A bit of a breakthrough

It's been a good last few days at WME, as I've finally made some real progress both in terms of updates and trawling the archive. I seem to have spent ages and ages going over the same old photos, so it was great to finally get stuck into some newer stuff by editing up my photos from April and May 2005. The results can now be found on WME1, including some very useful looking photos of routes 92 and 99 on Solitest, whilst a few have even been homed already as part of the latest round of updates.

Looking at those updates, and the big beneficiaries once again were WME Wolverhampton and WME Birmingham as the battle for the 'Biggest WME Gallery' title really started hotting up. Birmingham took the lead with 171 photos, only for Wolverhampton to reclaim its crown with a swift overtaking manoeuvre to move on to 174.

Focusing on the WME Birmingham updates next, and these were quite significant due to the inclusion of the afore-mentioned newer material. Birmingham by Bus receives 5 new photos, all from the Rog Roughley trip in April 2005, representing great memories from visiting Roughley (along with not-so-great memories from Turves Green) and taking the collection's running total to 30 photos. There are also a couple more train photos on Longbridge Station from the same trip, whilst there's a useful addition to Erdington Station as well, meaning both collections now contain a more healthy tally of 5 photos each.

Nothing too exciting as regards the other galleries; the WME Wolverhampton update concentrates mainly on canals as a clearout on Wolvtest results in all four canal collections receiving additions. WME Coventry gets a nice Coventry by Bus addition in the shape of the 21 at Broadgate, whilst WME Sandwell gets a couple more Midland Metro photos at The Hawthorns plus a new train photo for Smethwick Galton Bridge. The Dudley, Walsall and Staffordshire galleries also had the odd extra thrown in should you wish to investigate.

A quick summary then, and for once I actually feel like I'm getting on top of things with WME, though I don't expect that to last for very long! The archive trawls have served their purpose well, as WME has filled out nicely to give a better foundation into which I can now introduce the more recent layers of exploration. Enjoy the updates and keep an eye on WME1 - you never know what routes, stations or locations might be appearing next!

Small Heath & Kingshurst

I said the other day that I needed a good adventure to really put 2007 on the map - well today's trip turned out to be just the job. I headed across to Small Heath and Kingshurst as there are some significant changes to bus routes in the east of Birmingham that are coming into force at the end of the month, and I wanted to investigate the routes prior to the amendments, along with a few other bits and pieces as well...

Small Heath Station: my first proper look around the station, not that impressed. Got a train photo and some platform views (mainly of a graffiti covered shelter) but a photo of the main frontage proved difficult, especially with the busy traffic on Golden Hillock Road.

Small Heath Park: A few local photos with a walk around Small Heath Park, accompanied by either pigeons or geese plus the occasional squirrel. I came across what I thought was a lake only to realise it was actually just a flooded field, so I quickly turned my attentions to the bandstand and the real lake before heading to the 28 terminus

The 28: The route was the main inspiration for this trip, and had intrigued me for years yet I'd never been on it. The 28 has been a staple service in the Birmingham network for years, linking Small Heath and Great Barr via Fox & Goose and Erdington, although this is about to change as the Small Heath section is due to be withdrawn and replaced with a new service (the 24 I think). The Small Heath terminus is on Waverley Road, overlooking the park, and buses seem to layover here for a good twenty minutes or so, giving me time to try and get a decent photo. I then had the joy of a traditional Metrobus ride past the terraces of Oldknow Road and the local Asda, up Heybarnes Road and Hob Moor Road to alight on Belchers Lane. Classic bus exploration

Bordesley Green: A rather frustrating time trying unsuccessfully to track down a photo of the 28A round by Heartlands Hospital. I never seem to have much luck in this part of Birmingham as I couldn't get a 69 photo last time I was in this neck of the woods

The 28A: I didn't get the photo, but at least I caught the bus. More Metrobus action, up through Alum Rock, past the Ward End pub and the Fox & Goose to alight at Hodge Hill (Hunters Moon)

Walk to Kingshurst: Starting in Hodge Hill with a look at the Common and the Hunters Moon, then heading down Heath Way into Buckland End (The Heathway pub and local shops including the Hart Centre). Further along Heath Way is Shard End, with more local shops including a post office and the Shards Fryer, whilst photos were provided by the library on Shustoke Road. A walk through the estate (Pithall Road, Silver Birch Road) leads into Kingshurst. I feel that I know the area much better now having passed through on routes such as the 89 and 92 previously.

Kingshurst: A good local centre with photo opportunities to investigate. The local shopping precinct includes the post office and the library, whilst The Mountfort pub is across the road. Kingshurst Way emerges by the bus terminus, overlooking Babbs Mill Nature Reserve, and I wait for the 26 to arrive.

The 26: another route that's soon to be changed, reverting back to running between Birmingham and Bromford Bridge only - it only seems 5 minutes since the route was extended to cover the 92 and now its changing back! The changes will bring about 2 new routes, the 54 and the 56, to form a series of routes alongside the existing 55 service. Today's 26 experience meant another Metrobus, and a great ride back into Birmingham via Castle Bromwich, Shard End, Bromford and Saltley.

Smethwick Galton Bridge: After the 26 it was a quick dash to Moor Street and a train to Galton Bridge for my Wolverhampton connection - I usually try and avoid New Street if possible. It was only half three when I got to Smethwick but the remaining daylight was already going, and I enjoyed a quiet wait for the Wolverhampton train, soaking up the station's relaxed atmosphere on a Friday afternoon

I have to say I really enjoyed the outing - I may not have got all of the photos I wanted, but it was just good to be back out there on the buses and trains, doing what I've done for years. Trip done, thats probably enough adventure for the time being, but I'm already looking forward to what February might bring...

Introducing WME Warwickshire

The WME galleries can announce today the arrival of a new member of the family - WME Warwickshire has been launched with a couple of starter collections

• Warwickshire by Bus - as usual, all new galleries begin with a bus collection. Two photos here showing buses at Nuneaton and Leamington, both good locations to showcase. I especially enjoyed visiting Nuneaton last year, a great place to get photos
• Stratford-upon-Avon Canal - WME Birmingham has a collection showing one end of the canal, and now WME Warwickshire has a collection showing the other. Two photos here as well, both showing Bridge 69 at Bancroft Basin in Stratford. The basin is yet another of my favourite canal locations, and Bridge 69 is one of the reasons I like the basin so much, so I'm pleased to include it
• Exploring Stratford-upon-Avon - Stratford is one of the definitive places that springs to mind when you think of Warwickshire, what with Shakespeare's Birthplace and the River Avon, so what better place could there be to kick off the local collections on the new gallery. Two more photos to start with here, The Pen and Parchment pub, and a view of the building that simply is Stratford, Shakespeare's Birthplace.

Time for action

The launch of WME Warwickshire is a response to a couple of nagging issues behind the scenes at WME. Firstly Warkstest and Saloptest have been sitting on WME1 for months and months going nowhere, and it was about time I did something with the photos. Secondly, there were dead links from the other WME galleries pointing to the non-existent WME Warwickshire and WME Shropshire galleries - again these links had been sitting there for months doing nothing and I didn't think it gave visitors a good impression of my gallery management skills. I decided that something needed to be done, so I've taken the plunge with Warwickshire to see how things go.

What next?

What comes next is a big issue... WME Warwickshire may be off and running with 6 photos and 3 collections, but this constitutes the bare minimum in terms of content and whilst I'd rather use the photos on a proper gallery instead of keeping them in Warkstest indefinitely, this does leave me with a sizeable problem - how to keep the gallery regularly updated. I simply don't have the backup photos with which to provide a stream of updates, especially as Warkstest itself is now down to 6 photos, and its going to be an age before I get round to releasing any other Warwickshire stuff for testing (we're talking March 2006 photos when I'm currently still working on photos from March 2005). It looks like those 6 photos might be the only photos for quite a while yet!

And another dilemma - I had intended to launch the Warwickshire and Shropshire galleries at the same time. Unfortunately, as Saloptest only contains 8 photos, I didn't have enough photos to consider starting a WME Shropshire site - launching WME Warwickshire with only 12 photos in Warkstest was already pushing things to the limit! I've had to abandon plans to launch the Shropshire gallery, so I'm still stuck with a dormant Saloptest and a set of dead WME Shropshire links.

Despite all this, I am convinced that the launch of WME Warwickshire is a step in the right direction. I'm not sure how I'm going to keep the gallery ticking over, but it could be fun trying to sort it all out. In the meantime, the gallery will remain very much as the baby of the WME family, and it will be nice to have a newborn about the place again!

A Busy Couple of Days - Part 2

The busy couple of days at WME continued yesterday with a Walsall Local exploring Willenhall, Bentley and Darlaston. Here are the highlights...

• St Anne's Road - a blast from the past, recalling memories of journeys to Comet in Willenhall. Notable local features included the Forge Tavern pub and the local chip shop, whilst the Rushbrooke Farthing was an intriguing building, a pub I assume but I wasn't sure whether it was still open or had closed down
• Clarke's Lane - looking at the local shops (mostly closed down) and the Noah's Ark pub
• On the trail of the former Bentley Canal - hints of old bridges at Clarke's Lane, Durham Avenue (? Farm Bridge) and County Bridge. There was a footpath between the estates but it didn't look that inviting
• Bentley - exploring the local shops on Farmbridge Close, then heading into the centre of the estate. I got photos of the Highgate Hall pub and Bentley Library, both of which were boarded up. The Walsall Mobile Library was in attendance, presumably covering for the closure of the branch.
• County Bridge - a walk round the estate as the sky turned very black, King Charles Avenue and Devon Road. The 303 terminates down here somewhere but I'm not sure where, couldn't spot any bus stops and I don't think there's much layover time. Might be a bus photo opportunity in future, but not guaranteed by any means
• The Walsall Canal - a little walk from Bughole Bridge (great name) to Bentley Road to add another little chapter to my canal explorations. Emerged by The Boat, another pub thats now closed and boarded up
• Darlaston - called in at The Green, photo of the Nags Head, then Richards Street into the town centre. Victoria Park and the Old Engine on Bull Street. The part of the town by the Park is actually quite nice, especially with the Post Office (a fine local building), the war memorial and The Swan pub to take photos of. Round the corner past Middletons Chippy to photo The Green Dragon and Darlaston Town FC on Waverley Street
• The highlight of the whole trip - Darlaston Bus Station waiting for the 645 to arrive, driver was a real gent in letting me take the photo, a smile and a wave, great.
• Back to Bilston, with just enough time to investigate the Royal Exchange and The White Rose. Might need to visit the White Rose again for a decent photo, but at least its now firmly on my pub radar

Following on from Tuesday then with another solid outing and some useful looking photos despite the cold, the wind and the overcast gloomy conditions. I feel I still need a big adventure type outing to put January and 2007 on the map properly, but as starters go this was very enjoyable