Canal Walk

On a nice Summer's evening we occasionally bike along the Chesterfield Canal towpath, working up a thirst and appetite for a pint and a sandwich. The Chesterfield Canal Society has done sterling work over the last few decades, dredging and cleaning up the disused canal and making a good stretch of it navigable again.

The restoration of the canal, combined with the decline of industry along its banks, has made some stretches of it, from Brimington towards Staveley, quite picturesque and has provided many havens for the return of wild life.

This week I thought I would walk along the canal to see what sort of condition it is in at the end of Winter, before Spring provides its beautifying blanket of fresh greens and white and pink blossoms.

I decided to walk from Brimington towards Chesterfield, where the canal wanders between our two temples of consumerism, Sainsbury and Tesco, is backed onto by various industrial estates, and runs parallel to the River Rother (not a pretty sight, even in Spring and Summer).

The tow path was slightly wet from an earlier shower and provided some interesting textures in the now bright sunlight.



However, after a hundred yards or so I came across the following 'landscape', which struck me as a fine contrast between the beauty of nature and the ravages of man. The glorious blue sky with fluffy white clouds would look well above a vista of green fields and hills, but here it provides light for an altogether different scene.



Continuing on I came across more and more scenes of discarded detritus. I think they can all be summed up to 'perfection' in this view of tree-borne litter on the banks of the Rother.



The camera is of course very selective, and I could have ignored the unpleasant areas and concentrated on the swans and ducks, or the very early blossom beginning to show, and given an entirely different gloss to my walk. So, to provide balance I will end with what I think is my best shot of the day. A simple, almost colourless, reflection study; formed by the breeze on the canal's surface, abetted by the sunlight and merely recorded by me. It's dark and sombre but the little colour in it, to me, represents a glimmer of hope for a tidier future.