First Trip of the New Year

Just a nice gentle Wolverhampton local to get me back into the swing of things. A few useful photos after visits to the following areas:

All Saints - a look around Pond Lane and the remains of the Silver Birch pub, now just an unsightly pile of rubble

Parkfields - starting with The Black Horse pub, currently closed and looking rather forlorn. There was also time for a brief glimpse of Phoenix Park and some of the local shops

Spring Vale - a return call to the local library and the shops on Hateley Drive

Lanesfield - a walk down Hilton Road for a look at the local meeting hall and playing fields, a couple of shops. Then onto Spring Road to add some more pubs to the Wolverhampton archive - The Forgehammer, The Three Cups and The Rookery Tavern. I vaguely knew about the Rookery from late coach journeys whilst at school, but the others were new discoveries

Woodcross - following in the footsteps of my 2005 Christmas walk with a return to Woodcross, and it was just as much fun to explore second time round. The Spread Eagle pub was being refurbished just over a year ago, and today I got photos of the finished job, and pretty impressive it looked too. Other photos featured Mary Pointon Library, Childs Avenue shops and the Horse & Jockey, although the Woodcross Chippy eluded me yet again.

Hurst Hill - another key location on the 2005 walk, another place I was only too happy to return to. I added to my 2005 photo selection with some shots of The Gate Hangs Well, the Post Office and the Community Centre. Hurst Hill straddles the boundary between Wolverhampton and Dudley and I hope to have something for both galleries after today's trip.

Roseville - The walk then continued into Dudley along Upper Ettingshall Road, past the Coseley Tavern and down Providence Row into Roseville. The Hop & Barleycorn pub was an unexpected bonus, and I also got a couple of views of the local park, though to look at them you wouldn't know they were taken in wintertime.

Swan Village - the walk concluded in Swan Village, one of the few places on the 525 route that up until now I had very little knowledge of. The photos here concentrated on three local pubs - The Summerhouse, The Swan and Holden's Brewery Tap, The Park Inn - before I caught the 525 on Vicarage Road.

The 525 - I must have been on this route countless times, and yet today I still managed to spot a couple of intriguing pubs I'd never even noticed before. The first was up a sideroad just past Coseley Station, round by where the 545 turns into the estate, and the second was in Loxdale - the White Rose or something, on the sidestreet with the little chip shop and another target to add to the hitlist, where it can join The Royal Exchange on nearby Chapel Street.

A fascinating walk - I must have covered a fair few miles (Rog take note) - and a good way to burn off some of those Christmas excesses. The photos came out pretty well on the whole, making it a solid way to kick off my explorations in 2007.