Well we've really enjoyed our 10-day break at the lovely Low Moor Cottages, the weather has been a little mixed; Not much rain but cloudy much of the week, however we've not once been twiddling our fingers with nothing to do. And well today, the best weather of the week and probably the most enjoyable day of the week. And whilst I mention the weather, also the first day of the week when the need for a hat was as a result of sun and not rain. That said, I'd ignored Donna's common sense approach of putting sun cream on and ended up with a head like the end of a matchstick. Yet again the 'Wise Woman' was correct.
Due to the crowds expected in Scarborough (the event would be opened at noon by the town-crier) we headed off at 10:15am and at little after 10:30 we were parked up on the north-bay side of Marine Drive. Surprisingly parking was much easier than expected as many people hadn't yet arrived, and many were coming in on the park and ride.
Our initial plan was to park up near the castle and kill two birds with one stone by visiting the castle, and then staying up there to get a good view of the display, but in the end we opted for our back-up plan of heading for the benches at the end of the pier next to the lighthouse. By 11am we had settled down on a bench overlooking the sea, and this would become our 'base' for the next 3 hours. People would have to come well armed to take our bench from us...lol
It didn't take that long for the resort to fill up, all the benches on the pier were now full as were the other parts of the harbour. In fact almost everywhere you looked it was packed. All paths up and down the headland were full of people taking up their viewpoint, the roads along the esplanade and the bridge were lined in people, as was the main road along the front of the south-bay. Various events were taking place along the beach and along parts of the harbour. Lots of simulators for the kids, an assault course on the beach plus a large inflatable mini assault course for the little 'uns.
Just prior to 1pm our friends Mark and Sarah came and joined us, they were at Cayton Bay for the weekend so we'd agreed to keep in touch by the miracle of text. Then just as the programme had indicated, the RAF Typhoon came into view and for 5-10 minutes we were mesmerised by it's display, the speed and noise were staggering. You have to have so much respect for the skill and bravery of those pilots, and can only imagine what they would have to face in any conflict. Then as quickly as the plane arrived it tore off into the distance and became just a memory.
We had less than an hour to wait until the display by the Red Arrows, and the time flew by as there was so much going off in and around the harbour, therefore plenty to grab your gaze. I counted through the number of photos that I'd taken of the Typhoon; 226 photos, but at 8 frames per second that soon adds up.
It wasn't long before the Red Arrows introduced themselves to the resort with a red, white and blue trail in the skies above. For around 20 minutes we were treated to a stunning aerial display, again my camera fired away in the hope of trying to catch them in focus and exposed such that they didn't just appear as shadows against the bright sky.
As we hadn't picked up a table of events we got our times mixed up for the fly-past of the Lancaster Bomber and Spitfires, so we were actually walking back down the pier as they rumbled over the harbour. That said they circled the harbour a few times, enough time for the crowds to erupt into singing the Dambusters theme.
Half way down the front we ventured onto the beach to await members of the parachute regiment making a drop from the skies. A large area was cordoned off, with the beach marked with both a large cross and a number of orange flares. As they dropped from the sky they teased us into thinking they were way off target, before manoeuvering themselves into the target area. We shouldn't have questioned their ability really now should we?
As soon as this display had concluded we walked the rest of the south-bay down to visit the new Farrers Bar at the Spa, where we quenched our thirst with a pint of Sommersby and Gin & Tonic: And of course I was the one with the pint, Donna is a lady you know. The Farrers Bar was built as part of the refurbishment of the Spa, and they've certainly done a great job of giving it a fresh look but keeping the grand feel of the building. Just a pity though that like most establishments you can't have a drink outside without having to put up with cigarette smoking spoiling the fresh air. Why most bars and restaurants don't have dedicated outside smoking and non-smoking areas I'll never understand.
On our route back along the beach we detoured back up to the road to meet up with the marching band followed by smartly dressed and highly decorated war veterans, plus army and RAF cadets. As they turned and headed back down the sea-front we followed them back to the formal area where all the dignatories were congregated. They all went through inspections before various speeches were made, and hymns sung as the whole event would down. The only negative aspect of this part was that people were stood a long time in the son and quite a few of the cadets had to be taken to the shade, and one RAF cadet had to be taken by ambulance as he's collapsed in the heat.
It had been a really great day. The weather had held (as you could see from the colour of my face), and there was so much so keep you entertained, even just people watching kept you busy. My highlight of the day had to be the Typhoon, I had butterflies in my stomach watching it and a tear in my eye with pride.
Well tomorrow is our last full day, nothing really planned other than a visit to the Harbour Bar on the sea-front; We'd only been once and that was on our first day so a second ice-cream treat was well deserved. Then a relaxing afternoon around the cottage and looking forward to Great Malvern in August.
Our initial plan was to park up near the castle and kill two birds with one stone by visiting the castle, and then staying up there to get a good view of the display, but in the end we opted for our back-up plan of heading for the benches at the end of the pier next to the lighthouse. By 11am we had settled down on a bench overlooking the sea, and this would become our 'base' for the next 3 hours. People would have to come well armed to take our bench from us...lol
Just prior to 1pm our friends Mark and Sarah came and joined us, they were at Cayton Bay for the weekend so we'd agreed to keep in touch by the miracle of text. Then just as the programme had indicated, the RAF Typhoon came into view and for 5-10 minutes we were mesmerised by it's display, the speed and noise were staggering. You have to have so much respect for the skill and bravery of those pilots, and can only imagine what they would have to face in any conflict. Then as quickly as the plane arrived it tore off into the distance and became just a memory.
We had less than an hour to wait until the display by the Red Arrows, and the time flew by as there was so much going off in and around the harbour, therefore plenty to grab your gaze. I counted through the number of photos that I'd taken of the Typhoon; 226 photos, but at 8 frames per second that soon adds up.
It wasn't long before the Red Arrows introduced themselves to the resort with a red, white and blue trail in the skies above. For around 20 minutes we were treated to a stunning aerial display, again my camera fired away in the hope of trying to catch them in focus and exposed such that they didn't just appear as shadows against the bright sky.
As we hadn't picked up a table of events we got our times mixed up for the fly-past of the Lancaster Bomber and Spitfires, so we were actually walking back down the pier as they rumbled over the harbour. That said they circled the harbour a few times, enough time for the crowds to erupt into singing the Dambusters theme.
Half way down the front we ventured onto the beach to await members of the parachute regiment making a drop from the skies. A large area was cordoned off, with the beach marked with both a large cross and a number of orange flares. As they dropped from the sky they teased us into thinking they were way off target, before manoeuvering themselves into the target area. We shouldn't have questioned their ability really now should we?
On our route back along the beach we detoured back up to the road to meet up with the marching band followed by smartly dressed and highly decorated war veterans, plus army and RAF cadets. As they turned and headed back down the sea-front we followed them back to the formal area where all the dignatories were congregated. They all went through inspections before various speeches were made, and hymns sung as the whole event would down. The only negative aspect of this part was that people were stood a long time in the son and quite a few of the cadets had to be taken to the shade, and one RAF cadet had to be taken by ambulance as he's collapsed in the heat.
Well tomorrow is our last full day, nothing really planned other than a visit to the Harbour Bar on the sea-front; We'd only been once and that was on our first day so a second ice-cream treat was well deserved. Then a relaxing afternoon around the cottage and looking forward to Great Malvern in August.
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