Avranches

Marleen's Muses of the Avranches

After a bit of to-ing & fro-ing because of less than ideal weather conditions en route to our destination, 4 C42s left OS for Avranches in the early afternoon of Saturday 28 June to take part in the bi-annual Hangar Festival alias piss up in a hangar in Normandy.

Through TAFs and telephone information from the event organisers we were prepared to find low cloud over the Channel as we approached Cherbourg.  Some of us briefly explored the option of flying above them, but sensible lot we are, we all eventually resorted to flying below the cloud base instead, from where we could safely admire the white horses and marvel at the size & volume of shipping traffic.

Marleen's Muses of the AvranchesOnce we cleared the Channel the weather improved considerably and while some of us preferred to coast at leisure along the endless beaches of the Normandy peninsula, others decided to press on.  Rumour has it that the latter were motivated by the need for an aged-related comfort break but that could of course be no more than malicious gossip.

The airstrip, located in the salt-marshes of the Mont Saint Michel Bay, was not too hard to spot and after having being allocated a number in the landing queue by Avranches Radio we touched down safely after 2 and a bit hours.  We were marshalled to parking spaces where our group had only just re-assembled for a bit of bonding banter when a minibus sped along to meet us to ferry us to the club house.  Stoic lot we are we declined and preferred to stagger the 100 metres instead in an attempt to kick-start blood supply to our gluteus maximus & adjoining lower regions.

We received a warm welcome at the club house where we registered for dinner & drinks as well as the services of the shuttle bus to our respective hotels.  After loitering about a bit to get our bearings and some refreshing amber nectar it was time for a quick scoot to the hotel & back for an invigorating shower.

There was a healthy mix of French & English conversation floating through the air and after the initial, perhaps tentative, taste of the aperitif & nibbles, any reserve that might have persisted soon disappeared.

Rows of dressed tressle tables were lined up around the dance floor.  No sooner had we settled down when gave into the temptation to rip open our party packs with pea shooters, party hooters, streamers & balloons and joined the ferocious missile combat.

The initiated among us were very good at persuading the novices to abandon any aversion they may have had for dribble-soaked missiles, which the cotton projectiles invariable became as the evening progressed; and our group leader was even most forthcoming in sharing his missile dunking technique.

By this time some breadrolls had somehow become airborne interspersed by an assortment of debris varying in weight & size.  Throughout the fun we were entertained by a band and served 4 courses of good food and bottles of white & red wines of which our group acquired some extra supplies thanks to the cunning ingenuity of some of the group members.

During this boisterous event we did not neglect the opportunity to brainstorm the delicate issues of politics, religion and gender diversity.  In addition, some of us were compelled to release their inner musician, vocal and/or instrumental, improvising impressively with utensils at hand.

As the witching hours approached we decided to retreat to the comfort of our hotel beds for a well-deserved rest.

The next morning we all found our way back to the airfield in dribs & drabs.  The atmosphere was somewhat less exuberant despite liberal consumption of analgesics.  We filed our flight plan, topped up with fuel, completed pre-flight checks, lined our stomachs and took to the skies at lunchtime.

Following a photogenic detour around Mont Saint Michel we headed home.  After a slight deviation to avoid parachutists and a bit of cloud dodging we left the safety of the shores for what proved an “uneventful” channel crossing.

Back at OS we cogitated briefly over a cuppa and went our separate ways.

With special thanks to Cliff Sims who organised the trip and with warm regards to fellow aviators Bryan & David, Nigel & Alan, Roger & Paul.