Quick flit through Bishopswood and I was on my way towards Eastmead and Westmead. I used to walk through these as a regular route from the park to Horsell/Woking, they run parallel to Lockfield Drive which doesn’t have a footpath despite being quite wide with huge verges. I always wondered why, not that you’d want to walk along a 50mph road, but it is quite direct. During my research last week at Surrey History Centre I seem to remember reading that there was potential to to upgrade Lockfield Drive to a dual carriageway in the future, thankfully that never happened.
First point of interest enroute was the Fox and Flowerpot, you may think it’s a somewhat quaint pub from the name alone, if you ever have the chance to visit I’m sure you’ll change your mind. I’ve always been disappointed by this pub, maybe I’m a pub snob. I last visited a few months ago, the first thing that struck me were the large CCTV monitors visible behind the bar, clearly informing you “you’re being watched”. It made me feel a little anxious that something was about to go down, I assume they’re going for the panopticon theory that if you think you’re being watched you’ll behave. The pub forms an island in the corner of the central area car park and has seating on the road side, concrete picnic benches. Inside the interior is floodlit in a sort of white/blue light, when I visited there was a Millwall game on the TV, situated next to Waitrose, the whole outfit feels strangely out of place. It’s quite hard to photograph, the back car park side is the sort of mess that you’d except at the back of a pub, bins, air conditioners etc. The front side is on the main road and screened by some foliage, the side entrance leads on to the walkway to the shops.
Westmead
I took the long path towards the canal but veered off to the left before I made it to Lockfield Drive bridge, ending up in the sprawling Fenwick Close. The houses are larger here than most of the park, some brick, some half clad in wood, I had a little explore then headed out towards Westmead. On the corner of Westmead a house is having a complete overhaul, scaffolding on both sides, almost as if they are adding wings, I’m a fan of scaffolding so I got a little distracted, the light was good too! Walked along my old route towards Harelands Roundabout, and then down towards Roffords, through to Ridsdale Road and back in to Quintrell Close. I stumbled across numerous cars with covers, these are a magnet to photographers, it’s hard to say why. I guess it’s that they stand out, they make an almost childlike car shape and they have creases in them which the light falls across beautifully. Anyway, it’s almost impossible to walk past a car with a cover without taking a photo, I even managed to get two in the same image, one with a mudflap sticking out that said “Nissan”, a little hint.
The light this morning was pretty decent, soft, a little hazy, the sky was blue but not that pure harsh blue, more like the sort of blue sky you’d see in a water colour. I took a few images of the skatepark at Lakeview Recreation Ground last week, the composition worked well but they deserved better light, so I headed back. I was visiting a little later than last time and there were some children hanging around on their way to school, my school in fact, whenever I see the uniform it always transports me back in time. I ponder about how I felt at school and how at the time it felt so all encompassing. I found it hard at that age to imagine what the future would hold, what it would be like to be an adult, what job would I have, where would I live. I feel lucky to have a job I genuinely enjoy and for all the opportunities I’ve had in life. I wish I could have reassured younger me!
Lakeview Recreation Ground
I head back towards the lake via Tresillian Way, I take a little while to sit by the lake, I think I understand why people go fishing.