Dumped Horses Block The Road

Having dropped off the last passenger, it is a race to the depot and then back home. There is one last town which has to be driven through, up a step hill and through a narrow gap between buildings. A large driver in a baseball hat parked in the middle of the narrows so that nothing could get past. I hooted the horn and a figure with a face of thunder walked at snail's pace down the hill, as if to make the point that no one was going to hoot at him and get away with it.

Ah well - back to 'The little World Of Don Camillo." It was no great hardship. The other drivers coming down the hill were in far more impatient mood. A girl could not wait any longer and overtook two cars in the queue in front of her. She met me face to face and had to reverse back up the hill, nearly crashing into the lamppost.

It took 5 minutes to clear the blockage. It would be plain sailing back home. I was thinking of that nice glass of wine,sitting by the fire.

Having washed the bus, refuelled it and put it to bed,I started driving through the fog over the hill, homeward bound. A large horsebox passed me going the other way. Strange I thought to myself. A strange vehicle on a strange route at a strange time. Oh well.

Around the next corner two shabby and malnutritioned ponies appeared out of the fog, trotting and whinneying down the road. They must have been dumped by the people in the horsebox I had seen.

I couldn't just leave them, as tempting as it was. The top of the hill was cold and the rain was turning to sleet. So I called the local riding stables who came out, caught them and took them to a field for the night. I had to follow them back as there was a planned rally over the hilltop, with a speeding rally car due at any minute.

"I'm glad you called us," they said. "Some of these animal charities put them straight down. Because of the recession, people can't afford to keep their horses. We see more and more of them dumped."

How fortunate I am to live in the North Pennines, with such selfless people.