IT was a windy day with gusts causing many of the lush greeny silver birch trees to bend back and shake their leaves furiously. The sky was a deep, rich blue, but all around stood tall ominous rain clouds.

The tops of these clouds were billowing white masses. Just how high the top of these clouds were, was evident by the way they were pressed flat against the atmospheric barrier of the tropopause.

Looking towards the base of the clouds, things got uglier with the snowy white changing to deep menacing almost purple, grey.

Visibility was great as it always is on stormy days, but then as I looked into the wind I could not see where the ground ended and the sky began.

Seconds later, there was a flicker of lightening and a rumble of thunder and the first thing which sprung to mind, was where to shelter.

It's never wise to shelter next to a tree in an electrical storm, especially in a heath area where there are a few large, but scattered trees.

Lightening likes to strike at high points, I have seen the aftermath of trees, which have been hit by lightening causing water in the tree to expand rapidly with the bark being blown off with a lethal, explosive force.

Eventually, I chose to curl up behind a mound of sand, which stopped a few of the tens of thousands of pea-sized hailstones from stinging my flesh.

Fortunately, after a few minutes the hail faded to rain, the storm moved and the sun began to shine. As I uncurled myself I discovered a wildlife treat.

Spinning, twisting and skimming just millimetres over the heather was a mass of swallows and house martins. With the grass slightly steaming from the storm and the birds whizzing past me, it was an amazing experience.

I have watched bats at close proximity, but these birds were matching the bats for agility and flying at break-neck pace. On occasions I could look into house martins' eyes as they headed towards me, getting to within arm's reach before veering away.

This was quite a spectacle to behold. The passing storm had incited swarms of insects into the air and these masters of flight were feeding with such gusto they were almost totally oblivious to my presence.