A Failure?

Well it depends how you class failure I suppose. We didn’t manage to complete any of the tasks we intended this weekend but we did instead make the most of the fabulous weather we were blessed with.

Saturday saw us set off in the general direction of Lincoln. We needed some shopping so we moored right in the centre of the city and made the most of the great value butchers in Lincoln Market. £6 saw us with plenty of meat for a BBQ on Saturday evening, sausages for breakfast on Sunday and a huge haggis for dinner on Sunday. £2 spent in the greengrocers saw us with plenty of fresh vegetables for the weekend and £1 in the bakery bought four huge brown bread cakes. It is nice to support local business rather than use the supermarket chains when possible.

After a spot of shopping we set off for Fiskerton Fen Nature Reserve, a peaceful mooring in the middle of nowhere, great for a quiet evening afloat. After an evening BBQ we settled in with a few beers before hitting the sack.

Sunday dawned another scorcher of a day. So we set off for a wander around the reserve before heading to the local farm to stock up on fresh free range duck and chicken eggs. The prices were very reasonable and the quality second to none. The yokes of the chicken eggs are a great array of yellows and the taste is super. On our return to the boat we set off for Washingborough, where we would stop for breakfast. With a mammoth breakfast filling us up we set of back through Lincoln and Stamp End Lock. We had no need to rush so took our time negotiating the lock before ambling to the Pyewipe for a few quiet drinks, or so we thought.

We were soon joined by more friends and set off back for Brayford Pool in Lincoln centre. We anchored up in the pool and set off to explore in the dinghies. The river Witham joins the Fossdyke canal in the pool but is no longer navigable by larger vessels due to a number of low bridges that restrict navigation height. The dinghy isn’t so restricted but even so head room was short at times. The Upper Witham looks to be a very interesting river and is certainly on our list of waterways to explore. We didn’t get very far up river yesterday due to time constraints but in the near future we will see how far we can go.

With time against us we set off back to the marina, canopies refitted we had a few more beers whilst the haggis, neaps and tatties cooked on the stove. Another cracking weekend and even though we didn’t finish the jobs we intended it was worth not working hard. Let’s hope that this weather continues long into the year.