Thanks. I would have waited for you but you weren’t picking up messages 
I use a Canon G7X for most stuff. Small enough to carry in a waistbag. RAW → Lightroom of course…
That landing fee is not bad at all for an airfield with proper opening hours (SR-SS) and a low bullshit quotient.
Especially if I leave two seats at home. ;-)
We just had a family day out at Bembridge. The man who took the landing fees made a point of personally welcoming everyone on arrival and asking if they had had a good day on departure. A nice touch.
We walked to the beach in Whitecliff bay along the side of the holiday park, which is nicer but hard work with a pushchair (in red on the map). The two cafés on the beach were closed but there were a couple of vans selling waffles and ice creams. We’ve not been to the Propeller Inn for 2 or 3 years, but the food was pretty good then. The kids had a swim (I wasn’t brave enough) and loads of fun on the beach. On a previous trip we walked on the rocks around the headland but you need to be careful as the tide can come in quickly.
We were planning on spending the afternoon at the Wildheart Animal Sanctuary (ex Isle of Wight Zoo) which is just 7 minutes away, but missed the bus. The bus stop is at the entrance to the airfield/pub, which is convenient. A couple of minutes’ walk to the east the next bus stop (‘Duck Pond’, at Stanwell Barn on the map above) has a bench installed by the Boys’ brigade and might be a better place to wait. It’s route 8 with buses every hour (timetable and map; date will need changing). At the same stop for the zoo is also Dinosaur Isle. As we had missed the bus, we took one a few minutes later the other way, 15 minutes into Bembridge. There isn’t much to do there, but we had a walk around the village then went to look at the boats in the harbour. £2.50 adults, £1.25 children, under 5s free. With a pushchair the bus was perfect
The windmill is easily walkable and worth a visit. It’s run by the National Trust and only £6.00, but doesn’t last very long and involves a lot of climbing up and down ladders. There’s a footpath shortcut in red:
We’ve also previously been up the hill a few times to the Yarborough monument, the big pointy thing on the hill to the south. It’s a nice walk with good views from the top, a gun emplacement, a pub, café, and usually an ice cream van. Never been, but there’s also Bembridge fort, run by the National Trust.
Not been either, but apparently Bembridge lifeboat station is worth a visit too (currently closed due Covid).
