The day I lit out to finish the 64 bus route on the Bus Runs Project I planned to catch the tram to Wednesbury, cover a few other bus route segments, then pick up my targeted route segment on the run home. My timing was impeccable as I arrived 2 minutes early to the tram stop only to find that the tram arrived 2 minutes and 15 seconds early. Rather than wait it out, I decided to reverse the plan and headed up the bike path along the tramway. There was a little bit of new graffiti out including the tag by the WTAS Crew, above, under a bridge between Dudley Street/Guns Village and Black Lake.
Whilst adding the 11 February run to the various maps I realised I also completed the 41A:
Being Sunday lunchtime, there wasn’t much foot traffic — nor, in fact, traffic — in Wednesbury. It was kind of a breakthrough run, though, the kind that comes a few weeks after returning to heavier activity following a long period of injury and illness. Still not fast (nor ever expecting to be again), this was the first run that felt…pleasurable.
Route 41A was completed with runs on January 6, 7, and 14 plus February 4 and 11. Route 64 was covered using all of those dates plus bits of January 20 and 28 plus February 10.
The first pedestrian subway I met in Kidderminster surprisingly didn’t smell like a urinal: surprisingly because of the quality of the graffiti and the young couple drinking beer at 8 in the morning.
However, the graffiti improved as the day progressed from the politically eloquent to some sublime Republican sentiments.
It was new TrigPointing territory, as well, and I found my first on Exchange Street as I hiked between the Swan and the library (helpfully highlighted in yellow chalk):
Peckish, I headed toward the Home of Souvlaki for a gyros and stopped by an old Telephone Exchange to bag another Cut Mark. But, I was also treated to a quite special post box (yes, I’m still doing THAT, as well):
The building also had a lovely Blue Plaque for the ‘instigator’ of Penny Post (so I got to triple dip at this tourism site):
The mark itself was somewhat anticlimactic:
Lunch done and the rain chucking it down, I worked my way back to the station withonly a modicum of exercise under my belt. Only one of the four Cut Marks on my list still exists, the one at 31 George St.
Soaked but safely back at the station, I noted an old horse trough (how 19th century of these people).
There is also an old but still operating Bundy clock there. When still used, there was a spool of paper inside and the bus drivers reaching this point would stick in a key unique to them and the time of arrival would be stamped on the paper spool.
Likewise well preserved was this Victoria Regina post box, on the short walk to the King & Castle pub in the Severn Valley Rail (historic steam trains here) portion of Kidderminster Station:
As is typical, most of the sought after Cut Marks this trip were either on occupied houses or used to be until new brickwork superceded the old marks. God damn it, though, there was one on the side of God’s house:
On the run out there, I passed this bit of lame Dad Humour on one of the country park’s bridges:
The run, that day, was down the canal slowly to confirm existence (or lack thereof) of some TrigPoints near work. Indeed, most of my list came to nowt but I did spot some features I have repeatedly overlooked these last few years.
This bollard-looking post actually should have a waymarker on it with the distances to places along the canal on it. Someone has this for a souvenir, I’m sure.
Down at Bournville, the Cadbury Bournville Works may still have a pin (TP19754) on the roof but I think this is the best shot I’ll ever have of it (if it still exists).
Continuing down the canal, I found another — intact this time — way marker:
Stirchley is kind of hipster and kind of hippy. A family or organisation of one or the other flavour put out some wildflower boxes since my last sojourn down Mary Vale.
On the corner of that building (the Alexandra Street side), was my first Cut Mark of the day.
Heading toward Cotteridge I suddenly came over a bit ill and faint (this was back during the skin cancer dosing and my normally low blood pressure was prone to precipitous drops). I cut the trip short and turned on to Fordhouse Road to catch a bus but also picked up this nice one on the wall at the juncture of numbers 17 and 19:
With the Rail Run Project still to complete, it seems churlish to name another Rail Station based running gig so I’m just using the Rail-to-Rail shorthand for the occasional short run that’s far enough from my day’s start and final destination to invite a travel option at each end. This time it was from Aston Station to Chester Road Station.
Almost immediately off the blocks I found a Cut Mark on the canal bridge still within eyesight of Aston Station:
In fact, looking back from the Cut you can make out the shadow of someone descending the stairs from the southbound platform:
I didn’t find any of the bolts, pins, or Cut Marks listed along the canal but this worn spot on one of the bridges — from ropes or cables ages ago — was a decent find:
Eventually, I returned to the streets but still had no luck with the TrigPointing effort. At one of the churches, I’m pretty sure the one I was looking for is behind the bushes but around the corner to the right of the photo.
After a quick beer stop at The Digby pub, I had renewed focus but only found one more CM on a wall about halfway to the station.
Another was supposed to be on the wall at Orphange Road but I think the wall has been replaced since the database was closed. However, the bust of Josiah Mason in the roundabout was festive. He was the industrialist/philanthropist who, amongst other things, founded the Mason Science College which later became the University of Birmingham (where I spend most of my weekdays).
This graffito appeared sometime between September 2020 and March 2021 near a now missing Cut Mark
A lunchtime run back in July entailed a trot past my first Pillar since starting this journey (although I’ve been by several in past runs such as the Ivinghoe Beacon one at the start of the Ridgeway Challenge).
Just behind this one is Shenley Hill, a road I ran many times without knowing either that this monument existed or that the Shenley Hill Farm was even an entity. Likewise, I don’t know if this property is still in the hands of the heirs of the farmers who lived in this house (photo from 1953):
You get to double or triple dip with the pillars (fun fact: like an iceberg, more of the pillar exists below the surface than above). This one has a three point theodolite mount and, under the round plate down around ground level, a pin to centre the device once mounted:
You also get a Flush Bracket on each of these:
From there, the run continued down Millets Hill (where the wall no longer exists but on which a Cut Mark is listed). Into Northfield, then, and I chased another mark on the corner of an old barn (it appears) but which has been covered up by a wall built up to it sometime before 2011.
US Independence Day I ran into work from Soho/Benson Road tram stop with a lot of Cut Marks, pins, and bolts on my map. I didn’t find any of those but managed to spot some interesting items along the way (it has been 6 months since I was last down this way).
Finding the canal across the park adjacent to the Prison, I was confronted with the back side of Black British History IS British History.
And, some of the legacy of the 2022 Commonwealth Games — I call this one, “The Showoff.”
Travelling from the rail station to a pet supply store could be shit, but in Wolverhampton there are nice surprises everywhere you look.
As is becoming habit, I took the route I did because of TrigPointing. The spire of the Church of St John in the Square is an intersectional point (TP14193).
A local stensil artist’s work (SKORE?) kept appearing around town:
Over by the Desi Yew Tree, I searched in vain for a mark (probably fell to repointing or brick replacement). After the cat food and litter stop at the Sunbeam strip mall, I headed toward The Royal tram stop past some lovely old factories.
It had a very crisp Cut Bench Mark toward the back/junction with another warehouse:
Skore continued to way mark my path:
And, with such attention to detail! The boombox is painted behind the junction box.
The totals for the month: 90 miles running, 10 pubs, 3 kebabs, 3 fish and chips, 2 short reviews. The mileage is low but I’ve started using TrigPointing as a way to add new interest to the runs (for me, at least … posts will start appearing in due course and a new map to cover this is here).
Started using a topical medicine that induces an immune response so my body attacks some BCC lesions on my arm; this results in aches and fever, a bit more sensitivity to the sun, and foggy headedness so that I’m not sure if I’m actually sick or just experiencing the chemo side effects. Pharmacokinetics and past experience suggest it will become worse until about 2 weeks after the last doses (progress report to follow) then taper back to normal over the subsequent 4 weeks. The last time (8 years ago) I was in the midst of training for the Ridgeway Challenge and doing a little more than 50 miles per week in the hills, so I just need to ignore it (and test regularly for COVID).
Here’s the cartoon of the month (not necessarily a monthly feature):
Names important to me in my youth and adolescence are now cut into tombstones. Farewell Astrud Gilberto, Daniel Elsburg, Robert Gottlieb, and Ted Kaczinski (who I know is a controversial choice especially in my line of work, but he was right even if his methods were ill advised). Additionally, Yossarian (the movie one) died the last day of the month. Rot in hell Pat Robertson.
Spotted in the Aldi…disgusting:
Some of the grafitti in this Monthly Update is from Chapel Ash Island near the WNW corner of central Wolverhampton.
A pretty good gallery relatively unmarred by the brainless tagging that will inevitably overlayer the bits that require some minimal amount of talent.
This one came from beneath a canal bridge, but at least it is clever and simple:
Had another litre of Keptinis, a Lithuanian beer I pick up at the Polish supermarket down the street. First time I noticed the royal eels sharing flagons of ale using a barrel as a table. Marvelous.
Fairly allergic to bee venom, this little fucker nailed me twice after flying up my shirt then one more time on my hand as I tried to rip the shirt off. Not sure if the neighbours spotted me naked from the waist up jumping up and down on a t-shirt but the spectacle was there for them:
Finally, a tip of the cap to Led By Donkeys for dumping this billboard over in a financially distressed, working class neighbourhood in Tipton that typically votes against its own best interest and which went strong ‘for ‘YES’ in the Brexit Referendum (spotted 14 June across from the Tilted Barrel pub, link live 29 July):
Endless British Pub Crawl (Part 3) 
