Thursday 19th January (Peasants and Pheasants)


Mr. Kite looked out of his bedroom window into a cloudy sky with a hint of drizzle. With a reasonable forecast Mr. Kite and his birding companion planned a gentle ride to watch birds.

Not an Unkindness


The Incapacitants had a delayed start as the drizzle turned to rain. However at eleven o'clock The Incapacitants started watching birds and were in competition. Cycling along the roads through Hook-a-Gate, Annscroft, Plealey and Pontesbury the usual birds were spotted. From Pontesbury The Incapacitants headed towards Habberley where 'an unkindness of ravens' made an appearance. Now these mighty black birds showed 'great kindness' to The Incapacitants as they wheeled, dived and filled the sky with shiny black shapes.

The Unkindness


Further along the road The Incapacitants did come a cross a real unkindness; peasants shooting pheasants. Now Mr. Kite does not agree with pheasants being released into the English countryside as they are non-native and a pest; but Mr. Kite does not believe that 'the beaters' with sticks should scare them into the path of the peasants who then blast from the skies with their shotguns. Cycling past 'The Real Unkindness' The Incapacitants watched as ten peasants blasted ten pheasants into oblivion.

From Ratlinghope to Home


On this mild day many birds had taken to the air. On the Long Mynd and over towards The Stiperstones common buzzards flirted, ravens cavorted and a red kite stole the show as it glided through the air flexing it's tail to control the circling path as it searched for food on the hills below. The trip back towards The Town was an easy downhill run with the wind behind only interrupted to repair mr. Kite's puncture.

The competition was a draw. Mr. Kite arrived home and had a tipple of Tetley tea. Cheers.