With the promise of a reasonable weekend weatherwise, we decided on a trip to the Sussex coast on Saturday and to the Riverside at Windsor on Sunday.
It would be fair to say that I am quick to give the forecasters stick when they get it wrong, so I admit that for this weekend the BBC forecast was spot-on.
Saturday dawned a bit grey and damp following overnight rain, but the forecast had predicted that and suggested it would brighten up as the morning went on - and in any case, the forecast was better for the South Coast.
We had decided on a visit to a favourite spot of ours, the Seven Sisters/Beachy Head area in Sussex for a cliff-top walk and to hopefully follow that with sunset at Birling Gap.
The drive from Surrey down to Sussex took us through some lovely countryside and, from about halfway onwards, our journey was blessed with some lovely winter sunshine.
The sun was still out as we arrived at a car park near to Beachy Head, with a beautiful blue sky and a slight breeze. We set out on a leisurely stroll over the cliff-top until we were about one hour from the car and then returned via the same route.
The views and the fresh sea air were great, and obviously appreciated by many judging by the number of other walkers.
After a brief drink stop at the car, we continued our walk in the opposite direction until we were almost at Birling Gap before returning to the car.
My plan for sunset changed when I considered the possibility of shooting the Pier at Eastbourne with the sun setting behind it, but the trip to Eastbourne showed me that this was a wrong move as the angle for this was wrong. So, we quickly turned around and set off back to Birling Gap where we arrived just in time to catch a quick pic of the sun glistening off the tops of the small waves as it set rapidly.
Waking on Sunday after a very good nights' sleep (courtesy of the sea air and the walk), we headed to Windsor after a late breakfast for a riverside walk - at least this walk was on level ground.
Our walk alongside the River Thames was beautiful, even if the sun did only sporadically pop out from behind the clouds. Again, there were a lot of other people out enjoying the relatively mild winter weather and the surroundings. Swans, Geese and Ducks were plentiful on the river, while the pleasure boat trips were doing a steady trade and plenty of others just enjoyed a stroll along the river side path.
After crossing the river at one of the road bridges, our return walk rewarded us with a lovely view of Windsor Castle set above the old town with the Thames in the foreground.
All in all, a great weekend and proof that you don't need to spend lots to enjoy yourselves in this great country we live in - hope you enjoy the pics.
