Friday: mellow, yes, but no mists, and it’s very quiet away from the roads. The views are not worth recording under this still day’s grey sky, but there’s plenty of interest in the hedgerows.
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We needed a leg-stretch – down to Coalport, perhaps, for tea and a piece of that rather-nice choc chip shortbread they sell at the youth hostel… There’s colour in the field edges and the hedgerows, but beyond, the landscape is in its grey mid-summer mode on this warm afternoon. We’ll concentrate on the flora, mostly…
What better reason could there be? The youth hostel at Coalport, beside the china works, is a quiet and sheltered spot for refreshment (with the added entertainment of watching visitors trying to park their cars – yes, we’ll sit outside), perhaps a little over half-way on this enjoyable (and easy…) walk. And once again, after some showery weather, it’s a very pleasant day for it. There’s colour everywhere – the oilseed rape may be past its best, but there’s plenty more yellow in the hedgerows and verges – and purple, and blue, and white to set it off. There’s a cool breeze when we start out, but it’s quite still in the deeper parts of the lane, and the air is heavy with the scent of the May blossom.
That’s what it’s doing! We’re walking down to Coalport for tea and cakes, and everything is bursting into flower – the blackthorn, the bluebells, the garlic and the coltsfoot. As we drink our tea, a primrose flutters past – or perhaps it’s a brimstone butterfly.
It’s the 1st of March on Tuesday – St David’s day, and there are signs of spring all around us as we wander down to the river, for tea and cake at Coalport youth hostel, just beside the china works. We’re about 2/3 of the way round, and their shortcake is perfect fuel for the long plod back up the hill…
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Beautiful sunshine from an almost-cloudless blue sky – and a biting wind, the air temperature barely above freezing. We’ll be out of the wind in the valley – unfortunately, there’s little sunshine down there at this time of year.
We’ve done it many times. It’s a pleasant afternoon, even if it is rather overcast. There’s not quite as much colour in the hedgerows as there was a month or two ago, but the butterflies are more cooperative. The peacock was on the path, wings closed. I reached down to him and he crawled onto my hand, to join us for a few yards (he would have stayed, I suspect, but we thought he’d be better off in the bushes). As usual, there’s tea and cakes to be had at Coalport…
Everything’s in flower, or so it seems, and the butterflies are beginning to cooperate… We’re making the most of a dry and sunny afternoon after a day of rain, with another to come tomorrow, if the forecast is right. The youth hostel at Coalport (beside the china museum) is open for tea and cakes all summer, and the walk’s long enough to feel we’ve earned it (as if we needed an excuse…)
A quiet May Day afternoon in the Ironbridge gorge, enjoying the fresh air and the spring foliage
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Can’t stay in all day, but the weather’s poor and deteriorating… The China Museum at Coalport is worth exploring – the china is astonishing! (there are those who like it). We leave at about twenty to four – already it’s becoming dark, and the rain has turned to sleet – which turns to snow as we climb out of the valley.
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