Happy New Year all, and for most of us we're probably not too upset to see the back of 2022. Energy price hikes, the war in Ukraine, cost of living crises and Government turmoil have certainly made for a difficult twelve months, making me ever more appreciative of the respite that my explorations can offer. Here then is my ever-essential annual summary reflecting on what I've been up to...
January: 2022 began with a New Year's Day dosage of Dudley, plodding around the Priory Estate trying unsuccessfully to get a decent glimpse of Castle Mill canal basin. Old Hill and Cradley Heath registered an entry in my Saturday Solo series, whereby Fixed Wheel's Handle Bar proved an excellent discovery and I was impressed with the renovation quality at the Spring Meadow. Birmingham probably stole the January honours however with not one but two trips; firstly as the setting for a Brewery Saturday with Nick (Sommar and Attic featuring prominently) and secondly supplying a River Rea Ramble covering Kings Norton, the Highbury and Selly Park, complete with a toast to the much-missed Pete Allen.
February: the shortest month was put to good use with the first Chip Foundation caper of the year, a somewhat soggy stroll around Leamington that was good fun nevertheless. Far better weather accompanied my Shifnal shuffle utilising quiet country lanes and footpaths to cover Evelith and Kemberton with a real sense of escape. Saturday Solos are usually a Black Country-based occupation so a day spent in Dickens Heath made for quite a departure - the architecture there is somewhat distinctive - while the Hub Marketing Board picked Chase Terrace and Brownhills for their 2022 curtain-raiser, savouring the joys of Sankey's Tap House and the Miners Rest.
March: more Hub antics quickly followed in March courtesy of the traditional St Patrick Hughes East Birmingham bash, which managed to slip in some Solihull stuff too courtesy of Smith's Wood (the Kingfisher) and Olton (the Lyndon). Nick and I raided the Rugby Beer Festival for sumptuous stouts then subsequently sampled Wetherspoons wares in Oldbury in the company of Ken. Springtime Staffordshire sunshine enticed me separately to Stafford and Lichfield - the former excursion dealt with Doxey and Trinity Fields whereas the latter one updated my Lichfield Canal knowledge with help from Huddlesford Junction.
April: Rail Rover Week must take pride of place here, giving me five magnificently varied days eking out photos in Herefordshire (Leominster), Leicestershire (Hinckley), Cheshire (Chester and Congleton) and Staffordshire (Uttoxeter). The Beardsmores and I lingered around Landywood for a whiff of Wyrley Branch remains, canal concentration similarly being to the fore during my Brownhills Good Friday frolic that nabbed me a first ever look at the New Invention Brewery bar in a Bloxwich industrial unit. In other news, Chairman D9 and Secretary WME were on the Black Country beat for a portion of the Pensnett Patch washed down with Kingswinford - very good!
May: the cricket season was firmly underway by this point so Headingley hosted us for a week of Leeds loveliness, Warwickshire battling to a hard-fought draw by not losing a wicket on the final day of the match. The Hub Marketing bandwagon swooped into Shrewsbury (an outing notable for bus station bald spots and strikingly-coloured sheep); likewise the Chip Foundation conquered Coventry and witnessed the Godiva Clock in all its glory. May's Saturday Solo contribution meanwhile involved Hagley (especially Bathams' King Arthur boozer) and the Green Duck Brewery - it's fair to say the beer was especially good that day!
June: the Whitsun half-term holidays were spent in Southern Scotland, adopting Southerness Lighthouse as my preferred photographic muse and dabbling a little with Dumfries for good measure. I celebrated the Queen's Platinum Jubilee with the full Chip Foundation cohort in Great Malvern, a day that began with breakfast-time beer at Birmingham's Bacchus - possibly our earliest tipple on record! Pheasant Pluckers and Pype Hayes greasy spoon treats were on the menu when the Hub Marketing Board braved North Birmingham in heatwave conditions, hence Mr D9 earning himself a Standing Ovation photoshoot in Erdington.
July: the temperatures were still very much on the warm side come the occasion of the Bromsgrove Beer Festival, which Nick and I attended after trooping along Tardebigge Locks - we were both very taken with Byatt's Madagascan Stout if I remember correctly. Tamworth tempted the Chip Foundation as a suitable location for marking Mr B Senior's latest birthday although my favourite July destination has to be Leek, jewel of the Staffordshire Moorlands. Old-fashioned chip shops, traditional hostelries and generous servings of Draught Bass all add up to practical perfection, superb!
August: into the height of summer now and Commonwealth Games fever was sweeping Birmingham, aided by the presence of a majestic mechanical bull. I thus dedicated one of my Saturday Solo adventures to attempting to find several sculptures of Perry the games mascot, ultimately ending up in the Jewellery Quarter for a relaxed pint in the Rock & Roll Brewhouse. Wellington staged a stifling Shropshire scorcher, introducing me to the Boot micropub in the process, while things took a Shakespearean turn for the Chip contingent over in glorious Stratford-upon-Avon - the RSC's Insult Chair saved its extended abuse especially for me.
September: autumn's arrival heralds the end of the cricket season and the Bears were in real danger of relegation after losing at Bristol; the Beardsmores and I loved the city but were far less enamoured with the result. Thankfully Liam Norwell summoned a bowling spell for the ages in the final fixture against Hampshire to pull off the most remarkable of reprieves! Two beer festivals in two weeks encompassed Bridgnorth (with Nick) and Cannock (with D9), then we had the small matter of a Walsall wander chiselling out some Chuckery snapshots. On a more historic note, September was the month that saw the sad passing of Queen Elizabeth II, bringing to an end her incomparable 70-year reign.
October: onto October and a key personal 2022 highlight for me was experiencing the Black Country Living Museum's recreation of the Elephant & Castle public house, a Wolverhampton icon brought back to life in splendid fashion. Elsewhere, Nick was the ideal tour guide for the Wonders of Warwick (chief amongst which was the totally random Ronnies Bar), and I tracked down Bathams' special 145th Anniversary Ale during a Wollaston and Stourbridge workout. My second family getaway of the year comprised snippets of Somerset seaside care of Brean, Burnham and Weston, not forgetting Minehead's cast of metalhead characters.
November: the quiffs were out in force again when the Hub team descended upon Coventry as is our custom - Allesley Park and Chapelfields were subjected to our dubious vocal talents on this occasion while Joy's in Coundon was a Cafe of the Year contender. Not to be outdone, the Chip Foundation chaps had a whale of a time in Hanley when encountering Potteries classics such as the Golden Cup and the Coachmakers Arms. Dudley Winter Ales Fayre is always a staple of my beer travels and did not disappoint, although with Titanic Plum Porter Grand Reserve in the line-up we knew we were in safe hands.
December: a Festive Forage with Nick is statutory as far as December is concerned so the 2022 edition entailed Birmingham extractions and a Metro ride to Edgbaston Village. Drab weather didn't deter me from seeking out Willenhall and Short Heath at the start of the month, and there was a distinct wintry tinge to the Ho Ho Hub Marketing medley that paired Bilston and Blackheath together. Chairman D9 likewise joined me for post-Christmas partying around Bearwood and Quinton as the Hub Awards 2022 were announced, and I squeezed in a solo Black Country Living Museum mooch for a further flurry of yuletide photos.
So there you have it, my explorational year as told in twelve paragraphs. As ever, my thanks go to those hardy gluttons for punishment that joined me for the various escapades, especially D9 Andy, HRH Nick, the Beardsmores (Junior and Senior) and long-suffering Bluenose Ken.
No comments:
Post a Comment