Saturday, 27 September 2008

A memorable day

The early morning was foggy and the mist rose slowly as Jackie and I took our breakfast. As the sun broke through the mist, we decided on a whim that we would spend the day walking in Hatfield Great Park. We arrived there shortly after 10:00, paid our £5 entrance fee and parked near the never-quite-as-beautiful-as-it-should-be Hatfield House. As everyone else entered the house, we donned our walking boots and strode off into the woods. As usual, we said “there used to be a tank there” and “there used to be an oak tree there”.

We walked for a couple of miles through the ancient oak forest, now invaded by alien Rhododendron. Then we came to the River Lea, so much more broad and beautiful than I ever remember it. The sun was high and warm and there was barely a cloud in the sky nor a stirring of wind and not another soul around save for Jackie and I. A heron perched on top of a tree on the opposite bank. As I told Jackie of my boyhood visits to this exact spot, a kingfisher emerged from right under our feet and shot across the river to the far bank. A little later, another kingfisher appeared. This one flew across the surface of the water describing 320 degrees of a near-perfect circle and never rising more than two inches from the water.

I've seen kingfishers in books and on the television, but nothing prepared me for how exhilarating they are in real life - their electric blue brilliance is simply breath-taking.

We became slightly intoxicated I think and walked for hours and miles, carried forward by the memory of the kingfishers. We eventually arrived home tired and exhausted and extremely happy. The best £5 I have spent for a very long time.