Perton then Pensnett

To steal a phrase from a famous advertising slogan... p-p-p-pick up a Perton, and whilst you're at it, p-p-p-pick up a Pensnett too. Biscuity chocolate bars might not otherwise be involved in this particular posting but you are getting two trips for the price of one as I attempt some Easter(ish) exploring...

- Spring has sprung on Redhouse Road -

Let's begin with Easter Tuesday (is that even a thing?) - also known as the 2nd April 2024 - and a terrific Tettenhall morning en route to Perton. The sun is shining, the birds are singing and I've got the whole day all to myself for indulging in photography plus a couple of pints. Woodfield Heights has an alleyway link onto College Road comprising several sets of steps before Tettenhall Library and the Peter James estate agents earn their latest archive snaps. I'm rather taken with a ceremonial water fountain I don't think I'd ever captured on camera previously; it is late Victorian in origin and has a prime spot overlooking Upper Green. By contrast, I'm always partial to getting pictures of blossoms so the white-petalled specimens awaiting me on Redhouse Road and Wrottesley Road West are duly documented, lovely.

- A Perton Pony -

After a Cranmere Avenue detour just to satisfy a lingering curiosity, I take Westcroft Road and the crusty old tracks of Dippons Lane to edge closer to Perton, a 1970s overspill settlement built on what used to be the RAF Perton airbase (mainly operational during the Second World War). Pony paddocks give me a rare slice of wildlife action, not that the steeds concerned look remotely impressed by me showering them with attention, then Mercia Drive spits me out onto The Parkway which effectively functions as the estate's main loop road. Two lakes, a selection of schools and a flatpack church are among the various amenities while Sainsburys are the anchor supermarket within the Anders Square shopping precinct. 

- The Pear & Partridge -

In terms of Perton pub provision, I've mentioned both the Pear & Partridge (Greene King) and the Wrottesley Arms (Marston's) on earlier bloggings, although it's encouraging that both are still very much trading and seemingly enticing in grey pound lunchtime diners on a Tuesday afternoon. This established duo has latterly been complemented by the Ale Hub as situated within an Anders Square shopfront; as with the similar outlets at Mere Green, Shirley and Dickens Heath, it offers real ales, craft beer and select spirits in welcoming surroundings. Green Duck's Session Pale is in fine fettle as I relax in a comfortable sofa below 'It's Gin O'Clock' stencillings. Steering clear of mother's ruin myself, I stick around to partake of a Moreton Mild (North Cotswold Brewery, very nice) before catching the number 10 home.

- St Mark's Church -

Fast forward three days to Friday 5th April and my second 'P' destination of the week will be the Dudley district of Pensnett. Again I'm blessed with agreeable weather (give or take some blustery gusts) as the 15 bus deposits me on Tiled House Lane just shy of the busy High Oak crossroads. The local High Street has a derelict relic of a chemists store - H.L. Myers, sadly shorn of its vintage Max Factor appendage - followed by St Mark's C of E Primary School as linked to the parish church of the same name. A funeral service is just drawing to a close when I venture along Vicarage Road but I can nip respectfully through the churchyard to inspect the 1849 cruciform architecture complete with proud clock tower. 

- Barrow Hill Cross -

Vicarage Road also serves as my access point for the Barrow Hill Nature Reserve, one of Dudley's most significant areas of grassland and ancient woodland in terms of geology and biodiversity. Apparently part of the site was once an active volcano so I'm hoping to steer clear of any eruptions today! Burial chambers thought to date back to the Bronze Age help give the reserve its name, and a large metallic cross helps emphasise this resting place provenance as well as marking the hill's summit. On clear days such as this, there are impressive panoramas to enjoy looking out towards The Wrekin, Worcestershire, the Clent Hills and Brown Clee.

- Russells Hall Shops -

Proceeding further along the Barrow Hill footpaths, I emerge into Russells Hall via Merryfield Road. Although I know the estate quite well from rides on the former 222 bus route down the years, it had largely escaped my camera's gaze until now. Making up for lost time, I pounce upon the main block of shops on Middlepark Road corner, noting a Spar store, a post office and Taylor's family butchers (not forgetting the Living Hope Church, previously known as St Barnabas's). Further shops - including the Blue Submarine Fish Bar - can be found at the junction with Overfield Road beyond some playing fields and a nursing home.

- A Feathery Co-op? -

Russells Hall used to be served by two watering holes, neither of which have survived. On Corbyn Road there used to be the Old Park with its very triangular pointy roof but that got replaced by apartments, whereas Overfield Road opposite the primary school is where you would have found the Plume of Feathers. This latter establishment is at least still standing, nowadays fulfilling a communal function as a Co-op store albeit with a shape that very much has the hallmarks of a lost Banks's boozer. 

- Pens Ale Prospects -

Any quest for pints in the vicinity must therefore bring me back to Pensnett, where that trusty favourite the Fox & Grapes once again delivers on my Bathams Bitter + cheese and onion cob remit. I park myself in the main bar for a change, thinking it quite quiet early doors until some hi-vis workmen claim their regular positions and get the banter properly flowing - Friday pm knocking-off time, you can't beat it! The Pens Ale micropub at 81a High Street (next door to the chip shop that used to be the Four Furnaces) has earned Good Beer Guide recognition in recent years, so the slightest hint that my intended Holden's Golden Glow is off means I'm swiftly furnished with an impeccable Oakham Inferno replacement. Cheers!