Hiking and Sailing

 Maya, John and Chrissie.

 Leslie and John launching the tender.

 Row, row, row your boat...

Manning the helm.

Lympstone Village.

 Scenes about town.

Saturday, September 2^nd.

We had a lazy lay in morning but, late morning we all took Maya for a walk though a park that Chrissie had heard about. We drove to Ludwell Valley Park and walked around the paths and up the hill to get a great view of the suburbs of Exeter and the Exe River. Then we went back in order to get organized for the afternoon.

John and I drove to the small village of Lympstone to meet his friend Leslie. She served us some tea and a piece of apple pie, before taking us sailing. She owns a small three masted sailboat named Sapphire. First we had to put on life jackets and carry the small tender to the beach and launch it with a very small motor. John rowed it out to where we could put the motor down and then we motored out to the sail boat. After we put up the sail and tied up the tender to the mooring, we set out. Leslie gave me the helm and I sailed us across the river and then tacked back again as we rode the incoming tide and followed the channel. Then she took over and guided us to the Turf Pub, which cannot be reached by car, only by boat, or biking or hiking. John, Leslie and I sat and had a couple of pints before we got back in the boat for the return trip. This time we motored back because we had to make time and we had to go back against the wind and tide. I drove the boat back.

We took a small walk about around the pretty village of Lympstone before driving back with Leslie to Exeter for dinner. Chrissie had prepared another great salmon dinner and a dessert of meringue, strawberries and poached pears from John's neighbour's yard.