It’s funny how much you don’t notice in a car, compared to on a bike. At the moment, in October, all the leaves are turning, and the fields are either harvested or about to be. The colours on either side are rich and varied, and if I wasn’t on a bike, I probably wouldn’t notice them nearly so vividly. But the trees are the colours of a log fire – red, orange, yellow, brown – interspersed with green. And the frequent rain means everything almost glistens, as if polished. Of course, this is a bit of a problem when it comes to traction on wet leaves in the road, but it’s a worth it. And some of those leaves will become part of the road from the constant pressure of wheels over-running them and pressing them into the asphalt. So by winter, the branches above will be bare, but the ghosts of the leaves will still be stencilled on the road, looking almost copper on the grey when the light is right.
There’s a sculpture in St James Park which no doubt required a lot of effort and skill to achieve the same effect in bronze and concrete.
