Heading for the clouds

A walk in the Hampshire countryside this afternoon turned into an amazing encounter. Before the walk we went to a pub for lunch - the same pub where P and I had our very first conversation 5.5 years ago. So it’s a special place for me. It’s in a little village in the Meon valley - all very pretty - thatched cottages, Saxon church etc, and we chose the circular walk that starts from the church, passes the vineyard with splendid views across the Downs, into the woods where there are beautiful trees to hug. It was a delightful walk, gorgeous views, fabulous sky and we even spotted herons, hares and thankfully lots of butterflies.

We were on the stretch back towards the start and we noticed in the distance a group of biplanes in a field. P being a fan of all old aircraft suddenly became very excited. What a coincidence that today was the day that this group of biplane owners/pilots met in the field - it is evidently an annual event. There were 6/7 planes - some First World War, beautifully maintained and one French plane from the 1960s. We were lucky to see the pilot prepare for take off and witnessed this beautiful plane reach for the clouds. It was such a memorable day.