2011 Streak 47/365: No diggers

2011 Streak 47/365: Cycle - 15.5 miles, Time 1hr 11min, Weather cool winter light (the sky looked like a watercolour).

Although I cycle along country lanes, with views of open fields or woods, I am only 25 miles from the centre of London. The South east of England is one of the most densely populated areas of Europe and so some form of infrastructure is never far away. Not only large-scale, visible engineering projects like the major motorways,but also  things hidden underground - like pipelines to service the airports with fuel. Buncefield is one of the major hubs of the UK oil pipeline network so underneath the land I pass there must be a lot of big pipes.

I had no idea. I obviously know about the obvious pipelines for water, sewage, gas and electricity that are underneath every pavement but have never thought about the long-distance, trunk, network. I wonder what a map would look like?

Obviously there are now precautions being taken about the pipelines of aviation fuel and little signs have been erected warning people not to use diggers. At the moment they look nice and bright and white (but i don't know how long that will last).

I like this one with its little tin roof - it looks vaguely quirky, ias if it is an incomplete nesting box.