#black pit

Still recovering from pneumonia at the end of March, I accompanied Phil on a Sunday stroll to Fairfield before his late shift. On Shelf Road, pussy willows swayed in the wind. Catkins overhung the canal. Nascent buds sprouted from bare branches. On Palace House Road, we investigated converted St Thomas’ catholic church. A cross and one stained glass window remained, at the far end. A resident sat…

A patchily sunny mid-November Saturday, Phil favoured staying on the flat but agreed it might be good to be among autumn colour before impending storms. Walking to Crow Nest Wood, we paused on Neptune Bridge, musing over the one-time inn and adjacent wharf, and on Palace House railway bridge to find the carved ‘S’ marking the Sowerby Ramble boundary. Crossing to the woodland side, we chose a…