Friday – Dudley – The first date of meteorological autumn and it feels autumnal. The sky is overcast and there are mists over the fields. Into Gornalwood, a suburb of Dudley. Through a 20th century housing estate. The roof of a block of flats is the resting place for several dozen Starlings. A pair of Carrion Crows crows search the lawn below. Up the hill sand through a ginnell then down to Abbey Road. Across the road is the Zoar Chapel of 1906, a Methodist church, as a replacement for an earlier chapel. The clock was added to the tower in 1917. Zoar was a city mentioned in Genesis as part of the biblical pentapolis. Houses and shops here are a mixture of early and mid 20th century. On up Zoar Road. Houses are early 20th century, some with a hint of Arts and Crafts. Past the primary school built by Red Hall Schools and the Sedgley Board. A shop sells home brew equipment. Nearby is the Old Bulls Head in selling Black Country Ales, brewed on the site. The building is from around 1900. The brewhouse retains some original equipment, including three mash tuns, made by E. Potterton and Son, Brewers Engineers, of Birmingham. Into Temple Street. The road keeps climbing. A house, Pretoria Villa, is dated 1900. Next to it is The Fountain pub.
In a thoroughly modern occurrence I receive a message from my car that one of the doors has not been closed properly. I returned to the car and then even more modern occurrence, I discover it is a false alarm. Back up the hill to Temple Street. A passerby happily tells me “Gornal is all uphill, no matter which way you go”. On up the hill to the Memorial Hall built in 1925. A War memorial was added in 1929. Opposite the church of St Peter the Great is set in a large graveyard. As seen before in this part of the country, there are a number of graves and vaults with brick and tiled walls. The church is approached through an avenue of Limes. The church is, inevitably, locked. It was built in 1815-17 by Thomas Lee, enlarged in 1837, refitted in 1849 and restored 1899. The church environs have a tired and neglected look.
The road is now Church Street. It comes to a junction, Five Ways. A building of 1821 that was once a pub is now a funeral directors. I suspect the house opposite was similar. The Methodist New Connexion Chapel of 1841, has rather unsightly more modern additions. St Paul’s Protestant church is being repaired, a sign states “Your clock will be back ticking soon”.
Into Lake Street. A large modern estate is on one side, late Victorian houses on the other. Lake Street Methodist church was built in 1928. It has the King Alfred School attached. A couple arrive and take me inside. The woman tells me she was born a couple of streets away and was first taken to the church at two days old. The pews had to be removed because the central heating failed and new pipes had to be installed. They also had to replace the pipe organ that stood in a gallery above the altar table. They tell me the large number of churches is because it was a mining area; into the church for the service then into the pub. The congregation is dwindling and energy prices have hit them hard. The house at Five Ways I thought may be a pub was in fact the Post Office.
The road climbs. The Black Bear pub looks closed down. Into Dibdale Road West, once Bagley’s Lane. To the north were Dibdale Works, Gibbons fire clay, brick and retort manufacturers, which became the largest manufacturers of gas retorts in the world. The works closed in 1987. A little further on was Dibdale Colliery, Pit No 1; Pit No 2 was further down the hill. All are now modern housing estates. Onto Dibdale Road. In between the estates is modern parkland. A double house is Georgian, the only house of any age here. It housed Belgian refugees in WWI. Behind it stood the large Dudley Union Workhouse. Past a row of mid 20th century semis. Into Salop Street and finally my route starts to descend. Past the modern Community Church. A football ground stood behind the site. At a large junction is Abberley House, under scaffolding. The house is early 19th century with an earlier core. This is Eve Hill. On the other corner is the church of St James, an 1838 Gothic lancet style Commissioners’ church. In the churchyard is a large memorial to John Stokes. Part of the inscriptions state:
Into The Parade. A large Victorian house, The Vicarage is in a ruinous condition. Next to it is the modern vicarage. Opposite are some football pitches on a former rope walk. Along from the vicarage is an open space with some fine specimen trees. It was a graveyard with a few graves still here. Houses beyond are mid 20th century semis. Into The Broadway. Into Priory Park where there are the remains of Dudley Priory.
Dudley has a history dating back to Anglo-Saxon times, its name comes from the Old English Duddan Leah, meaning Dudda’s clearing. Domesday records it as Dudelei, in the hundred of Clent in Worcestershire. The town was listed as being a manor in the possession of Earl Edwin of Mercia pre-Conquest, with William Fitz-Ansculf as Lord of the Manor in 1086. Dudley Castle was constructed in 1070 by William’s father Ansculf de Picquign. During the English Civil War Dudley was a Royalist stronghold, with the castle besieged twice by the Parliamentarians and later partly demolished on the orders of the Government after the Royalist surrender. In the early 17th century, Dud Dudley, an illegitimate son of Edward Sutton, 5th Baron Dudley and Elizabeth Tomlinson, devised a method of smelting iron ore using coke at his father’s works in Cradley and Pensnett Chase. Abraham Darby, the first person to produce iron commercially using coke instead of charcoal, was descended from Dud Dudley’s sister, Jane. It is claimed that he may have known about Dud Dudley’s earlier work. Dudley’s population grew dramatically during the 18th and 19th centuries because of the increase in industry, with the main industries including coal, limestone mining, iron, steel, engineering, metallurgy, glass cutting, textiles and leather-working. The priory was established as a dependency of the Cluniac Priory of Much Wenlock, dedicated to Saint James, in 1160 by Gervase Paganel. The priory was dissolved in 1395, but refunded as a denizen priory soon after. The remains are of the church and an archway to the Lady chapel area of the Priory, built in the 14th century and dedicated to the Virgin Mary. It is believed that the Lady chapel was constructed by the Sutton family. Following the dissolution, the priory was granted to Sir John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland in 1540. Following his execution, the buildings fell into disrepair and became ruinous. In the 18th century, part of the ruins of the church had been used by a tanner, a thread manufacturer, and for grinding glass and polishing steel.
A short distance along The Broadway is Dudley College of Technology built in 1931. High in woods behind it is Dudley Castle. Annoyingly, admittance is far too expensive as it is also the site of a zoo, which I have no interest in visiting. So I return up The Broadway and The Parade. Into Himley Road. The houses are terraces and semis of early to mid 20th century. Grange Park is a large green area over numerous old colliery shafts. Hilly House is a large Victorian house converted to a pub some 60 years ago. Dense woodland of Grange Park continues and on the other side of the road, London Fields is a thickly wooded slope. Far into the distance is Titterstone Clee and Brown Clee. The road comes to a roundabout where a road, Milking Bank, joins it, descending from Dibdale Road. It used to be a mineral railway descending from Dibdale colliery, joining with lines from Himley colleries to finally reach the GWR Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton line at Brierley Hill. Himley Road continues to descend back to Gornal. Route
Monday – Croft – The sky is cloudless. A light breeze keeps the temperature comfortable, for now. Nuthatches call in the car park trees. Onto the ride down into the Fishpool Valley. A Grey Squirrel makes a barking noise from a large Beech. Bursts of song come from Wrens and Robins. A tall Douglas Fir has a heavy crop of cones high above all the other trees. The is barely any breeze down in the valley and it is getting warm. The pools have large areas converted in algae. Rushes, probably one of the Bur-reeds and Common Water Plantain grow in the middle. Dragonflies chase above the water, too fast to identify. A Chiffchaff calls.
Along the track past the lime kiln. Chiffchaffs, Great and Blue Tits move rapidly through the trees seeking grubs. An engine is running in the modern pumping station, something I do not think I have heard before. A Southern Hawker dragonfly jinks in the air in front of me. On up the path out of the valley. Herb Robert and Red Campion are still in flower. A Red Admiral flies past, the only butterfly so far. Then a pair of Speckled Woods dance around each other as they rise up through the air. Speckled Woods and bees cluster around Beech leaves bathed in sunlight. They are feasting on honeydew, a sugary, sticky liquid which is exuded by woolly aphids. Ravens croak overhead, their wingbeats audible. A Dor Beetle struts across the dry mud and dead leaves on the path.
Onto the Mortimer Trail and then the path to Croft Ambrey hill-fort. The great Yew is now almost entirely dead, although its offspring is flourishing. Great pollarded Oaks stand at the top of the eastern entrance. They were probably last pollarded some two hundred years ago. The views from the hill-fort are of misty hills. China blue Hare Bells flower alongside the path. Common Puffballs nestle in the grass. An ancient Oak by the western gate of the hill fort has split and a massive trunk, one of three has crashed down. It had been sawn to clear the path. The tree had divided, several hundred years ago, well below the level at which one would normally pollard it.
Down from the hill fort. The pillow mounds, old artificial rabbit warrens, are now covered in bracken. Down through the woods where one loses the breeze and finds the flies. Down the Spanish Chestnut field. The old Spanish Chestnuts nearly all have leaves, just a couple are entirely dead. The new saplings are a decent size now and have a good crop of nuts. The quarry pond is dry. There are good number of people on the path today. A sizeable flock of young cattle are in the car park field.
Wednesday – Bodenham Lake – A cooler morning with cloud obscuring the sun. Robins sing, Blue Tits chatter and Wrens tick. The hedges are spotted red with hips, haws and Wayfaring-Tree berries. A Grey Heron glides over, descending towards the water. Old Man’s Beard is covered in white starbursts. The cloud is thinning rapidly and the sun begins to shine every more brightly. Out on the island, moulting Mute Swans preen their breasts, surrounded by their discarded feathers. A young Great Crested Grebe swims nearby. Rings appear in the water as fish break the surface.
Into the meadow where the great banks of blackberries have been picked or rotted. Into the hide. Little Egrets, Mute Swans, Mallard, Moorhens and Great Crested Grebes are on or by the water. Over a dozen Cormorants are in the trees. A Grey Heron and the Great White Egret are at the western end. Several Robins are singing. Blue Tits are in the Willows. The Cormorants are moving around. One calls sounding like an engine trying to start. No Canada Geese are present, yet. Then, on cue, the first skein arrives. Blackbirds seem agitated in the Willows and briar thickets. A Reed Warbler appears and disappears almost immediately. Dragonflies flash past, one, and probably all, is a Southern Hawker. People turn up on the reserve and look like they are about to start strimming, so I give up.
Back to the orchards. Cider apples are beginning to fall. There are also dessert apples on the ground, enough in a good enough condition to collect.
Home – By mid-afternoon it is getting very warm. House Sparrows, Blue, Great and Coal Tits are visiting the feeder. One House Sparrow flies in and lands on the feeder perch pushing off a young Blue Tit but traps the Blue Tit’s foot. The poor Blue Tit dangles, flapping furiously until the House Sparrow flies off and releases it. A Common Buzzard circles high above on a thermal.
Thursday – Home – A brief shower overnight covered everywhere in sandy Saharan dust. The afternoon grows hotter. A small flock of Long-tailed Tits visit the peanut feeder, a rare sight, they usually just move through. However, they are soon sent packing by the bullying of a Great and a Blue Tit. Three large birds are high in the sky. They tumble and chase. I am unsure whether they are Common Buzzards or Ravens. Of course, they are gone by the time I fetch my binos. House Sparrows come in waves, all squabbling to get on the seed feeder, then all disappearing again into the large shrubs. Once gone, the Great and Blue Tits return. Fat Wood Pigeons waddle around under the feeders picking up the considerable spillage.
Another batch of courgettes/marrows are picked and put outside the front door for anyone who wants them.
Sunday – Leominster – It is still warm but overcast and rain starts to fall gently. Down to Butts Bridge. The water level in the River Lugg has maybe dropped another inch. There are now 22 army Landrovers in the Brightwells’ compound. They are in desert sand colour and one, strangely, has its hazard lights flashing. Another four are by the sheds.
The market is slightly smaller than previous weeks. Back along to Paradise Walk and past the River Kenwater which is still flowing shallow and clear. A fair-size Brown Trout waves in the current.
Home – The mass of vine and rambling roses along the western wall is tackled. They are very difficult to cut back with any finesse but the majority of the vegetation is cut back. It fills the hippo bag. My work is closely watched by the resident Robin. A few Purple Sprouting seedlings are pricked out and some lettuces planted out.
Thunderstorms rumble past in the evening, some distance off and doing little to reduce the heat and humidity.
Monday – Home – A breeze makes the air slightly cooler. I finish bagging the vine and rose prunings. The roof of the chicken run is cleaned off – the rotting apples and leaves removed and water poured over to clear the pipes draining into the water butts. Depressingly, all the lettuces planted out yesterday are dead.
Tuesday – Bodenham Lake – Rain has fallen for much of the night and continues into the morning. The vine and rose prunings go to the recycling centre and I then head on to Bodenham. Along the track to the viewing point. A couple of Little Egrets stand, hunched on the islands. A Coot are pecking at the water. Into the meadow. Fresh molehills have been thrown up. Cloud lays across the top of the trees of Westfield Wood. Dinmore Wood is completely obscured. Despite the weather, there is plenty of sounds from birds – Robins, Blue and Great Tits, Wood Pigeons, Green and Great Spotted Woodpeckers and even a late season burst from a Blackcap.
The lake is quiet. A Grey Heron, Mute Swans, Great Crested Grebes, Moorhens and a couple of Mallard are present. The area in front of the hide had been cut down as mentioned last week. A Common Sandpiper is on the scrape. Twenty five Cormorants are in the trees. A female Mandarin Duck sleeps on one leg on the spit. The rain has ceased. A pristine Great Tit moves through the dead flowers at the base of the reed bed. The rain returns.
A pair of Dunnocks are on the ground near the gate of the reserve. Further along a Ring-necked Pheasant stalks through the grass. Apples are falling in large numbers in both orchards.
Wednesday – Rodmarton Manor – We visit this house near Cirencester for a craft fair. Unfortunately, much of the merchandise, many of them very fine creations,is somehow not capturing our imagination and is often priced double what we are willing to pay. Of course, the makers need to make a living; a conundrum.
The house was designed in the Arts and Crafts style by Ernest Barnsley, started in 1909 and, following Barnsley’s death in 1925, it was completed by Sidney Barnsley, his brother, and then by Norman Jewson, Ernest’s son-in-law. All the construction materials were obtained locally, and hand worked by local craftsmen. There are extensive gardens, long borders still filled with flowers, in particular some gorgeous dahlias.
Malmesbury – We are staying in this historic town. After parking by the River Avon’s Sherston branch. We climb up to the town centre. Malmesbury was centred on an Iron Age hill-fort. A monastery was founded in 675 by Maildubh, an Irish monk. The town came to be named after Maildubh; the name Malmesbury is a combination of Maildubh and burh, meaning Maildubh’s fortification. After his death around 700, St Aldhelm became the first abbot. The Abbey was the site of an early attempt at human flight in 1010. William of Malmesbury wrote that the monk Eilmer of Malmesbury flew a primitive hang glider from a tower flying over 180 metres before landing, breaking both legs. The town was the most important in Wiltshire at the time of Domesday, being the first entry. In the 12th century, the third abbey was built on the site. The west tower fell around 1550, demolishing the three westernmost bays of the nave, as a result less than half of the original building stands today and the east end is a stone wall, giving it a strange appearance. In the north aisle is the tomb of Æthelstan, considered to be the first king of all England. The tomb is actually an empty tomb from the 15th century, Æthelstan is supposed to have been buried in the Abbot’s Garden. The majority of the windows are plain, but there is a fine Burne-Jones window and 1920s windows of saints, including one of Eilmer. The porch is a superb example of 12th century carving. A gravestone tells how a local barmaid named Hannah Twynnoy was killed in 1703 by a tiger that had escaped from a travelling circus:
Outside the abbey grounds is the market cross, erected in the late 15th century, renovated around 1800 by the Earl of Suffolk, and repaired in 1909-12 and 1949-50. We head into the town. Cloth manufacture was important in Malmesbury from medieval times until about 1750, and silk was made there during the 19th century. The philosopher Thomas Hobbes was born in the parish. The town was walled until The Commonwealth when the walls were slighted and never rebuilt. There are numerous fine Georgian and Victorian buildings in typical warm yellow Cotswold stone. Tower House is a mediaeval hall which was the work house between the 18th century until 1834 when the tower was built as an astronomical observatory by Richard Pryor. On Cross Howes is the Town Hall, now the museum, standing on a site that was once used as a preceptory by the Knights Templar. The façade dates from 1854, extended in 1927. The rear incorporates 17th century elements. Our hotel is in the High Street, The King’s Arms, a coaching inn and house, now one hotel, built in the early 17th century, the main range being re-fronted around 1821.
Thursday – Cotswold Sculpture Park – We visit this extraordinary collection of modern sculpture close to the village of Somerford Keynes. There are pieces priced between a few hundred pounds and quarter of a million for an enormous painted bronze of a Polar Bear. We spend rather less on a beautiful stainless steel model of a Snowdrop by Pete Rogers.
Friday – Barnoldswick – We are heading north and break our journey in this Lancashire town. It was founded in Anglo Saxon times and recorded in the Domesday Book as Bernulfesuuic, meaning “Bernulf’s Town”. The town is known locally as Barlick. It was a small settlement until the arrival of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, and later the (now closed) railway, which led to the development of the existing woollen industry, and helped it to become a major cotton town. Although cloth production has ceased, Barnoldswick remains a manufacturing town. One manufacturer, Silentnight, is noteworthy in trade union history (in this case Furniture, Timber and Allied Trades Union) as having the longest ever strike, from 1985 to 1987.
We park in Rainhall Road and walk to Fern Lea Avenue and on to the Holy Trinity church. The monks from Fountains Abbey built a Cistercian monastery here in 1147 but moved away after six years to build Kirkstall Abbey. They returned after another ten years to build the isolated Church of St Mary-le-Ghyll close to the road between Barnoldswick and Thornton in Craven. There was no Anglican church in the town, but a Sunday School was built in 1838. It was consecrated as St James’ church in 1842. However, it was cramped and the structure unstable so a new church, Holy Trinity, was built and consecrated in 1960 by Dr Donald Coggan, Bishop of Bradford and St James’ was demolished. It has a modern and unusual mosaics on the font and front of the altar.
We are staying on the steep Manchester Road and head back down to the town. The Greyhound pub is probably 19th century if not earlier. The upper part was used in Victorian times as a lodging house for itinerant workers. Previously, this road was called Barnoldswick Lane and only became Manchester Road as it entered the town. The former Police Station is a large building now a dwelling. Houses are in a typical northern yellow-grey stone. At the end of Manchester Road is Walmsgate where there is the fine Independent Methodist Chapel of 1892. It is locally called “The Ship” and a Sunday School was added in 1910. Opposite is a large building recently used as an auction house. It was built as a chapel in the late 18th century. Into Station Road where there is the large Free Gothic style Conservative Club designed by J W Broughton of Skipton in 1898. The railway line was built by the Barnoldswick Railway and worked by the Midland Railway from its opening on 8th February 1871, becoming part of the Midland in 1899. It closed in 1965 and the site is now a car park and supermarket. The Civic Hall was built as the Liberal Club at the end of the 19th century and is now also the town hall. The Town Square is a space for events and is surrounded by independent shops. We end up at the Barlick Tap, a small bar in a former shop which specialises in Belgian and German beers, although we stick to a decent range of English ales.
Sunday – Gateshead – We are staying with friends and take the Metro to Gateshead centre. Like many towns, Gateshead is struggling against the poor economic conditions. We go to the Sage which is busy but there is not a lot to keep us, so we cross the Tyne by the Millennium Bridge and visit the Sunday market which is along the Quayside. The incoming tide has a strange purple and green rippling. Although is a very varied market we buy nothing. However, we stop in a trendy bar where because some people, no names, wanted cocktails, I had a £50 round…
We return and visit the Baltic where there is a fascinating exhibition on plants and their uses, “The Waiting Gardens of the North” by Iraqi-American artist Michael Rakowitz. Between the Baltic and the Sage is a large area advertised as the site of a new Gateshead Arena but little work seems to be happening. Back to the Central Bar. It is a thin Victorian pub tapering towards a point at each end, often called “The Coffin” because of its shape. It was built in 1856 to a design by local architect M Thompson. Back to the Metro. The large Town Hall built in 1868-70 by John Johnstone in the Neo-Romanesque style is largely abandoned and empty. Lloyds Bank, a fine Victorian building is also empty. A house records it was the home of Thomas Bewick, the engraver. It is empty with broken windows. As we head up the hill, standing out over the area is a large modern building carrying the logo of “Wilko”, a shop that has just gone bust!
Wednesday – Leominster – The remnants of Hurricane Lee have crossed the Atlantic and brought flooding to parts of Wales and the south-west. Gales blew throughout the night. Cider apple collection has started. Yesterday it was dry and there was a problem with wasps. I ended up being stung twice. Today, heavy rain fell which alleviated the wasp problem.
Thursday – Leominster – After a cold night it is a wet showery day. Off down the street. The electrical shop is now an antique shop. Further down, the former bicycle shop is also now an antique shop and apparently the offices of a building company. Apples fall from a tree in the yard beside the ginnel and the ground crunches underfoot with hazelnut shells. Recent rain means the water level in the River Lugg has risen considerably. All the rocks and gravel bars are now submerged. The water is grey brown. Jackdaws chack in the trees.
The railway lines are beginning to rust on top as there are no trains due to repairs in Dinmore tunnel. Into the Millennium Park. A small flight of gulls passes over heating south west. The River Kenwater is flowing rapidly and coloured.
Into the churchyard. A Carrion Crow caws from the top of a tree. Grey Squirrels bounce across the grass. Magpies chatter from grave headstones.
Friday – Tewkesbury – A breezy morning, some sunshine, some cloud. Into Victoria Gardens. A Robin sings brightly from a Cedar which has a large number of small cones. The air is heavily scented with freshly mown grass. The path runs alongside the Mill Avon to the mill. The gardens were created to celebrate the diamond jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1897. The abbey malthouse, now dwellings, stands one side of the entrance to the garden. Across the road are houses from the mid or late 18th century re-fronted in the late 15th or early 16th century. By the water is the abbey mill There have been mills on this site for over 1,000 years. The downstream part of the building which held the milling machinery and water mill was rebuilt in 1793. The upstream part was enlarged in the mid 19th century and used for the reception of grain and housed the hoist. The mill was in use until around 1921 when it became a restaurant and then converted to residential use in 2005. A footbridge crosses the mill weir. A House Martin is still bringing food to a nest in the apex of a store on the bridge.
The bridge leads to Severn Ham, a large flood meadow and island. A path runs north. Boats of different shapes and sizes are tied up on the far side of the leat. Beyond, the houses along St Mary’s Road are from several different centuries. The Ham was used for horse racing from at least 1721. The Prince of Wales, later George II, gave a gold cup for the prize. The races ceased in the second half of the 19th century and were replaced by regattas. People are boarding a twin hulled pleasure craft for a trip on the water. The path reaches Healings Mill and a footbridge back over the leat. A couple of fifteen Mallard are on the water.
A line of Weeping Willows hang over the water leading to the mill. Healings or Borough Mill was constructed by W H James of Tewkesbury for Samuel Healing and Son. A stone panel high on the mill states “Borough Flour Mills – Erected MDCCCLXV”. It is probable this was the site of a mill recorded in Domesday. The mill closed in 2006. A large industrial building from around 1860 is abandoned. It has a stone carved medallion with a hand holding a wheat-sheaf, in bold relief. It was formerly Tewkesbury Brewery, then a warehouse. A boarded up pub stands across the road. A road bridge, refurbished in 2001 leads to the abandoned mill. A railway line ran from the mill and quay through the town, past sidings behind the station to join the Midland Railway Ashbury, Tewksbury and Malvern Branch. Down a slip road to the River Severn. This area was recorded as the Town Quay in 1407. It was later referred to a Quay Pit. There have been warehouses, cold sheds, timber wharfs, alehouses and mills here although most have gone. The Severn was tidal until 1800 so large vessels could sail up to Tewkesbury. Along a foot path towards King John’s Bridge. There had been a bridge here since the 12th century, being rebuilt in stone in the latter part of the century. It was called Long Bridge until the 19th century when the present name was adopted. It was rebuilt again in 1962. The path crosses a lock between the River Avon and the River Severn. Up to the bridge and out of the town over Beaufort Bridge, which opened in 1962. Historically, King John’s Bridge and Beaufort Bridge were linked, four arches over Mill Avon, then seven arches, the six arches over the Old Avon. North of the bridge is Tewkesbury Marina. A weir pours water into the marina, which is empty of boats. Onto a footpath. To the north west is a hill called The Mythe. Mythe House is mid 18th century. Nearby is a similar house, now a care home. Past the marina I had hoped to follow the abandoned railway but this is not possible, so back to the main road. The railway closed to passenger traffic in 1961 and freight in 1964. There should be an alternative footpath but a gate leads into a mass of Stinging Nettles.
Along the road then a track leads Mythe Tut or Royal Hill, the latter recording a visit by George III in 1788. It is uncertain the purpose or origin of this site. It has been suggested it was thrown up by the Danes to give a lookout across the area. It is possibly the remains of a Norman motte on a more extensive site created as a defence against Wessex or the Danes. Through a blacksmithed kissing gate and up onto the small hill. It gives fine views down the river and across to the abbey and town. A Red Admiral feeds on Privet. Jackdaws chatter in the trees. Back to the road. A Green Woodpecker yaffles in the trees. Further up the hill is September House, a former St Joseph’s Roman Catholic chapel. Besides the path is a benchmark in cast iron with the royal crown surmounted by ER and ft and in, but the panel giving the numbers is missing. On up the hill past Mythe Court (hidden behind hedges) which in the late 19th century belonged to Revd Charles William Grove (donor of the Grove organ to the Abbey), and later to the Healing family. During the Second World War it was a hospital for US troops.It is now divided into two houses, Mythe Court and South Mythe Court. Beyond is King John’s Castle. This is a medieval house now mainly just a tower abutting a cross-gabled Tudor house. The building was probably the seat of the Manor of Mythe, belonging to the Abbey, and formerly also had a free-standing chapel. It has been suggested this was the site of the first minster as it seems it was not a defensive site.
Back down the hill. Ahead it looks like rain is falling on the Cotswolds. Onto the Ledbury road beside large waterworks. Mythe Bridge is a single carriageway bridge built in 1823-6 by Thomas Telford with the main iron casting by Shrewsbury ironmaster William Hazeldine. It consists of a single segmental arch with a 52m span resting on a series of six ribs with small X-bracing carrying the diagonal crossed bracing to the spandrels beneath the beam to the road way and balustrade. A Toll House from 1826-30, built of coursed lias with limestone dressings and a slate roof, was probably by Telford’s office. Outside are raised beds of brassicas. Opposite is a turnpike shelter, built at the same time, almost completely buried under ivy. Back to the town. King John’s Cottages from the early 18th century are on the town side of the bridge. Along the High Street which is busy and had relatively few empty shops. A majority of the buildings are flying banners of the noble participants of the Battle of Tewkesbury fought between the Houses of Lancaster and York on the 4th May 1471. Route
Saturday – Leominster – It is the autumn equinox and we now slide towards winter. It is cool, the thermometer shows 8°C. Venus is high in a clear blue sky.
Home – The first three gallons of apple juice are pressed to make cider. Tom Putt and Herefordshire Redstreak apples are used. A few Lady’s Fingers were collected but the majority are yet to fall. The little meadow area in the garden is strimmed after the seed heads are removed from umbellifers and Black Knapweed. We do not want too many of these flowers as they can swamp the others. Cucumbers have finished, tomatoes are still ripening although all the outdoor ones are finished, a few courgettes are still coming on and the beans are drying well.
Sunday – Leominster – It rained overnight and the sky remains dark and stormy. I decide not to take my usual route across Easters Meadow as it will be saturated. The River Kenwater is flowing steadily and fairly clear. Along Mill Street where a very drunk man has fallen off of his bicycle and into a hedge. Another chap and I try to get him up but we merely move him to the edge of the path. It is clear he is not going to move away for a while.
The market is small, the weather keeping away the traders. Ridgemore Brook is flowing with water which is a rare sight it is usually hidden under the weeds. The River Lugg is also steady and clear. A Chiffchaff calls beside Ridgemoor Bridge. Our drunken friend is back under the hedge with his bottle of Scotch. My attempts to contact the police fail..
Tuesday – Home – An early morning visit to the cider trees to collect apples. It may be the recent damp weather that is causing a large number of rot rather more quickly than usual, but I still manage to collect a couple of sacks worth. Robins are singing loudly and persistently. Jackdaws and Carrion Crows call overhead as they head for the fields.
The pots of tomatoes and cucumbers in the greenhouse are emptied. Those tomato plants with fruit have their leaves stripped back in the hope the fruit will ripen. Yesterday, I harvested a decent number of chillies and there are more still ripening. A trough is refreshed and mustard greens seedlings pricked out. They and the Pak Choi have progressed exceedingly slowly and after thinning the latter it is to be hoped they will start growing. The troughs that contained the bush tomatoes by the summerhouse are emptied. A large number of slugs were sheltering beneath and they are dispatched. I have spread some organic chicken manure pellets on the leek bed. They are doing well, but I thought a bit of a boost would not hurt. Herefordshire Russet apples are now beginning to be ready. All the Doyenne pears picked – too many are getting bird damage and rotting. I harvest some basil leaves to make pesto for tonight’s dinner.
Wednesday – Bodenham Lake – A grey, overcast sky with the occasional shower. Hardly a sound down the track. A couple of Little Egrets and a Grey Heron are on the boating lake island but nothing else. Into the meadow. A Common Buzzard flies off from the lakeside trees and into Westfield Wood.
Into the hide. A Little Egret by the scrape leaps forward, stabbing down into the water and catches something tiny. Four Grey Herons are on the south side of lake. Mute swans are scattered around as are several Great Crested Grebes. Mallard and
O wild West Wind, thou breath of Autumn’s being,
Thou, from whose unseen presence the leaves dead
Are driven, like ghosts from an enchanter fleeing
Shelley Coot are at the western end. Sixty Cormorants are in the trees. A Kingfisher is on a branch of the scrape Willow. It departs, piping as it goes. There is the distant yelping of a Canada Goose and one appears – the only one so far. The sky is darkening and the wind rising. A Grey Squirrel is digging in the bank in front of the hide. A sandpiper suddenly flies out from behind the scrape Willow and disappears before I get a chance to see it properly.
Back through the Alder plantation. A partially eaten boletus fungus has a grey cap and yellow tubes which suggests the Iodine Bolete, Boletus impolitis, a rare species. Many-zoned Polypore also called Varicoloured Bracket, Coriolus versicolor, a bracket fungus, is growing anew on a fallen log. Another mossy log has an extensive, dense mass of Stump Puffballs, Lycoperdon pyriforme, growing on it. A small, long-legged fly is on the fungi, Brown-shouldered Strider, Calobata petronella. A Green Woodpecker flies off from the dessert apple orchard. Back along the road between the two parts of Bodenham village. Two Little Egrets are searching for food in a stubble field
Home – Storm Agnes sweeps in from the Atlantic and up the western side of the isles. Although the eye is off the west of Eire, there is a powerful wind throughout the night, quietening before dawn.
Friday – Rowley Regis – After a night of rain, the sky is now clear and blue. In Windmill End, a post-war housing estate. A 20th century pub stands opposite The Dry Dock, a former pub, now flats. The bar here was famous for being a narrow boat. Behind it, steps lead up to the closed visitor’s centre beside the Dudley No. 2 Canal. Mute Swan, Canada Geese and Mallard are on the water. This is Bumble Hole originally the name of a house near a brook crossed by a track. Bumble meant murmuring water and hole referred to the hollow of the ford crossing. Alternatively, some say the hammers of the local works made a loud clanking bum-hul noise. It apparently became known as “the bum-hul in the hole”, soon shortened to “bumble hole”. A further suggestion is that a “bumble hole” was a name used for a furnace-opening in foundries.
By the end of the 18th century coal mines were being dug in the area and Dudley No. 2 canal was constructed in 1789. In 1792 Gads Green reservoir was built over the Mousesweet Brook to the north. The canal comes to Windmill End Bridge over Windmill End Junction. One canal leads away to the Birmingham Main Line. The opposite direction heads to Stourbridge. The other main arm heads south towards Hawne Basin. A small arm leads into Bumble Hike and Toll End Works. The junction was previously even more complicated as the GWR Netherton and Halesowen Branch line passed over as well. Windmill End station was in what is now parkland to the south-east. It opened in 1878, was destaffed in 1952 and closed in 1964, the line closing four years later.
Footbridges and a larger vehicle bridge cross the canal. Five Magpies squabble over a tiny morsel. For some reason the Mallard all fly upstream. A track leads up to Cobbs Engine House, a tall building with a chimney a few feet away. Chimney is in brick with an iron frame reinforcing it. The engine house was built around 1831 and housed a stationary steam pump used to pump water firstly from Windmill End Colliery and later other mines in the area. Utilizing a shaft 525 feet deep, 1.6 million litres of water were pumped from the mines into the canal daily. It ceased work in 1928 and the Newcomen type engine was moved to the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan in 1930. A small pond is beyond. The hill behind it is an old slag heap. All around, Hawthorns and Hollies are adorned with bright red berries. Over the larger bridge. Just north of the bridge, the canal enters the 2.7km long Netherton Tunnel.
Through parkland and out into a housing state on Gads Green. This estate stands on the site of Windmillend Boiler Works which had closed before the start of the 20th century. Out onto St Peter’s Road. The houses here are modern. Past several short blocks of large late Victorian or Edwardian houses. Just before a bridge over the canal is St Peter’s church, Darby End built in 1912 replacing a mission chapel and designed by William Hale & Son. The bridge is called Fox and Goose Bridge. A legend relates that nailers from Derbyshire came to the Withymoor area and helped to establish the scattered settlement known as Derby Hand (as in the hands from Derbyshire) now known as Darby End. The road descends to the The Red Lion. On the junction is the modern Cole Street Methodist church. The Darby End Wesleyan Chapel was opened on 1st April 1821. The building was declared unsafe in 1949 and closed the following year. The present building opened in 1959. On down Withymoor Road. Across the road, in Withymoor Road, on the junction with Double Row, stands a large early 19th century house, formerly a pub. Past a closed petrol station. Again the houses are mid to late 20th century. Gill Street had terraces of small houses, dated 1903, with a double fronted house in the middle. Most the houses are on red brick with just a few in black.
The road crosses the small Mousesweet Brook flowing out of Windmill End towards Bowling Green to join the River Stour. A public footpath should cut off a corner but it is overgrown with young Hazel saplings. The road runs through a large industrial estate at Mousesweet. This estate is on the site of Gawn colliery. A large piece of old machinery stands as a statue in one yard, it is possibly an old pillar drill. A heavy engineering company, Isaac H Grainger had its offices in a 1930s building with a stepped brick frontage and an arched, corrugated iron roof. Doulton Road heads back to the canal past various engineering works.
The road reaches the canal bridge over the Hawne Basin line. On this side is a modern housing development, on the other an older industrial estate. Both the industrial estate and the housing development stand on the site of Birmingham Pottery Brick and Tile Works. Down to the canal and back towards Bumble Hole. The bridge is called Dog Lane Bridge, Dog Lane being the original name of Doulton Road. Drainage shoots emerge from the far side, water trickling down into the canal. The tow-path rises above the former entrance into a dock now under the housing development. A small bay in the canal opposite is the site of dock at the foot of a lost inclined plane. The winding gear for a long gone lock leading to a wharf at the end of a tramway from Withyend Brick Works is beside the housing development. Yarrow flowers along the edge of the canal. Hemp Agrimony is almost finished. Under Bullfield Bridge, built in 1857. Past another old dock with a longer fisherman at the far end. This dock served the inclined plane from Warrens Hall colliery. A long thin artificial “island” with protective metal rails at each end stands in the canal. It had a barrier so tolls could be collected. Another wharf is on the far side. I am back to Windmill End Bridge.
Over the canal via Netherton Tunnel Bridge, then the arm to Toll End Works via Boshboil Arm Bridge. The name comes from when hot coke was cooled by dunking it in large tanks full of water called “bosh tubs”. A series of furnaces and bosh tubs sat alongside this part of the canal. The Boshboil arm was the original route of the canal before a new cut bypassed it in 1858. It serviced Washington Boiler and Girder works, Windmill End Boiler Works and an extension serviced Baptistend colliery. It also housed Harris’ boatyard where a timber gallows crane for nearly 200 years before collapsing in the 1970s. Past a flock of Canada Geese and sleeping Mallard, none of whom seem inclined to move, and down to Bumble Hole, a flooded clay pit. The blue-green water is populated by Coot and Mallard. Along the path towards St Peter’s Road. A bridge crosses the other end of the Boshboil arm. Bumble Hole Bridge crosses the Stourbridge line and the tow-path runs back to the visitors centre.
on the site. The building is from around 1900. The brewhouse retains some original equipment, including three mash tuns, made by E. Potterton and Son, Brewers Engineers, of Birmingham. Into Temple Street. The road keeps climbing. A house, Pretoria Villa, is dated 1900. Next 
to it is The Fountain pub.
All are now modern housing estates. Onto Dibdale Road. In between the estates is modern parkland. A double house is Georgian, the only house of any age here. It housed Belgian refugees in WWI. Behind it stood the large Dudley Union Workhouse. Past a row of mid 20th century semis. Into Salop Street and finally my route starts to descend. Past the modern Community Church. A football ground stood behind the site. At a large junction is Abberley House, under scaffolding. The house is early 19th century with an earlier core. This is Eve Hill. On the other corner is the church of St James, an 1838 Gothic lancet style Commissioners’ church. In the churchyard is a large memorial to John Stokes. Part of the inscriptions state:
method of smelting iron ore using coke at his father’s works in Cradley and Pensnett Chase. Abraham Darby, the first person to produce iron commercially using coke instead of charcoal, was descended from Dud Dudley’s sister, Jane. It is claimed that he may have known about Dud Dudley’s earlier work. Dudley’s population grew dramatically during the 18th and 19th centuries because of the increase in industry, with the main industries including coal, limestone mining, iron, steel, engineering, metallurgy, glass cutting, textiles and leather-working. The priory was established as a dependency of the Cluniac Priory of Much Wenlock, dedicated to Saint James, in 1160 by Gervase Paganel. The priory was dissolved in 1395, but refunded as a denizen priory soon after. The remains are of the church and an archway to the Lady chapel area of the Priory, built in the 14th century and dedicated to the Virgin Mary. It is believed that the Lady chapel was constructed by the Sutton family. Following the dissolution, the priory was granted to Sir John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland in 1540. Following his execution, the buildings fell into disrepair and became ruinous. In the 18th century, part of the ruins of the church had been used by a tanner, a thread manufacturer, and for grinding glass and polishing steel.
Fishpool Valley. A Grey Squirrel makes a barking noise from a large Beech. Bursts of song come from Wrens and Robins. A tall Douglas Fir has a heavy crop of cones high above all the other trees. The is barely any breeze down in the valley and it is getting warm. The pools have large areas converted in algae. Rushes, probably one of the Bur-reeds and Common Water Plantain grow in the middle. Dragonflies chase above the water, too fast to identify. A Chiffchaff calls.
although its offspring is flourishing. Great pollarded Oaks stand at the top of the eastern entrance. They were probably last pollarded some two hundred years ago. The views from the hill-fort are of misty hills. China blue Hare Bells flower alongside the path. Common Puffballs nestle in the grass. An ancient Oak by the western gate of the hill fort has split and a massive trunk, one of three has crashed down. It had been sawn to clear the path. The tree had divided, several hundred years ago, well below the level at which one would normally pollard it.
haws and Wayfaring-Tree berries. A Grey Heron glides over, descending towards the water. Old Man’s Beard is covered in white starbursts. The cloud is thinning rapidly and the sun begins to shine every more brightly. Out on the island, moulting 
Mute Swans preen their breasts, surrounded by their discarded feathers. A young Great Crested Grebe swims nearby. Rings appear in the water as fish break the surface.
of Westfield Wood. Dinmore Wood is completely obscured. Despite the weather, there is plenty of sounds from birds – Robins, Blue and Great Tits, Wood Pigeons, Green and Great Spotted Woodpeckers and even a late season burst from a Blackcap.
abbot. The Abbey was the site of an early attempt at human flight in 1010. William of Malmesbury wrote that the monk Eilmer of Malmesbury flew a primitive hang glider from a tower flying over 180 metres before landing, breaking both legs. The town was the most important in Wiltshire at the time of Domesday, being the first entry. In the 12th century, the third abbey was built on the site. The west tower fell around 1550, demolishing the three westernmost bays of the nave, as a result less than half of the original building stands today and the east end is a stone wall, giving it a strange appearance. In the north aisle is the tomb of Æthelstan, considered to be the first king of all England. The tomb is actually an empty tomb from the 15th century, Æthelstan is supposed to have been buried in the Abbot’s Garden. The majority of the windows are plain, but there is a fine Burne-Jones window and 1920s windows of saints, including one of Eilmer. The porch is a superb example of 12th century carving. A gravestone tells how a local barmaid named Hannah Twynnoy was killed in 1703 by a tiger that had escaped from a travelling circus:
important in Malmesbury from medieval times until about 1750, and silk was made there during the 19th century. The philosopher Thomas Hobbes was born in the parish. The town was walled until The Commonwealth when the walls were slighted and never rebuilt. There are numerous fine Georgian and Victorian buildings in typical warm yellow Cotswold stone. Tower House is a mediaeval hall which was the work house between the 18th century until 1834 when the tower 
was built as an astronomical observatory by Richard Pryor. On Cross Howes is the Town Hall, now the museum, standing on a site that was once used as a preceptory by the Knights Templar. The façade dates from 1854, extended in 1927. The rear incorporates 17th century elements. Our hotel is in the High Street, The King’s Arms, a coaching inn and house, now one hotel, built in the early 17th century, the main range being re-fronted around 1821.
which led to the development of the existing woollen industry, and helped it to become a major cotton town. Although cloth production has ceased, Barnoldswick remains a manufacturing town. One manufacturer, Silentnight, is noteworthy in trade union history (in this case Furniture, Timber and Allied Trades Union) as having the longest ever strike, from 1985 to 1987.
Coggan, Bishop of Bradford and St James’ was demolished. It has a modern and unusual mosaics on the font and front of the altar.
workers. Previously, this road was called Barnoldswick Lane and only became Manchester Road as it entered the town. The former Police Station is a large building now a dwelling. Houses are in a typical northern yellow-grey stone. At the end of Manchester Road is Walmsgate where there is the fine Independent Methodist Chapel of 1892. It is locally called “The Ship” and a Sunday School was added in 1910. Opposite is a large building recently used as an auction house. It was built as a chapel in the late 18th century. Into Station Road where there is the large Free Gothic style Conservative Club designed by J W Broughton of Skipton in 1898. The railway line was built by the Barnoldswick Railway and worked by the Midland Railway from its opening on 8th February 1871, becoming part of the Midland in 1899. It closed in 1965 and the site is now a car park and supermarket. The Civic Hall was built as the Liberal Club at the end of the 19th century and is now also the town hall. The Town Square is a space for events and is surrounded by independent shops. We end up at the Barlick Tap, a small bar in a former shop which specialises in Belgian and German beers, although we stick to a decent range of English ales.
Bridge and visit the Sunday market which is along the Quayside. The incoming tide has a strange purple and green rippling. Although is a very varied market we buy nothing. However, we stop in a trendy bar where because some people, no names, wanted cocktails, I had a £50 round…
bringing food to a nest in the apex of a store on the bridge.
gave a gold cup for the prize. The races ceased in the second half of the 19th century and were replaced by regattas. People are boarding a twin hulled pleasure craft for a trip on the water. The path reaches Healings Mill and a footbridge back over the leat. A couple of fifteen Mallard are on the water.
1964. There should be an alternative footpath but a gate leads into a mass of Stinging Nettles.
Danes. Through a blacksmithed kissing gate and up onto the small hill. It gives fine views down the river and across to the abbey and town. A Red Admiral feeds on Privet. Jackdaws chatter in the trees. Back to the road. A Green Woodpecker yaffles in the trees. Further up the hill is September House, a former St Joseph’s Roman Catholic chapel. Besides the path is a benchmark in cast iron with the royal crown surmounted by ER and ft and in, but the panel giving the numbers is missing. On up the hill past Mythe Court (hidden behind hedges) which in the late 19th century belonged to Revd Charles William Grove (donor of the Grove organ to the Abbey), and later to the Healing family. During the Second World War it was a hospital for US troops.It is now divided into two houses, Mythe Court and South Mythe Court. Beyond is King John’s Castle. This is a medieval house now mainly just a tower abutting a cross-gabled Tudor house. The building was probably the seat of the Manor of Mythe, belonging to the Abbey, and formerly also had a free-standing chapel. It has been suggested this was the site of the first minster as it seems it was not a defensive site.
Coot are at the western end. Sixty Cormorants are in the trees. A Kingfisher is on a branch of the scrape Willow. It departs, piping as it goes. There is the distant yelping of a Canada Goose and one appears – the only one so far. The sky is darkening and the wind rising. A Grey Squirrel is digging in the bank in front of the hide. A sandpiper suddenly flies out from behind the scrape Willow and disappears before I get a chance to see it properly.
opposite The Dry Dock, a former pub, now flats. The bar here was famous for being a narrow boat. Behind it, steps lead up to the closed visitor’s centre beside the Dudley No. 2 Canal. Mute Swan, Canada Geese and Mallard are on the water. This is Bumble Hole originally the name of a house near a brook crossed by a track. Bumble meant murmuring water and hole referred to the hollow of the ford crossing. Alternatively, some say the hammers of the local works made a loud clanking bum-hul noise. It apparently became known as “the bum-hul in the hole”, soon shortened to “bumble hole”. A further suggestion is that a “bumble hole” was a name used for a furnace-opening in foundries.
in brick with an iron frame reinforcing it. The engine house was built around 1831 and housed a stationary steam pump used to pump water firstly from Windmill End Colliery and later other mines in the area. Utilizing a shaft 525 feet deep, 1.6 million litres of water were pumped from the mines into the canal daily. It ceased work in 1928 and the Newcomen type engine was moved to the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan in 1930. A small pond is beyond. The hill behind it is an old slag heap. All around, Hawthorns and Hollies are adorned with bright red berries. Over the larger bridge. Just north of the bridge, the canal enters the 2.7km long Netherton Tunnel.
brick with just a few in black.
Brick and Tile Works. Down to the canal and back towards Bumble Hole. The bridge is called Dog Lane Bridge, Dog Lane being the original name of Doulton Road. Drainage shoots emerge from the far side, water trickling down into the canal. The tow-path rises above the former entrance into a dock now under the housing development. A small bay in the canal opposite is the site of dock at the foot of a lost inclined plane. The winding gear for a long gone lock leading to a wharf at the end of a tramway from Withyend Brick Works is beside the housing development. Yarrow flowers along the edge of the canal. Hemp Agrimony is almost finished. Under Bullfield Bridge, built in 1857. Past another old dock with a longer fisherman at the far end. This dock served the inclined plane from Warrens Hall colliery. A long thin artificial “island” with protective metal rails at each end stands in the canal. It had a barrier so tolls could be collected. Another wharf is on the far side. I am back to Windmill End Bridge.