Monday 21st October (Day 1)
So yesterday Mick should have come and spent a few days with us. At short notice he could not come so we had a few days spare. The weather has been fairly poor but looks to be better for the next few days so we packed and left for Lincoln, about a two hours drive, with a comfort stop. We had looked at options and, especially as it was half term, a lot of places were booked up. The Lawns Car Park right in the centre was then our preference. Arriving, up a steep hill we arrived to find four others there and plenty of space. At £9.80 a for 24 hours it was a bargain, even with no facilities. We arrived in time to make lunch and have a cup of tea before going to explore. We have been here before but it was when the two boys were under ten! As the castle and cathedral are right next door so we looked at them. Both needed entrance payment so will probably do that tomorrow. We used our bus passes on the Walk & Ride bus which in twenty minutes circles the city. It gave us a chance to see what was where and what we were intending to do. Returning to the cathedral stop we opted to walk down Steep Hill to the shops. Chris was after a coat for walking. Not too long or short; a removable hood; not black or dark blue; waterproof and warm. Not much of a list! We tried many shops, including the House of Fraser without success, even looking at coats with an eye watering cost. The only store we had not tried was Tresspass. Google showed the nearest was fourteen mile away. We mooched around the shops a bit and found Tresspass. Even better was a coat that was reduced from £180 to £72, and we got 10% of that with motorhome membership. A right result. I am always amazed at the simplicity of road naming, High Street, Main Road, Church Lane etc. Well the same could be said for Steep Hill as in parts it is almost 1:1! Arriving at the top we went to The Strugglers Inn a ‘real’ pub. Small and friendly with hundreds of beer maps covering every inch of the walls and ceiling. Eight real ales a guest side (8.4%) and then a few larger plus Guinness. It is called the Strugglers as patrons used to drink there and watch hanging on the common ground outside. After a couple of pints we strolled to the Castle View almost next door, a recommended curry house. Arriving at 1815 we were found a spot (it was quite empty at this point). What followed was a meal which, for both of us was at the top end of curry heat and by the time we left it was full with people waiting downstairs, and this on a Monday. Next time, should there be one, it will be a mild curry! A very short stroll to the motorhome and tv until bed,
Tuesday 22nd October (Day 2)
So, while we often have a slow start, today it was even slower. It was not not almost 1000 that we had a bacon roll. The plan then was off to the cathedral for a ‘floor’ tour which was very informative. (On another occasion the ‘roof tour’ may be an option but Chris has a dodgy knee.) It was a really lovely tour with some simple things pointed out. For example the south side of the nave was for the gentry and so arches were much more decorative and the north side was for the ‘rest’ an d so the arches were plain. This type of characterisation was a constant throughout the cathedral. After the tour, which lasted an hour, we moved over to the castle for the tour there. This was an hour of our life never to be recovered. Too much detail. Indeed much of the castle was Victorian! One aspect that was disappointing was that English Heritage paid for some of the conservation work and to get the money the work must be noticeable rather than in context. This meant, for example, the portcullis must be not only in the correct place and the rebuilding is of smooth stone rather than sympathetic to the castle. What a nonsense. After the ‘overload’ of dates / history / people we walked to the shopping area to do exactly that. A walk along the river / basin followed before getting the last bus on the ‘walk and ride’ back to the top of the hill which, with Chris having a problem of a bad knee, was a godsend. A couple of pints again in The Strugglers Inn before back to the motorhome for an evening meal.
Wednesday 23rd October (Day 3)
Off today to Woodall Spa. As there was no rush and it was murky we slowly got sorted and left about 1030. It is only thirty miles or fifty minutes to Jubilee Park CAMpRa aire. The weather got murkier to the point we started to question whether to just make for home. By the time we arrived it had brightened up and we soon were booked in and parked up. Our first job was to sort the black and grey waste. Then we asked the 600m into the town. A short way along the high streets saw the sign for the Kinema in the woods. This cinema is over 120 years old and has shown rear projected films continuously since 1922. A couple photographs and the we walked on. Finding the Viking Way we opted to stroll along it, through woodlands and across a golf course. While this goes for miles we only walked about two to three miles along it before turning off and coming back along the roadway. We decided that we would eat a main meal now and have cheese etc in the evening. We found most of the cafés full so we ended up in a pub called The Mall. Here we had a really nice meal before walking back tot he motorhome and siting out in the late October sunshine. It soon cooled down and we scuttled inside. A bit of tv and cheese and biscuits before bed.
Thursday 24th October (Day 4)
We awoke to a glorious sunny day. The sun of the autumn leaves was spectacular. Back ti Eastwood End today so the decision was made to be smelly and not shower. So a simple cereal breakfast and wash up from last night then over tot he facilities. As we are off in eight days we filled up with freshened emptied the black and grey. This meant it was about 1030 we moved off. It was 71 miles from home to Lincoln and it is 70 from here home. We had an easy run with any real traffic queues going in the other direction. A stop for lpg, some shopping and to pick up some AdBlue meant we were home by 1300.
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