The First Great Lincoln Memorial Tour, 2008

When we embarked upon the metaphorical voyage of buying a boat we lived in Lincoln. This meant visiting the cinema by Brayford Pool and eating the occasional meal in JayDee’s overlooking the canal which runs right through the city centre. We resolved then & there to bring the future boat to Lincoln, take it right through the middle of Brayford Pool and moor up in the centre across from JayDee’s. According to online canal journey planners it will take us about three days to get there & three days to return, and also involve a tidal stretch of the Trent. Everyone seems to think this is a big deal and there seem to be  lot of rules. Apparently we must have an anchor & navigation lights, a navigation chart from British Waterways and book passage through the lock to the tidal section at least 24 hours in advance. We are also warned to be prepared for a grilling from the lock keeper who will want to ensure that we’re properly prepared.

We plan to start this journey tomorrow. We’ve borrowed an anchor, already have the lights & will deal with the rest en route.

I can’t wait.