13th February 2017 Standing room only for Red kites.

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Monday 13th 30F, -1C, heavy overcast, breezy. Grey and cold. Again! It was not so cold on my walk as weak-willed Jackdaws stood first watch on rural ramparts. Proud chimney and lowly cowl were soon abandoned as the orange-clad Goliath tramped past below. Blackbirds crisscrossed the road ahead of me. As a pair of Whooper swans passed silently overhead on a bee-line for the marsh pond. Their heads craned forwards in anticipation of breakfast. The Danish news reports a large increase in the number of Red Kites. There are even flocks of them in some areas. That won't half make the Scottish landowner's jealous. So many Red kites in one place and they can't poison any of them for a fat, tax-free profit.

I definitely have to go out today to catch up on the shopping. Late morning ride. First ten miles just  to buy some tools. A tailwind was helping me to cruise at 16-17. I hit 23mph on the flat on the way there with 12mph on climbs. The shaded forest was snowier than the open fields. A cold headwind coming home into weak sunshine. Going quite well today. I saw a single hare sitting in a field. 23 miles.

Tuesday 14th 27-37F, -3+3C, heavy overcast, breezy. The snow clings on like a badly applied coat of whitewash. Walked up to the woods going anticlockwise. Brief glimpse of the sun lasted only seconds. Later I was working comfortably outside in a jumper as it reached 37F, 3C in warm sunshine. Too busy for a ride today.

Wednesday 15th 27-39F, -3+4C, light winds, slightly misty under a clear, blue sky. The first oncoming vehicle housed a sad, deluded moron in an Alpha Romeo traveling at high speed. He was aiming straight for me until the very last moment when he took a racing line right across the blind corner. The next was a six-axle, excavator transport, low loader, on the next blind corner. Are amputees allowed to be lorry drivers? Then why should any lorry driver be allowed to drive with one hand welded to their mobile phone while cutting a blind corner?

Today I walked a rare, public footpath with excellent views out across the slightly misty landscape below. The path runs along a track past an isolated farmhouse and, just for once, they took the dogs in as I approached. I try to keep my enjoyment of this path as an unusual treat so as not to spoil it by familiarity.

A solitary Shelduck was standing on the ice right out in the middle of the lake. Two hundred Mallards ignored it pointedly. As they stood around, idly watching others, a few gulls and Coots take a morning bath. The majority had obviously got cold feet, one way or another. A chilly breeze tried to make my eyes water as I trudged the last leg into the low, blinding sun. Small flocks of Redwings and Fieldfares looked nervously on from the roadside hedges as I played asymmetric dodgems with the oncoming traffic.

Late afternoon ride in bright sunshine as it reached 39F, +4C. Though it certainly didn't feel that warm on the trike. Earlier I was working on the house in just a jumper again. Only 7 miles.

Click on any image for an enlargement.

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