Saturday, November 14, 2009

Bad night for ducks

Well the weather was ok for ducks last night but they really shouldn't try and cross a busy main road at night - more on that later.

Leaving Palmy and heading out to Ashhurst for the Friday night ride Brian & I really copped some wet stuff and so we when pulled up at Ashhurst we weren't too surprised that there was only one other hardy soul out and about - Road King on his VFR.
After waiting around for a while to see who else might show we finally decided to take off and ride Vinegar Hill to Hunterville for some tea. The roads were quite wet as we left Ashhurst but the closer we got to Fielding the better the weather became. Before long we were riding in dry conditions and Vinegar Hill was starting to look like a good choice for the ride.

It turned out to be a great idea as the road was in really good condition and there was very little traffic on it. The three Hondas gave their riders a fantastic ride and soon we were parked up at the Hunterville cafe ordering some tea and keeping a close eye on the weather outside.

The return trip was a pootle down SH1 before turning off to go through Halcombe and Fielding. It was just getting dark but was a really nice ride with the rain managing to stay away until just before home where we copped a few spits.

And the poor old ducks? Well, over the past few weeks I have come across duck families crossing the road three times and until last night I had managed to avoid hitting one but last night their luck ran out. A very large family (with mostly grown up kids) decided to cross the road (all in line astern) in front of me in the dark and only just saw them as I came across them. Unfortunately I had no time at all (and no options) and I ploughed right over one. All Brian saw was feathers and then he was through as well, although he reckoned he got through the gap I'd made without hitting one. Poor little duck - if only they'd learn to use the pedestrian crossings...

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