A Weekend in 'Meggies'; the Only Place for the UK Sun

An Uncle to all our kids

My good friend Jon returned from Shanghai recently for a months spell of re-acclimatising in the fresh Lincolnshire air, the need for a hearty fill courtesy of his mums Aga, not to mention friendly debates about the planning and design of his parents house they have invested a lot of their time into.  As such, and with a lot coming up in the next couple of weeks, I decided it would be a good time to go and catch up with those still back home in Cleethorpes.

Heading away from the coast

After a hard slog in the office, a rushed attempt at packing, and one of the biggest rainfalls I've experienced in many years in a car, we arrived at my friend Branden's, quite late, but ready for a quick catch up and bed before the morning unfolded.

There was little choice in what to do once we were up, and the sun was shining other than to hit the beach.  The choice was to hit the south end, where it is considerably quieter, and in essence more picturesque without the decadent sights of the town.  The tide was out, and we got to explore a huge expanse of the beach.  In fact, if our children didn't come with us, we did consider the opportunity of heading out to Haile Sand Fort, one of two in the estuary of where the River Humber meets the North Sea.  Both were war defences built in 1919.  

The problem of reaching the fort is the layout of the beach.  It has a nasty bank of sand out to sea, leading to a fast tide suddenly enveloping you before you realised it had come in, locking you from the coast.  Not a nice situation to be in by any standards, and as we didn't see when the tide went out, we decided to not push the matter.  I reckon we got about 750m out, which is about half way to the fort, and closer than either of us had been in the past.

After the beach, I thought it a good time to go to the village I grew up in, and visit my mothers grave.  It's not something I do often enough, yet considering I have no family there anymore, it is nice to see that each time I come there are different flowers arranged after nearly thirteen years.

Someone likes the local staple diet

Jon was in good spirits, and we got to meet the parents for a quick brew, and a jam tart courtesy of their grandson Harry.  We soon had to leave to get back to Cleethorpes for some more good food, and some beer before the evening was out.

Endless Lincolnshire fields

It was great to catch up with good friends once more, the next day was spent lounging, walking along a less sunny promenade, and eating fish and chips before the long trek home.  I got to take Jon back to the comfort of his family's retreat, and spend some more time there with their whole family, eating, drinking tea, and letting them listen to my moaning of sun burnt shoulders and back.  All this before building the nerve to settle into the car seat for what turned into an eternity home with an overtired child, and a never ending CD of nursery songs to keep me awake as I cruised along.

A note for Jon's Mum: apologies for the lack of shirt wearing, you had the opportunity to laugh at my pain the next day though.

The difference a day makes, as the sun doesn't stay out too long