Keadby to Crowle and back

I got the bike out today and went for a ride, picking up a few items from the Cash and Carry on the way. Six cartons of fruit juice for £2, and three tins of dog food for £1. Added quite a bit of weight to it, made the pedaling hard work. I did 15 miles, and I must say I didn't enjoy the last few miles, my bum just doesn't have enough padding.

Anyway, what was I up to yesterday? Who is this bloke? This is Mick. I was walking along the canal bank from Keadby towards Crowle, when I came across him walking his dogs. We got chatting, as you do, and it turned out that he is an even better money saving expert than I am. It was like talking to my twin, we got on amazingly well.

He told me he has lots of animals, and they were all free because people had given them to him. He is passionate about animal welfare, his dogs were lovely, all wonderfully well behaved and friendly. It's not very often you meet someone who is like a mirror image of yourself, but it was uncanny. He was just like me, it was great to talk to him.

I got to Crowle, which is a small town in North Lincolnshire. I wasn't too far from home actually, only had to drive a few miles to start the walk. There is a holiday park here, with seven lakes and a lot of caravans, and a club house.  

Some of the caravans overlook the lake. Jet skiing is popular here.

I must say that Crowle itself isn't that appealing, it looks a bit shabby and run down. The little Tesco Express is in an old cinema, and some of the shops are boarded up, and others are in need of a lick of paint. It does have the problem of a lot of traffic passing through it though, and the roads are quite narrow which doesn't help. However, the church is by far the best building in the place. It looks like it is very much loved, the gardens are immaculate, and the flowers are lovely. There are thousands of daffodils about to come into bloom any time now, I was a bit early to see the full show.

The cemetery is on the way out of town, it's a massive place. Shame about the waste bin in the photo, but it was full and too heavy to push out of the way.

I always like to spend a few minutes walking round a cemetery, they are such peacfull places. Some of the graves are lovingly decorated. It means a lot to some people to have a memorial of their lost loved one. These grave stones must cost a fortune. Nice that the family spends the money, but I wouldn't mind if nobody got me one.

The land around here is pretty flat, and most of it is agricultural, so not a lot of thrilling scenery. Apologies for the lack of photo's. I didn't really expect to see much, it was more an exercise to get the miles in, and get my legs into shape for the big walk.

Here I am on the way back. There are a lot of these deep, water filled ditches, or dykes if you like. You have to make sure you are on the right side of them because there are very few crossing places. I almost got on the wrong side of this one because there is a track on both sides.

I made sure I finished the walk at about 7pm, so I could pop in the supermarket and pick up some food. I got a few reduced price items, a bit more bread, that's my freezer full of cheap bread now. Didn't get as much veg as I would have liked, but it's enough to keep me going. I've got stacks of tins in the cupboard. For saying it's two weeks since I last did a big shop, I think that's pretty good going. Don't forget to put your clocks forward tonight. I don't think it will be long before I go to bed. Good night.