Lockdown 2.0 Diaries: BS5 – Lawrence Hill, Easton and Greenbank

A one-wheeled machine like something from Back to the Future sped along the Bristol & Bath Railway Path on a recent Thursday, overlooked by the Lawrence Hill flats glinting in the afternoon sun.

The rumble of cars on St Phillip’s Causeway could just be heard amid the rustle of golden leaves.

“So that’s why I’m mostly staying in these days,” a 20-something women wearing a black Evisu bomber jacket said loudly on the phone as she walked in the direction of the flats.

Walking in the other direction, two young Spanish friends were using sticks to make their stroll easier, turning Lawrence Hill into something resembling a summit in the Pyrenees.

Coincidentally, they had just walked under a bridge which has the word ‘dolor’, Spanish for ‘pain’, painted on one side.

The Bristol & Bath Railway Path runs parallel to Owen Square Park in Easton – photo: Martin Booth

Further along the Railway Path is a glimpse into First Bus’ depot, where half a dozen open-top Coaster buses were parked; the blue, yellow and orange buses bearing the tagline ‘Cruise along the coast’ waiting in Lawrence Hill before they can return to their usual journeys between Burnham-on-Sea and Sand Bay via Weston-super-Mare.

A runner passed by in similar colours to the Coasters. He was wearing an orange top of the Netherlands football team and the blue shorts of Chelsea.

Under the bridge here, cars traversed this short section of Easton Road much more slowly than the runner due to a flash flood caused by heavy rain.

In the window of the nearby Plough, a Black Lives Matter sign was next to one saying that the pub would be reopening that night for takeaway and delivery.

On the path leading from the B2B to Easton Community Centre, two grandparents were pushing their sleeping grandchild in a buggy, while in Owen Square Park, a solitary basketball player was attempting three-pointers in the half of the court not covered by a giant puddle.

A wet Easton Road with the Railway Path above it – photo: Martin Booth

A yellow YoBike sat broken and abandoned near close to where the path is crossed by Devon Road, with a blue sticker on the side of this bridge thanking those underneath for not driving.

Runners’ steps echoed underneath, followed by one cyclist listening to a Spanish radio station via his phone firmly attached to the front of his bike.

On Bruce Road, close to where a footbridge looked like it used to cross the former railway line, a sign warns that caravans and trailers parked here can be removed.

On the other side of the road, a white-haired man in navy blue overalls tinkered with a yellow motorbike in his garage. “The government doesn’t know shit,” he told a friend who had stopped for a chat.

Bruce Road has been a popular place for van dwellers to live – photo: Martin Booth

Behind a hoarding covered in tags, the last vestiges of the Elizabeth Shaw chocolate factory were being removed.

Its concrete shell now looks over dozens of allotments within Packers Allotments – named after another former owner of the chocolate factory opposite – with St Ambrose church in Whitehall seen in the distance.

Leaving the allotment, a mum with a double-buggy was helped up the steep steps by a man in an orange cycling jacket.

Some of the last vestiges of the former Elizabeth Shaw chocolate factory in Easton – photo: Martin Booth

The hoardings surrounding the former chocolate factory have been turned into a huge outdoor canvas by graffiti artists.

Access to the B2B is part of the marketing blurb for the development behind known as The Chocolate Factory, which once finished will contain 140 new homes as well as a cafe and bar, workspaces, shops, and a public square.

Further on, some familiar Bristol silhouettes – including St Michael’s Hospital chimney, the County Ground floodlights and the Purdown BT Tower – can all be seen over the graves of Greenbank Cemetery.

Main photo: Martin Booth

Read more: Lockdown 2.0 Diaries: BS4 – Knowle West and Totterdown