Blighted

It takes a lot to ruin the pleasures of a bright spring morning around sunrise surrounded by natural beauty at its most inspiring. This is the time of year you most look forward to, having tolerated the worst that winter can throw at you. It's the time when everything natural displays the energy of youth that some of us can't hope to recapture for ourselves. So the deflation of spirits comes harder to bear.

The first signs that it was to be one of those days were at 6 am. Many mornings you can almost ignore the traffic on the nearby A road. Not today. A northerly airstream exaggerated the sound of scores of HGVs on their way to the motorway. This could have been Tinsley viaduct or a runway at Heathrow. We live in a very odd country administered by some very peculiar people among politicians and national park leaders who stand by allowing this to happen or at least not fighting it.

Then on towards Lenny Hill an area I've been avoiding having heard the wildlife trust has been working there.

 I should have kept away.

This kind of chainsaw hooliganism could only come from people whose education was seriously deficient assuming they had any at all.

Returning via the public footpath it's clear the mountain bikers have set themselves to wreck the fragile charm of one of the more attractive routes on Blacka. Deeply gouged in places and widened to the extent that some bikers have even even created two alternative tracks.

So much for their vaunted 'single track'. In time, perhaps soon, all paths will become scars saving only those few they've not yet discovered. It's pointless raising this with anyone. The wildlife trust don't care, nor the council officers. And the leaders of the bikers are worst of all, claiming it's walkers who are responsible.

 A mild disagreement  unleashes a torrent of hysterical personal abuse.

For those who are addicted to 'told you so' comments see this post from 5 years ago almost to the day.

Tomorrow must surely be better.