Saturday June 19th 2010 - Oswestry Showground

The weather that morning was glorious as I set off for Oswestry in Shropshire. This was to be a weekend with a difference - I was indulging my interest in old tractors and going to a vintage vehicle and steam rally. I had been to this particular show a few times before as an exhibitor but this was the first time on my own and without an old tractor in tow. It was an easy drive and took just a little over two hours - I had given the dogs a good walk before setting off so I didn't need to stop on the way, though once I arrived at the showground and parked up I took them for a quick walk to see Graham and Jean, a couple of the stewards, before doing anything else. It wasn't worth putting the awning on the side of the van this time so I just had my small tent, which was good enough for myself and the dogs for one night.

With everything sorted out I went for a wander round the show - my first port of call was the stalls, then I worked my way round all the various vintage exhibits finally ending in the tractor section. I didn't count how many tractors were on display but there seemed to be more than I have seen previously at that show. A few of them had bodywork which was in keeping with old machines still in regular use, complete with dents, holes, and patches of rust, while others had been carefully restored to their original 'new' condition and had gleaming paintwork and brand new tyres. There were many different makes and models, and even though I was familiar with all of them, and had seen some of them at many previous shows, I still enjoyed looking at them and chatting to a couple of the owners.

Once I had looked round everything a couple of times I treated myself to a cheeseburger from one of the catering wagons and took it back to the van, where I made my own mug of coffee and dined in comfort while watching the world go by. Later on I took the camera and went for a wander over the back of the showground where most members of the public didn't venture - there was dead tree there which I had meant to photograph the last time I was there but had forgotten about it until it was too late. Before I reached the tree I lingered for a few minutes by a gate leading into a meadow - the grass was dotted with an abundance of buttercups, and the meadow itself stretched for quite a distance to both left and right. Directly across and slightly to the left a red brick farmhouse was partially hidden among the trees, and over by the far fence I could just make out a handful of cattle, most of which were lying down. The whole scene looked, to me at least, to be positively idyllic and I couldn't resist taking a photo - this was just the sort of place I would like to live if I won the lottery.

From there I followed the hedge till I came to 'the tree'. Now it may sound strange wanting to photograph a dead tree but I found this one particularly fascinating - it may possibly have suffered a lightning strike at some time as it was completely devoid of any vegetation, and somehow the gnarled and twisted pale grey branches reminded me of the mythical snakes entwined in Medusa's hair.

With my tree photography over I returned to my van to sit out in the sunshine - I was tempted to have another look round the stalls but decided to save that till the following day, so apart from taking the dogs for a final walk before bedtime I didn't leave my base for the rest of the day.