the day as we visit places. But first, it’s time for breakfast then to find somewhere to charge up Penny’s electric car. Charging EVs is a logistical exercise in itself and adds a whole new dimension to travel planning.
As well as HS2 construction sites one thing we’ll be looking at is the ecological work and mitigation planting. If you believed the scaremongering nonsense the opponents of HS2 put out tree planting either doesn’t happen or the ones planted are all dead. Nothing could be further from the truth. Here’s a (large) site on the South edge of the West Hyde construction site that we visited yesterday. Do these look imaginary or dead to you?
I’ve many more close-up shots of the impressive growth of this recently planted (2017) wood that I’ll add to my Zenfolio gallery on HS2 construction.
11:10.
Well, we’re not doing much exploring righ now but I am learning a lot about the pros and cons of electric cars! We’re currently in the car park at Morrisons in Aylesbury, waiting for the car to charge. There was no charging point at the pub, so we couldn’t charge the car overnight so we only had 30 miles left on the battery. Not enough to get anywhere. The nearest chargers were in Aylesbury. Then it’s a question of finding a fast (50kw) charger and pray no-one else is using it. So, you spend a lot of time faffing around because the last thing you want to do is run out of juice in the middle of nowhere. You can’t exactly walk with a Jerry can to the nearest garage for a bucket of electricity! Penny’s car is currently charging at 1 mile oer minute. There’s another complication. This charger has 3 charger cables. Only two are compatible with the car and one of them (the fastest) is knackered. It’s a common problem apparently. So, if you don’t want to suffer ‘power anxiety’ – buy a hybrid. This car (a Renault Zoe) has a real maximum range of +/- 200 miles so 100 miles range out and back before you need to think about finding a charging station. Oh, and that’s without driving too fast or using stuff like heaters etc..
Time to sit and compose a few emails and blog whilst watching the miles build up.
19:30.
Another day that didn’t quite go to plan but was still an excellent one anyway. Well, until I ended up on a train full of pissed-up Stoke City fans on their way back from Coventry (but more of that later).
Having charged up the car enough to do what we wanted to do (with a margin of error) we headed back to the infamous Jones’ Hill wood, scene of some of the most dishonest anti HS2 protests. I’ve blogged before about the lie that the wood had anything to do with Roald Dahl. This area (between Wendover and Great Missenden) is ‘nimby central’, not that any of their scaremongering achieved anything but it’s very interesting to compare the reality with the hype.
Whilst a Western edge of Jones’ Hill woods has been sliced off to make way for HS2 there’s a huge amount of new tree planting to the East which is doing really well. This will link the isolated Jones’ Hill with nearby woods to create a much larger wildlife habitat.
One of two ponds on the new mitigation planting site at Jones’ Hill woods with the wood in the background and new planting in the foreground. Behind me is another wood which the planting will link to Jones’ Hill. The HS2 trace is below Jones’ hill to the left .The Southern edge of Jones’ hill wood. Part of the wood had to be taken to build HS2. This picture was taken from the middle of the haul road. A footpath crosses the road and security staff let you across when it’s safe to do so. Looking North from Bowood Lane along the route of HS2 towards Wendover. So much for the ‘outstanding natural beauty’ of the Chilterns! To the left is the noisy A413 whilst the row of ugly pylons stretches the length of the valley. In contrast, when HS2’s completed most of it will be hidden from view.
Ironically, the ‘eco-warriors’ who were supposedly ‘protecting’ Jones’ hill woods have left their abandoned camp cluttering the woods.
Moving on from Jones’ Hill we headed back to Wendover to look at HS2 construction work nearby. Quite how HS2 was meant to cause so much disturbance to the village when it’ll pass in a green tunnel with the incredibly noisy A413 and Chiltern railway in-between has always been one of life’s mysteries. At the moment work isn’t as advanced as on other parts of the route so it’s hard to make out the trace of HS2, although this will change over the course of 2023. Funny, the local Nimbys have never complained about the unsightly line of high-voltage pylons that parallel the HS2 route in these parts!
Odd how those who tell us the Chilterns AONB is pristine and stunning fail to mention this row of plyons that dominate the valley between Gt Missenden and Wendover – or mention the persistent traffic noise from the A413! Here’s the view from above Wendover (off to the left) looking South towards Great Missenden. The trace of HS2 is starting to take shape. It will pass between the two nearest pylons, having crossed over the A413 and Chiltern railway at the bottom of the valley here.
Another place we visited was the small Wendover memorial wood for people who passed away at a local hospice. You may remember HS2 antis and media opportunists exploited this place in a disgraceful attempt to smear HS2 for desecrating a “childrens memorial” when it was nothing of the sort.
To be honest, it’s a sad, neglected place that looks pretty much abandoned. The memorial trees are too densely planted and look awful as no-one ever looked after them once they were planted, which is why many have their protective sheath still wrapped around them long after they matured. The place is unkempt, overgrown and covered with litter and other detritus. There’s little sign of the work HS2 carried out there, other than what likes a narrow path through some of the trees. The place doesn’t look like many people visit.
Moving on we bypassed Aylesbury and headed towards Quainton, stopping en-route to admire another mitigation site where (on first glance) tree- planting appeared to be less successful than other sites. On closer examination this proved to be untrue as many trees had been replanted, they simply hadn’t stuck their heads above their protective tubes yet! The trace of HS2 was very evident at this point.
North of Quainton we crossed the former route of the Great Central railway which (until recently) carried waste trains and HS2 construction trains as far as Calvert. Now the sites been transformed into a construction site as the old road bridge is being replaced and the road diverted (pics later).
The view from Whitehills bridge looking towards Quainton. The Calvert binliners and HS2 materials trains used this part of the old Great Central until recently. In the foreground excavations have begun for the piles for the replacement for the bridge I’m standing on. Whitehills bridge looking North towards Calvert.
Our final visit was to Calvert itself. The place has changed a lot since my last visit with the E-W rail line embankments taking shape either side of the HS2 overbridge. Several other E-W bridges are being replaced as part of the same contract whilst roads are being diverted and the site of the HS2 Infrastructure Maintenance Depot (IMD) is being laid out. Whilst we were here we were blessed with some lovely low sunlight whic made a real change from the dull day we’d had up to that point.
The site of the old Calvert station looking South. HS2 tracks will occupy this site in a few years time. Looking North from the same bridge. This site was a major railhead for bringing HS2 construction material in by rail. The new E-W rail overbridge at Calvert under very moody skies.The site of the Calvert HS2 Infrastructure Maintenance depot is beginning to be laid out. To the right is the route of E-W rail whilst the new bridge in the background is the remodelled Addison Rd.
Both of us would’ve loved to have lingered longer but when I checked train times back home we realised we’d need to make a dash for Banbury in time for me to make a sensible connection. This got a bit fraught when we got into Banbury as their was traffic chaos because the police had the main road towards the station blocked off. Instead Penny drove back to Leamington where I made my train by the skin of my teeth – but only because it was running five minutes late.
I was breathing a sigh of relief and considering staying on this Cross-County service all the way to Manchester until we pulled into Coventry where my coach was invaded by Stoke City fans. Their behaviour was appalling. They kept up a stream of foul-mouthed, misogynistic and borderline racist chants all the way to New St, at which point I’d had enough of too much testosterone and too few brain cells (as had many others in the coach). I baled and caught my original connection, the 19:03 Cross-Country service direct to Leeds. This is much quieter and far more pleasant – and neither sight nor sound of a football bore.
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Another silly o’ clock start. I’ve been up for an hour getting ready to head South to meet up with my ‘partner in crime’ for a couple of days exploring HS2 railway construction and mitigation sites, but first I’ve got to get to Banbury. The weather’s looking bleak. The rain’s already started here in the Calder Valley so Dawn’s being a star and giving me a lift to the station so that I don’t get a soaking from the off! I’ll be blogging throughout the day, so feel free to keep popping back to see what I get up to…
07:30.
Thanks to Dee I arrived at Halifax station dry and in plenty of time. Having bid Dawn au revoir I caught the 07:14 Halifax-Hull, an earlier train than planned which gives me an extra 6 minutes in the bank. As it’s starting from Halifax it’s also far less crowded, despite being worked by a 2-car Class 158 today. No doubt that situation will change once we’ve reached Bradford and beyond.
Even so, I’ve bagged a table seat, plugged my phone into the USB socket to keep it charged and begun to catch up with the waking world.
Almost as soon as we left the cheerful Guard conducted a ticket check. With the train being quiet we swapped cheeky banter as I asked when the trolley service came round!
07:40.
As I predicted, the train filled up at Bradford Interchange. My bay and the opposite table are now full. There’s a young businessman of Indian extraction sat opposite whilst the rest of the seats have been taken by a mother and daughters – also of Asian extraction but further South and East. I haven’t heard them speak so I can’t tell where they hail from originally.
Now we’re heading towards Leeds on a miserable day weather-wise. The sky’s a monotone grey, producing the light drizzle that soon has you soaked as it has the ability to permeate almost any clothing.
08:25.
My time at Leeds was brief, just 15 minutes. I hardly had time to get the camera out but then there wasn’t much of interest to photograph on such a grey day. Making my way to platform 15 I waited for Cross-Country’s 08:11 to Bristol Temple Meads which arrived spot on time. Consisting of two four-car Class 220s the service was reasonably busy. The was plenty of custom for it at Leeds, although several were only going as far as our next stop at Wakefield Westgate where we exchanged them for more long-distance travellers. The cross-country network is all things to all people. Some use it for short hops as the timings are convenient whilst others appreciate its reach and use it for far longer journeys – students and senior travellers especially.
Cross-country may not be the biggest operator but it’s certainly the most far-reaching. Although the network’s been cut back from its height its tendrils radiate from Birmingham afar as Penzance and Aberdeen. What a shame the dept of transport have no idea what to do with it other than cut its train-fleet by forcibly retiring their high-speed train fleet with no plan for replacement. Their capacity is desperately needed in the summer, especially now passenger numbers have bounced back and the state of the economy’s forcing more people to holiday in the UK.
11:00.
My trip to Birmingham was uneventful, although it gave great views of the HS2 construction sites at Washwood Heath and Curzon St, where the pillars for the elevated station deck are springing up like mushrooms. I filmed this as we passed.
Building HS2’s Curzon St station.
Birmingham’s wet. Very wet, so I was glad to seek shelter on Chiltern Railways 10:55 from Moor St which will carry me to my rondezvous in Banbury.
In a sign of the times I popped into a shop in New St which sells baguettes. It was always a busy place. For years the filled baguettes cost 99p and made a cheap and tasty meal. Then, post Covid they increased to £1.20. Today they’re £2.20. It may have been the time of day but the shelves were full but the shop empty. I was the only customer.
20:15
Apologies for the gap in blogging but we’ve been busy. I’m about to get something to eat then I’ll come back and fill in the gaps. In the meantime, here’s a few pictures to tease..
We were here at the Chiltern tunnels South portal where one of the ‘porous portals’ is being constructed now the area is cleared and the TBMs are over half way to the North portal. This one is over the London-bound track. Progress on the Colne Valley viaduct is impressive. It’s really come on since my last visit. Here’s a view of the launching girder ‘Dominique’ seen from the Denham waterski club site. One of the thousands of precast bridge segments that have been made on site at West Hyde is moved along the completed bridge to the launching girder ‘Dominique’ where it will be lifted and then turned before being dropped into position. The segments are made on site then moved from the factory along an internal haul road and onto the viaduct.
23:25.
Right, time for bed. It’s been a busy day although the latter part was foiled by the weather when the skies opened and stayed open, making photography next to impossible. Even so, we reconnoitered a few more HS2 construction sites which will allow us to pop back tomorrow when the weather’s improved before moving on to look at others.
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Wow – the penultimate day of the month already – and spring is here. Well, I’m not too sure about that last bit as the temperature here in the Calder Valley has been up and down like a brides nightie! Plus, it’s been wet – very wet. But, the garden’s bursting into life which means the seasons really must’ve changed. Having been abroad for much of winter I get confused!
Today’s been one spent at home sorting out the logistics of the next few days. That wasn’t easy as arrangements kept changing although that was no fault of mine or my fellow explorer, Penny McGregor, whom I’ll be meeting up with in Banbury tomorrow to begin our formal visit to the largest HS2 construction site at West Hyde (where the Chiltern tunnels and the Colne Valley viaduct are built from) before free-styling it for the next couple of days. Unfortunately the weather’s not looking brilliant tomorrow which may cramp my style photographically but I’m sure I’ll manage somehow.
Apart from logistics I kept occupied with paperwork and pictures as I’ve still a backlog of images to sort out from the Community Rail Conference at the beginning of the week. The images are tweaked enough that I should be able to finish them off whilst I’m travelling tomorrow – although expect a rolling blog about the trip at the same time. I’ll be travelling Halifax- Leeds-Birmingham (change stations) – Banbury which could be interesting on a Friday…
Now it’s time to call it a day. I popped out to do some shopping and get some exercise earlier and now Dawn’s being a star and preparing the side of Salmon and assorted salad veg I returned with so we can eat heartily and have an evening together before I go away for the night tomorrow.
So, what’s the picture of the day? Good question! I’ll be visiting various HS2 construction and mitigation sites, so here’s how West Hyde looked 2021 before the 2nd TBM was launched just for comparison.
On the 13th July 2021 ‘Cecilia’ was just beginning her journey boring the 2nd of the 10 mile long Chiltern tunnels. She’s now way past the half-way mark. In the background are the factories making the tunnel segments and the sections for the Colne Valley Viaduct. I’ll be here again tomorrow to see this and much more…
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As expected today’s been a less frenetic one than of late. Much of my time’s been spent editing and captioning the haul of pictures I’ve captured over the past couple of days. They’ve been spread over several galleries which means you can find Travel images here, Nottingham trams here, East Midlands Railway pictures here and Cross-Country trains here.
In-between getting boggle-eyed staring at a computer screen I’ve managed to get out and enjoy the mild weather that’s snuck up on the Calder valley and get out for a walk or two around the local woods. Having spent two months in Asia which was mostly on the flat my legs are starting to regain their hill-walking muscle memory. I sometimes forget the fact we live on the side of a valley as the highest thing I climbed in Asia was flights of stairs!
In-between working and walking I have been keeping one eye on the news – depressing as it is. It was sad to hear of the death of Paul O’ Grady as he was such an entertaining character and also one of the good guys whom we can’t afford to lose in what’s increasingly becoming a sea of celebrity mediocrity. Mind you, the word celebrity has become devalued. Now all you have to do to be a ‘celebrity’ is appear on some awful ‘reality’ TV show to gain that appellation. The days of the Hollywood greats this isn’t. But Paul was a genuine character, celebrity and campaigner who put his fame to work for the betterment of many groups of people – and animals.
Despite the fact the news can often be depressing and social media even more so, there comes those moments when it all comes good due to some people’s irrepressible urge to take the pee out of the nuts – especially American gun nuts after the latest in a long line of tragic mass-shootings and slaughter of more innocents at the hands of deranged people with automatic weapons. So tonight’s picture of the day is actually a picture of a tweet on Twitter. It’s a social media platform that’s gone downhill since it was bought by billionaire Elon Musk, a man with less than liberal views who’s not been without controversy over said attitudes, his relationships with the opposite sex or his welcoming back to Twitter of formerly banned right-wingers and hate-mongers. But tonight the British have responded with their usual flair and brought the world’s attention to this person and his views. Welcome, Keith Arsewank!
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Tempting as it was I decided not to do a rolling blog today because I had more than enough plates to keep spinning without adding another one to the mix. We had a convivial night with many of the Community Rail Network team as we were saying goodbye to Director of Support and Development (and Deputy Chief Executive) Brian Barnsley. Brian was one of the early members of the team from the days when the organisation consisted of a handful of people. After a fun ‘life of Brian’ presentation at the conference social a few of us adjourned to a local hostelry that served real ale – and where you didn’t have to pay hotel prices! Even so, we were good as Dawn and I had to be up by 7am because Dee was working on the conference reception desk with Community Rail Support Officer Daniel Wright. The pair of them made a great double-act, prompting humour and a relaxed atmosphere – just what you need to know that the conference you’re attending isn’t going to be stuffy! We were starting early as many delegates had a long way to travel home, so whilst I had time to tuck into the excellent hotel breakfast Dee was preparing for the delegate deluge. leaving me no option but to drop in a Red Cross parcel of a Danish pastry, croissant and coffee to provide that all important sugar-rush! The conference was a really good event. There was a great range of speakers and presentations to keep people engaged which meant I was kept busy with the camera and laptop as I was constantly feeding the CRN media team with images to use on Twitter and other social media. That said, I did get to listen to and learn from some of the presentations, as well as chat with old friends during the coffee-breaks. The event wrapped up by 16:00 when we bid our farewell to Nottingham with many of us heading North to Yorkshire via Northern’s 16:17 to Leeds. Now the pair of us are relaxing at home ready for another busy few days.
You can find some pictures and more details of the event on CRN’s twitter feed at @CommunityRail.
Now, what to choose for picture of the day? I’m tempted by some of the conference photos but decided against it. Instead, here’s a look at some of the lovely old buildings that make up much of Nottingham’s city centre. In places like this is always worth looking up, although in Nottingham this is made easier by the fact the town’s built over a range of hills!
Here’s the view looking down Queen St with the clock and dome of the Town hall in the background.
Tomorrow I’ll be based at home as I’ve a lot of pictures and paperwork to catch up with before my next escapade later in the week which will involve a popular (and regular) feature of this blog as a friend and I will be visiting several High Speed 2 construction and mitigation sites along the phase 1 route between London and Warwickshire, so expect plenty of words and pictures to come.
I’ve a small favour to ask… If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/
We’re packed, all electronic devices charged and ready and about to head off to the station to begin our journey to Nottingham to prepare for the Community Rail Network conference. I’ll blog about the trip en-route so feel free to pop back later to see what we get up to…
11:00.
We’re on our way on a bright but bitterly cold day. We even had a snow flurry before we left. Right now we’re on Grand Central’s 10:40 train from Halifax to London which we’re using to get to Wakefield where we connect with Northern’s Leeds-Nottingham service. This GC class 180s busy and even more so after calling at Brighouse where a few dozen were waiting to join. The latest ORR statistics show that GC services have really bounced back from Covid. They’re currently at 103% of pre-Covid figures. Great news for an open-access operator.
The section of line between Ellend (where a new station’s due to open in 2025) and Brighouse has recently been opened up by a huge amount of lineside tree clearance which makes it feel less like a green tunnel.
11:45.
We had 10 minutes for a cross-platform interchange at Kirkgate, where a new building has appeared on the island platform 2-3. Built on behalf of Grand Central it’s a substantial 3 room structure that replaces the draughty and basic shelter that used to be there. There’s staff accommodation at one end, a seated waiting area in the middle and what looks like a potential retail outlet or small office at the other. Only it doesn’t appear to have any power sockets, just a fuse board, which is odd!
The new structure at Kirkgate.
Our Nottingham train arrived spot on time. Thankfully, it’s formed of a 2-car Class 195 so we can make the most of the power sockets and wifi as there’s other members of the CRN team aboard too.
14:15.
Having reached Nottingham and the venue in plenty of time I’ve a few hours to kill before I’m needed I’ve nipped out to make the most of the good weather and grab some new library shots whilst I’m here. East Midlands Railway have had many Class 170s cascaded to them from other operators to start replacing their old BR built fleets. Some have come from Anglia, via Transport for Wales, such as this example.
With Nottingham Eastcroft depot in the background 170271 works 1K67, the 13:43 from Newark Castle to Crewe. To the left is the former parcels depot. The building’s intact and used as a Virgin active health club.
16:40.
I’ve enjoyed a couple of hours exploring and getting pictures of railways, trams and the town. One thing that struck me is how many vacant shops there are now. Parts of the town centre are almost deserted. One street I walked along was 90% derelict. Here’s a couple of phone pics to be going on with. I’ll add camera shots later.
The old parcels depot which is now a fitness studio.There’s one mad Tory Chiltern Cllr who insists that reopening the Great Central is a viable alternative to building HS2 as most of the route is intact. Really? This was the Great Central through the centre of Nottingham. Nothing remains.
We’ve had another quiet(ish) day here at Bigland Towers but that’s mainly because today was chance to relax before a busy week beginning on Monday when the pair of us are off to Nottingham for the Community Rail Network Conference which spans two days.
As the clocks had gone forward, depriving us of an hours sleep we enjoyed a leisurely morning drinking coffee and catching up with friends via social media before brunch, after which we got our acts together to potter around the house doing nothing too ambitious until it was time to get out for a stroll. Today’s weather was dry but cold thanks to the wind-chill. Even the cocoon of cloud over the valley couldn’t keep the heat in. We wandered downhill to the valley floor and Sowerby Bridge in time to pick up some shopping before everywhere closed, then decided to adjourn for a quick drink (and chance to warm up) before heading home. We’d normally have a pitstop at the Hogshead brew house but the place was packed due to them having a band playing. As the pair of us wanted to sit and chat rather than boogie we flagged it and moved on to a pub we rarely visit, the Navigation, which sits above the canal basin. It’s an old pub that had 5 real ales on (I chose the Oakham Citra) but seems as popular for its food as its beer. Many of the other customers were eating and several tables were reserved for later arrivals. The portions look huge and the prices are reasonable. It’s also a dog-friendly pub which makes it ideal for canalside walkers.
The canalside was the route we chose to walk home along as neither have traversed the path since last year. Seeing spring very much in the air added to the pleasure. Now we’re back at home. Dawn’s had the night off as I’ve been on cooking duty. As much as I’ve loved trying all the exotic food I had in SE-Asia, I missed cooking.Like gardening, it’s another of my pleasures/therapies. Tonight we went vegetarian as a rustled up a Chana Masala served with chapattis, the ingredients for which provide the picture of the day…
Preparation is part of the fun of cooking and I love using our selection of bowls which were (mostly) purchased on our travels. The top kne’s from Thailand whilst the blue ones came from Hoi An in Vietnam. The big one full of chickpeas? That’s from somewhere far less exotic. M&S!
Expect a mix of blogs next week as I’ll be traversing a lot of the UK and visiting a variety of locations…
I’ve a small favour to ask… If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/
The pair of us have had a domesticated sort of day here at Bigland Towers. To be honest, with the way the weather’s been, there’s been little point to doing much else. Torrential rain overnight led to a miserable start to the day, but thankfully, that gradually improved. Dawn had a morning appointment elsewhere which left me free to chalk up some household chores – albeit not always successfully. I’ve been trying to change the cartridge in one of our bath taps. The first one was easy but the second one is stuck fast. You can’t apply too much brute force as the fittings made of soft brass so it’s easy to strip the nut. Even a ring spanner, oodles of WD40 and tirade of swear words won’t shift it. I’ve one trick left up my sleeve. After that I’m calling in an air-strike…
Once the rain finally subsided I moved outdoors to tidy up the gardens (front and back) having not been around to look after them since January. I really enjoy gardening. It’s such a therapeutic pastime and the joy of producing life through planting is hard to beat. This year I’ve decided to do some major replanting as many of the shrubs have outgrown their locations or simply spread too far. I rescued some yellow Iris from a canal a few years ago. They’d been dumped in dredged mud, so I brought a few home. They’ve loved our garden and spread like wildfire. The same with a variegated Hosta. I really like Hostas – but so do slugs – which is always a problem. I’ve split the original plant several times but now it needs doing again whilst being confined to a few pots, some which I can give away. Sod paying garden centre prices!
Our herb garden’s being revised too. Previously we had stuff all over the place (front and back). Now I’ve cleared a bed opposite the kitchen window where the panoply of edible plants will be congregated. That said, I sowed some French Parsley in the terrace above the back of the house last year and that’s going great guns already as it obviously likes the location. Sadly, not everything survived the winter so I’ll have to buy a new Rosemary plant. Our previous specimen loved it out at the back. So much so we had to severely chop it back to let the neighbours get past. Eventually it had to be chopped down as it just got too big. The new one I planted in a pot in the front did well initially, but this winter was its nemesis. Sadly, our Variegated Thyme didn’t survive either. Having fresh herbs you can pop out and crop as you need them is wonderful. Plus, if you love cooking as we do – it also saves you loads of money.
Gardening duties done I joined Dee for a trip into Halifax for a spot of shopping. Retail therapy isn’t a thing for either of us, but when needs must. At least Halifax still has a decent range of outlets, including an M&S and a ‘Body Shop’ plus the obligatory supermarkets. Our trip was prolonged because we couldn’t get Dawn’s favourite tipple for love nor money. Being teetotal, Dee’s developed a taste for the alcohol-free Guinness as dark beers were always her favourite (personally, I’m a pale ale fan) and apparently, the AF Guinness tastes just the same as the real stuff, but it’s hard to come by. Only one of our local supermarkets normally stocks it but they’d run out days ago. We ended up diverting to Sowerby Bridge where Tesco’s had finally had a delivery – so now Dee’s well happy!
Now we’re kicking back at home. I’m writing this whilst Dawn’s cooking one of her fantastic Chicken Madras curries. So, it’s time to relax and watch a film together with a drink and some brilliant home-cooked food. That leaves me to find a picture of the day – so I’ve chosen this. The garden’s too messy to post right now and I can’t find the picture I’m thinking of, so this will have to do. It’s a bit more exotic than anything I can grow here in Yorkshire. This is Duranta Erectica, otherwise known as Golden Dewdrops, shot at Gardens by the Bay. Singapore.
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Otherwise known as that was the blog that wasn’t! From a writing perspective today’s been the literary version of ‘no comment’. Nothing has happened that isn’t a reprise of earlier in the week apart from the fact it’s Friday, which meant that at the end of the working day I adjourned to our our local pub, the Big 6 – joining friends and other regulars to indulge in the quiz which Mel reads out from the ‘Pub Paper’.
I must admit, I rather enjoy the Friday brain teaser. There’s two different quizzes, one easy and one hard. But it’s a great way to end the working week, especially when the humour, diversions and anecdotes flow which always generate plenty of laughter. Just what you need on a Friday.
Now I’m back at home, writing what’s going to be a very short blog. Dawn’s busy preparing supper, so it’s time for me to go so that we can enjoy some quality time. All that remains is to post today’s picture, which comes from this evening’s session in the 6. The pub maintains four rotating real ale handpumps. The selection changes every few days depending on how busy (and how thirsty) the clientele are. Most of the beers are local and there’s always one dark beer on the second pump, so here’s today’s selection. Oh, did I mention that there’s also free pork pie on the bar on Fridays?
Choose your poison…
I’ve a small favour to ask… If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/
Paul Bigland 