Calshot

[Catherine]

Calshot is at the western end of Southampton Water - on the tip of the land where it meets the Solent.

Today we went there to see the Supermarine winner of the 1931 Schneider Trophy race. It's only on display until Sunday, so we were glad we had chosen such a lovely, warm, autumn day!

It was displayed in its original Scneider hangar.

[Catherine]

Other points of note at Calshot - forgetting the long beach lined with colourful beach huts - are the activities centre (velodrome, climbing walls and sailing and diving clubs, bar-café, etc.), the tall look-out tower 'the eyes of the Solent', the RNLI lifeboat station, Calshot Castle (the historic Tudor Fort which later was used by the RAF and the Navy) and the Amazing view up Southampton Water and along the Solent.

You can see the Spinnaker Tower at Portsmouth, a Palmerston Fort in the sea, the Isle of Wight (Cowes end!) and you can watch cruise ships (including the 'Queens') leave for exotic destinations all round the world.

Here are a few pics of Calshot landmarks!

PS - There were birds there as well - a Little Egret and many waders were in the lagoon just inland from the hangars.

[rolf]

That plane is awesome, not a lot of forward visibility though. Think I've been to Calshot as a kid, must visit again some day.

[Catherine]

It's very busy at school holiday times - problem with parking then too. However, on a warm spring day it's lovely down there.

Yesterday it was amazingly mild at Calshot. Officially it was 14c, but seemed much more like 18c as there was little or no breeze. (Check the limp flags, and the guy who was fishing with just a light top on.) Many folks were wearing t-shirts, like the boy in this pic. I think his grandfather was telling him all about the 'good old days'!