Windswept in Walsall

Friday 4th February 2011: I always like to set myself a challenge during my solo adventures so an expedition trekking across Walsall Borough seemed like just the job – I just hadn’t quite expected to spend the whole day being buffeted and battered by bruising breezes…

* My first task is to get to Walsall in the first place, so I decided to let the train take the strain. Sadly nowadays this means going in and out of New Street, and whilst I don’t have to change trains, it bears no comparison to the old direct shuttle that used to connect Walsall and Wolverhampton in barely 20 minutes – I still think it was an act of timetable vandalism that this link was allowed to be removed.

* Walsall Station is a place that never seems to change much, presenting the same familiar setting that I encountered during my earliest photographic forays back in 2002. It’s therefore quite comforting to be back, taking the customary train photos on platform 3 then exiting via the corridor to Station Street to add in my shots of the platform 1 outbuilding.

* Walsall Town Centre beckons for photos of the Red Lion and the TJ Hughes store (formerly Woolworths). I say hello to Sister Dora, hidden amongst the market stalls down on the Bridge. Walsall Market still seems quite busy but has scaled down from the days when it used to stretch right up to virtually the church steps. Today it barely covered the patch by Old Square, conversely meaning I have more space to zoom snaps of the stalls and the butchers van.

* St Matthews Church itself is a dominant landmark and I hope to do it justice, climbing the cobbled path up the side and taking in the lich gate and clock tower, very impressive. I then walk through the grounds, under a stone arch and admire the views down towards Chuckery and Caldmore before tottering down the main steps back to the market.

* After a quick look at the Gala Baths and the Fountain pub it's time for a bus ride. Route 7 marks possibly my first sampling of the revised Walsall route numbers. I catch the bus from Stand G at about 11:10 and it’s a very quick slog down the Mellish Road to Aldridge, noting that the arboretum junction looks even more confusing than it did before, and that really is saying something!

* Aldridge was a complete mystery to me for many years but I’ve gradually got to know the place better and it’s good to be back. Photo targets include the former Avion bingo and the police station, whilst I’m surprised to see that the Elms Hotel is now masquerading as the Crown. I make sure to call in at Aldridge Library, one of the branches I would expect to survive the threatened closures, then I have a closer look at the elegant parish church where the plain lich gate and some churchyard trees help to frame my attempted shots.

* I've taken a bit of a battering already from the gusts and now the proper walking starts. Walsall Wood Road leads me up to Lazy Hill junction where there are a range of local shops (post office hairdressers etc) in a little precinct, along with two pubs to contend with. The Lazy Hill Tavern looks quite cottagey with a black and white beam effect, whilst the Cedar Tree is a more recent looking estate style pub with beer tables outside.

* Further along and Walton Road intrigues me as a possible terminus location, albeit it's a thankless task trying to open out the map in these kind of gusts (not that it stops me from trying). Needless to say it all becomes a bit of a mess and the bus arrives from completely the opposite direction to that which I was expecting, no photos there then!

* Undeterred its onwards to Castlefort, a place I last visited with Rog on the old 368 route. Castle Road connects me to Link Road, opening up to reveal the distinctive school in the hedge by the turning circle. As luck wouldn’t have it, the 7A pulls away just as I arrive so I’m faced with the prospect of a half hour wait. At least it gives me a bit of rest and I'm rewarded when the next 7A arrives quite early and I can pounce for some belated shots in what became one of the highlights of the day.

* A bit of local estate weaving brings me to the Shire Oak, a noteworthy pub standing on the junction of Chester Road and Lichfield Road near the county boundary. The backside of the pub isn’t very appealing and the main frontage is a curious salmony shade that’s not overly inviting either. The Royal Oak further down looks more my kind of place (well it does have a Good Beer Guide listing).

* At Anchor Bridge I join the Curly Wyrley for the seminal walk down past Catshill Junction to Brownhills Market – I think I first did this stretch back in 2002 and it still keeps drawing me back time after time. Pier Street Bridge and its accompanying benches provide a welcome spot to stop off for lunch, those sandwiches hit the spot very nicely.

* Brownhills next and the marketplace looks a little sad these days. The old metal stallframes have been replaced with a smarter black design but there aren’t very many plots marked out. Even the High Street seems quiet compared to previous visits – sure the traffic still rumbles through but I was expecting there to be more shoppers about, and the howling wind only adds to an overriding sense of bleakness. The miner sculpture still stands proudly on the main roundabout - was it my imagination or did I detect a slight wobble from the colossus as it got pounded by the breeze?

* Continuing with the walk as Pelsall Road introduces me to The Swan, a pub that might look quite traditional and homely but there isn’t much sign of life to be honest. I stick with the road a little way further before branching off at Yorks Foundry Bridge to once more join the towpath of the Wyrley and Essington Canal.

* More 'Curly Wyrley' then, squelching my way round to Pelsall Junction with a quick look at the Fingerpost eatery (formerly the Royal Oak pub I think). Pelsall Junction is one of my favourite canal locations but feels very exposed on a day like this, and I really have to grit my teeth as I cross the common for shots of the Free Trade pub – at times the wind was so strong it almost blew me over.

* The Free Trade is quite frankly an ugly mess, windows boarded up with the wood half-painted black, an utter eyesore. It really is such a shame as the location with its rural views and the canal nearby could be oh so charming – instead its nothing but a dump.

* I rejoin the canal at Pelsall Works Bridge and head into unchartered territory, tracking the bend round towards the site of the old Lord Hays Branch. The junction is marked by Fishley Lane Bridge, acting as a turnover still but there’s just a short stub of what I assume was the old line remaining.

* Fishley Lane flanks Bloxwich Golf Course as I wander down into Lower Farm, arriving back into suburbia as I renew my acquaintance with the Saddlers Arms pub. Sore feet are my main concern as I trundle along Buxton Road for another look at the local shops.

* Emerging onto the A34 I take the opportunity to satisfy another of my lingering curiosities. Newtown lies literally just across the border into Staffordshire and offers a bit of photo potential, notably the Ivy House, a current Walsall CAMRA Pub of the Year and very cottagey to boot, and Masons (historically the Freemasons Arms), a trendyish eating place that is good for a picture but doesn’t inspire me to step inside.

* I might not have time for a pint but there’s still scope for a bit more exploring. Turnberry Road is the gateway into one of the newer housing estates in Walsall, a curving artery that feeds various closes and cul-de-sacs. The estate was provided with it’s own shopping precinct (including Shires chip shop and a Co-op) and it’s own pub, the One Man and His Dog, which looks rather attractive for a newish building.

* At long last my epic walk is reaching it's end as Bealeys Lane brings me achingly into Bloxwich to join the convoy of 908 buses back to Wolverhampton. The gales had done their best but the body was unbowed and the mind was still in decent condition too, just as well given that I was part of The Bears quiz team taking on allcomers at Wolverhampton Cricket Club on the evening. The postscipt to that story is that the Bears won, so it was a very satisfying day all round!