The Hawk's summer ramblings continue with two further splendid outings
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one to a collection of military memorablia in Norfolk, the other to a steam engine auction in Essex with 1,000 lots for sale.
Muckleburgh brings back the memories
Dwitcher spotting over the north Norfolk coast recently,the Hawk was attracted by the rumble and clatter of old WW2 army tanks lumbering around what used to be Weybourne Camp.
They belong to ex-Sqn Ldr Claude Berry Savory's Muckleburgh Collection of militaria spanning two world wars, the Falkland and Gulf conflicts interspersed with more than 200 years of local Yeomanry history.
One evocative item is 18year-old ensign R Blake Humfrey's letter home describing his shrapnel injuries at San Sebastion in December 1813 which led to a double leg amputation without anaesthetic.
Soft skinned wagons include a Hercules enginedDiamond T with IVIkl Crane (Fruehauf) tank trailer plus a Morris Quad with ammo' trailer and 25 pounder.
The lead-lined Quad earned its spurs in North Africa but according to this one's 1987 tax disc, it lived on as a snow plough.
A well preserved Mann Egerton-bodied Austin K2 (pictured) ambulance might just be the one driven by the Queen, then Princess E, during her WW2 ATS service.
Muckleburgh also has a curious Gatna Goat sixwheel artic carrier which had a strong tendency to roll over and inflict casualties on a grand scale.
There's a flame-throwing Churchill, a Stuart Honey and its successor the Chaffee (both with V-8 Caddie engines) plus a modern Mk5 Chieftain and Abbot and Swingfire tracked carriers. Ill are runners thanks to resident engineer Gerry Mejewski, a charming exGerman POW who settled in Norfolk after the War.
There's considerable testimony to the camp's former role of Ack Ack' training unit throughout this century up to its closure in the late fifties.
Most of it is housed in what used to be the old NAAFI block (where else to have a cuppa and muffin!) as the old metal window frames, Cardinal red floors and cast-iron Dauntless lavvie cisterns attest to.
The earphones hooked over the radio set in the Saracen APC, the blackened webbing, even the quartermaster storeman's old Hercules bike leant against the step outside all add a touch of realism.
For ex-Royal Electrical Mech Eng-Bluebells like the Hawk or others with more war-like service connections, Weybourne Camp is an ideal spot to spend a day reminiscing.
There's no end of other tourist attractions such as the superb North Norfolk Railway which runs from Sheringharn to Holt via Weybourne so there's plenty to interest non-military enthusiasts.
by the Hawk