In Amberley

We've missed a few days because of poor Wi-Fi connectivity out here on the Downs, but we'll try here from The Thatched House in Amberley. This is about 48 miles from Winchester, where we started on Sunday. Since then we did a 14 mile slog up over Beacon Hill into Cocking, we stayed at Moonlight Cottage for the night. Then yesterday it was another long day to Amberley. We're finding the sometimes rough flint-pebbled chalk pathways to be really hard on our feet, even with good Keen (Sam) and Merrell (Joan) hiking boots.
The "sparkle" yesterday for Sam was high up on the open down meadows when we stopped to talk with a local hiker. As we chatted, the low buzz of a small propeller driven airplane grew in loudness and he said: "That's a Spitfire fighter from Goodwood, taking a tourist up for a spin." The plane rapidly came closer and lower to the ground as it approached us and soon the familiar silhouette and unmistakable roar of the big piston-driven Merlin engine filled the air. For Sam, who had never seen one of these legendary planes up close, it brought back memories of The Battle of Britain and hearing Walter Cronkite reporting through the static of the big Motorola radio in our living room in Grafton, MA.