Woodchurch

Hi folks,

we are on the way home after the Easter break and what a cracking Monday it was too. After saying goodbye to Gloria and Tony and thanking them again for their help we set off.  Not for home but to check out another site in Tenterden which looked promising for the future. After a stop in a wooded area for lunch we trundled on to Woodchurch to check out there Kentish Smock Windmill which was supposed to be open Bank Holiday Monday. We parked up in the town and started to make our ascent towards the windmill.

Up and up we went, it looks lovely BUT it was perishing cold I tell you.

We reached the top only to find it was shut so Sue wrote a polite note of complaint and posted it through the letterbox, not that it will do any good but it made us feel a bit better. We looked on their website when we got home and sure enough "open Bank Holiday Monday's from Easter".

What Next? we said, on walking back down the hill with the silly sheep laughing at us we spied the Church and made a bee line for it. The Spire is 18 inches (46 cm for you new folk) out of the vertical at the top, so if it looks crooked that's because it is.
An unusual part of the Spire is that it houses four clock faces, an expensive addition at the time.

On the side wall has a sundial lit up in the bright spring light

And the front entrance had an unusual round castle like tower and castellated walls, very unusual.

In the churchyard I spied these flowers which looked real and it fooled me for a bit till I got home and blew it up on the computer and noticed the plastic ring inside the blooms.

Still feeling a bit fed up with the windmill up there on the hill in the wind, we turned around to 

see this wonderful carved door which ushered us inside the Church.

See what we found inside on the next blog.

Best regards, Mike

Evening Walk around Headcorn Countryside

Hi folks,

On Sunday evening the tired Teds of our group relaxed whilst I went off on my own to explore the surrounding area by the campsite on foot.

View of the Oast and Cottage further up the road, the vans were parked in a field to the right of the buildings.

Look closely and you can just see the vans, the patch on the right is water left behind by the rain and snow.

Over a stile and round a field I came across a dyke which I had to cross to get to Headcorn Village.

Around the other side I found the bridge but it was getting near tea time so I had to turn back.

Across a field I spied some fruit trees, must return in about a month to see the blossom.

Another Oast on the far side of the field which you could just see from the campsite.

Ah, at last a glimpse of sun, what a difference it makes.

Ploughed field near home and a cup of tea.

Finally you may remember the drab Daffodils from the morning a couple of blogs ago well this one recovered nicely.

Last night at the campsite, so tomorrow we set off around the area before going back home. I must admit that the couple who ran the site could not have been more helpful and accomodating, I will certainly go back again when the fruit trees blossom.

Thanks for dropping by.

Best regards, Mike

Headcorn During the War Years

Hi folks,

after we warmed up a bit we continued back to the airfield again this time there was very little flying due to the high winds so we checked out the museum.
 Not supposed to take pictures but I asked and I was given the ok as it was for personal use.

Inside were loads of parts of broken planes, below an engine from a Hurricane

The area was quite big and here is me mucking about with the security mirror, can you see Sue, Gloria (with the red scarf) and Tony with the Cheese cutter. Not forgetting me with Tony's Bucket Hat.

Look, Marilyn, I kid you not before she was famous involved in the Radioplane  target drone story with Ronald Reagan, see below.

The rest are with explanations along side.

Bet this will never fly again, crankshaft and pistons from a Spitfire shot down over Wye nr. Canterbury on 27th September 1940, the pilot was wounded.

One seriously bent valve.

Outside one of the trainees was practicing falling from a special rig in the airfield.

Over you go!!

Well thanks for looking, thanks all from the airfield.


Best regards, Mike

FROST!!

Hi folks,
after a great Saturday, we awoke to a very cold Sunday with frost making the whole site like a winter wonderland even though it was the last day of March.

I was up early as usual and took these whilst the other three were fast asleep, I think they had the best idea, stay in bed.

Even the poor Daffodils dropped their heads in disbelief.

As for the Rabbits, they were deep in their Burrows out of the way. The sign was really to warn the campers of the many holes dug in the fields  Daisy and Holly our doggy friends from the other blog would have been in their element. http://daisyg.blogspot.co.uk/

This is our friends Caravan, the water container and the pump taking water to the Caravan was frozen into the van.

When, an hour or so later they arose from their slumbers we set about thawing the pipes out.
We were so glad that Tony and Gloria had offered us their fan heater as by now we would be on the road looking for gas for our van by now. The really cold weather did not really worry us but I was a bit miffed that I had to on day three carry water to the van as I had not had the chance to fill the water tank.
Later in the day the sun came out and we moved Winnie (our camper) to the water tap only to find the the hose had frozen solid so we drove the van back again and with a sigh, I carried on filling water bottles for washing and a drink.

This last picture shows the setting on this beautiful site with a BBQ and tables and chairs at the far end, A book store with loads of books to read, sets of lounger chairs to sit on and maps to use to explore the country side. Later after lunch we went back to the airfield to explore more.

We intend to go back in about four weeks to see the blossom on the trees which Barry the owner said looked wonderful.

Well more tomorrow on our return to the airfield and something different.

Thanks for looking.

Best regards, Mike.

Easter Trip Away 2

Hi folks,

still at the airfield we waited with trepidation for the tandem parachutists to go up and low and behold the plane took off with them all on board.

It had been very gusty but finally out they jumped.

You can see them both strapped together with the novice in front.

Touchdown, most landed on the airstrip and some in the sheep field next to the runway.................

.....and this one just clipped the trees. All was ok and they all returned to get..................

.............................................congratulations from their partners.

Well done to all and it was back to the campsite for a warm up and some dinner.

The evening came very quickly and after dinner it was our turn to entertain in our van with Gloria and Tony and a few tipples. Then it was off to bed with the hope that it would warm up tomorrow with the fan heater whirring through the night, hoping for a warmer Sunday.

Thanks for looking and tomorrow we will see what Sunday brought.

Thanks for dropping by.

Best regards, Mike

Easter Trip Away

Hi folks,

So all the van was loaded and on Thursday Morning , a friend we were going with had a leak and her van was flooded so we had to make other arrangements to go with some other friends and go to Headcorn for the weekend. Now Headcorn is a lovely place set in the Kent countryside and not far from Tenterden a large town near the Kent Sussex border.
We duly arrived on site at about 4.30 pm and set up camp for our first night in our camper van and it was a bit chilly to say the least so undeterred on went the gas central heating and worked first time and kept us snug and warm.

This is Winnie, the van just after we arrived on site with the sun shinning.

After a good nights sleep, the first for many a year under the stars.  We awoke and had breakfast before setting off into Headcorn to check out the town, load up with provisions and chill out in the local coffee shop.  In the evening we were entertained by our friends Gloria and Tony who were next door in their caravan.  The outside temperature was dropping so to save on our gas supply we were able to borrow an electric heater from them.

 Saturday morning we were buzzed by small planes from the local airfield and went off to investigate.  Headcorn Aerodrome was just down the road and we had loads of planes flying over our heads the day before.

Three of the planes were sitting waiting for the all clear to taxi onto the runway.

Off they went and we noticed that they were practicing formation flying.

At midday the airfield was getting very busy and this Helicopter had to wait at the holding point as another plane came in to land.

Finally the sun made an appearance although it was bitterly cold taking the pictures.

There we are, just a few from the day, we noticed parachutists getting ready for a tandem jumps for charity, have a look tomorrow to see how they got on.

Thanks for taking the time to look.

Best regards, Mike

My Story of Easter

Hello folks,

So so sorry for the time away from the blog. My intentions were good but at the last minute there was a change of location and I ended up in a black spot, internet wise so I could not publish anything on the web.
The story will unfold as I go through next week and explain what went on, I did however manage to go to a few places and snap some pictures.

Here's one that sums up the Easter break and I will reveal later where it was taken.

Thanks for being patient and I hope you all kept warm on the coldest Easter we have had for a long time.

Best regards, Mike