Wednesday 28th August 2019 at Kirkstead.
Yet another lovely morning on the River Witham.
Two visitors took us by surprise. The first being a large black cat who suddenly appeared around M's feet while we were having breakfast. He or she had the fluffiest tail you ever saw. She ignored us, checked MM from end to end, sharpened her claws on the "Welcome" mat and then left!
Soon after, a voice calling R's name turned out to be Richard, one of R's fellow contestants in the DCC Concepts model railway competition in the spring. The two of them have stayed in contact since the competition and, as he lives very close to Kirkstead, we had arranged to meet him when we were passing. It was great to meet him finally and he will come to pick us up after lunch.
Richard returned as arranged with his wife Annette and sister-in-law Lucy, both lovely ladies. M showed them briefly round MM before we all set off for afternoon tea at local Petwood House. It is now a smart hotel, but in the war it was the Officers' Mess for 617 Squadron of Dambuster's fame, who were based at RAF Scampton a few miles away.
The house is very impressive on the outside and very atmospheric on the inside. The afternoon tea was excellent - and so large that we failed to finish it all!
Afterwards, Richard drove us back to their gorgeous house in the middle of classic fenland countryside surrounded by open fields. For us, it was very interesting to see more of the countryside because the high flood barriers on either side of the river restrict our view from MM.
Richard showed us around his various workshops, all of which are immaculate. With his marine engineering background, he not only models trains but has created a remarkable collection of model ships. In his spare time, he has a collection of motorbikes including this fully restored Royal Enfield.
We were both lost in admiration for the immaculate models that he has made.
After our tour, the five of us sat in their lovely conservatory having a drink and a catch-up and watching the sun go down, which lit up the garden and the fields beyond.
Richard and Annette have two lovable dogs, Zak and Belle. Zak is a real character and they said that he is obsessed with screens. R put it to the test, playing him a video of his Hayling model railway. Zak was all attention and never took his eyes off the screen:
Richard said that if you set the phone to take selfies, Zak would spend hours taking selfies of himself by touching his nose to the screen!
We bade them all a very fond farewell and Richard very kindly drove us back to MM's mooring.
Wonderful to meet Richard after all these months and a very big "Thank You" to him and Annette for their wonderful hospitality. A great day!
MM had another rest day!
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