Scandia Cowes Week 2007 Fire Works

I have to say, I'm not a yachty type. But there is something special about the annual yacht regatta that is Skandia Cowes' Week. (My Dad once told me a rhyme about the wierd place names on the Isle of Wight. "Cowes that you can't milk, Ryde where you have to walk, Needles that you can't thread" - and stuff like that. I'll have to get him to tell me the rest of it)

Held every year (I think it's been going since the 1800's) Cowes' Week is one of those events where you think, "How the heck do they make it work?" - There are thousands of boats of all types vying for the same bit of water in the Solent. And they're supposed to be racing each other in all their correct classes and with all their times recorded!

Anyway, as I've already said, I'm not really a yachty type. But there is one thing I really like about Cowes Week. The firework display on the Friday night.

Now you might wonder what is so special about fireworks? These are something else!! They go on for half an hour and THEY CAN BE SEEN FROM THE MAINLAND!!

That is where the attraction comes from. From 9:30pm the fireworks are let off and thousands of people come down to the mainland beaches to watch them.

Our favourite spot is either at Lee-on-the-Solent or slightly further up the coast at Hill Head.

So how come fireworks on the Isle of Wight can be such an attraction on the Mainland? Well, because they're so extravagant and obviously expensive, they can easily be seen from the Mainland and still appear really impressive.

As you can see from the screenshot from Google Earth, the fireworks are some 5 miles away. That just goes to show how impressive they are!

So, what else was happening on the beach as we were waiting for the fireworks?

Well, apart from Sydney (miniDiva!) digging a comfy hole in the shingle there was Alison tucking into a bottle of wine!!

And don't let's forget the views of the Solent, looking across to Fawley Oil Refinery.