14^th May 2014

I'd just left Cleethorpes rnli, got a small charge on my phone and backup battery and it had been raining hard. Luckily though the rain lifted before I left so I headed back along the promenade taking a minor detour to get a can of soup and a breadroll from sainsbury. The next town to negotiate would be grimsby. I followed the wall right up to the port but due to building work repairing the Sea defences I had to detour off my pre planned route. This wasn't good as I hadn't cached the satellite images and road names of the town only the bits I had planned to walk along. Without being able to see the water or well very much except buildings I found navigating a tad difficult, it had also started to rain again so I found shelter in the doorway of a closed shop, took off my bag and sat down for a short rest and hoped the rain would ease off once more. As i sat there I thought to myself, I wonder if I look like a homeless person dressed like this, unshaven and messy hair. Afterall I hadn't had my hair cut for over two months now and I wasn't exactly dressed for the town. I considered heating up my soup but decided against it as I preferred a more private location to enjoy my lunch. I put my bag on and headed off in the direction I thought I should be heading. After a reasonably short walk I came across Grimsby road bridge that crossed over the railway. To get over the bridge as a pedestrian you have to first go under and then emerge between the two roads. I figured this could be a reasonably quiet place to have something to eat and take shelter from the rain. I unpacked my stove and soup, boiled it and ate it straight from the pan. I hadn't brought a bowl with me to save weight and less to clean. As I finished my soup a young man walked round the concrete pillar that was supporting the bridge and that I had been resting against. He was holding a burger king bag and cup of tea. Before I could greet him he offered the food to me. He said he didn't have much money but that he hoped I liked burger king and accept the items. Well as random acts of kindness go this one was simply awesome, ypu rarely seem to find this kind of generosity in towns or cities although I have done so myself in the passed, to be on the receiving end was just amazing and really brightened up my day. I stood up to shake his hand, explained about the trek and the various random acts of kindness and asked him for his name.

Rob had been served by katie who also thought what he was doing was amazing so she had added a few extra fries, milk and sugar to the package. it's so nice to meet kind people willing to do things to ensure the safety and health of others without them being asked.

After I finished my little taste of luxury fast food I headed over the bridge to try and find my way back to the wall and ultimately return to the trek. As I came down off the bridge I spotted the burger king rob had been to, then it occurred to me that he must have seen me under the bridge, driven over it, ordered the meal and then driven back to where I had been sat. Thats going above and beyond the call of duty and I'm sure there are very few people that would go to that kind of trouble for someone they had never met before. I then went over to the restaurant to see if I could find the young lady who had been part of this lovely gesture to thank her and let her know what I was doing and how appreciative I was for both of their generosity.

I had wanted to get a photo but rob wanted to remain faceless and katies boss was one of those types that stick to the rules, a jobsworth (the type of person who wouldnt even piss on you if you were onfire) and wouldn't let katie have a quick picture taken.

14^th May 2014

As I was leaving burger king to head back to the coast I stopped to chat with a couple of guys stood outside. Being a friendly place it was lovely to chat with bob and chris about the challenge who were both surprised by the difficulty of living rough and the lengths I had gone to in order to get this far. Both agreed that niether would be able to last a weekend let alone the multiple number of months I'll be on the road. Well it was starting to get dark so I set off to try and find my way. My phone was now very much running out of juice. I was navigating blind once again but this time I couldn't see the water and had to simply guess the way back to the sea wall. At one point I seemed to be heading backwards in the wrong direction. I knew this because I could see the bridge I had met rob under and I could also see a port or docks on my left. The water for one should always be on my right, I turned round and headed back to see if I could see where I went wrong. I hit a roundabout and kept going, at the next roundabout I took the first right/last exit and saw somw greenery ahead. I felt better and more at home it also felt right. Sure enough the sounds of cars and lorries faded off in to the distance and the smell of petrol and diesel eventually disappeared as well. I had finally come up on the rivet bank, the humber to my right. I was finally back on track 

The light was fading but the clouds were also disappearing so I looked forward to a dry night. I kept walking as dusk fell and pitched up the tent between two factories next to a drainage pumping station.

In the morning I had a cuppa and something to eat before setting off on my way again along the bank. As I packed camp away a siren sounding much like an air raid siren sounded from the factory I was about to pass about quarter of a mile away. I was expecting an explosion or something but luckily after about ten mins it stopped and nothing appeared to had gpne boom!

14^th May 2014

After chatting with simon and munching his burger I set off to find power and an atm. I wasn't far from Immingham so it didn't take long before I hit civilisation and one of the first buildings I saw was Immingham police station.

For the sake of safety I generally check in, either on Facebook or text a friend so that people know I am still ok and carrying on . without power though that is impossible. I popped into the station to just let them know who I was and that if they received a missing persons report they were at least aware that I had been through and everything was ok. The officer was simply amazing, he jumped on the website and posted a message saying I had been through and that I was ok and proceeded to charge my phone and backup battery for me. While I waited he suggested that I go in to town and have a look round and see if the museum was open. Like I keep saying the people of Lincolnshire are wonderful. I headed into town and found the museum, unfortunately it was closed however the library was open. I though I would take the opportunity to check in on Facebook and Twitter. After I had used my 30 mins of free access I headed back to the station to collect my phone and bag but on my way I found a hairdressers. Gatsby's, well maybe it was time for a trim. I popped in to get a grade two so that I looked less homeless, as claire was strimmering my locks we chatted about the challenge and the random act of kindness I had received in Grimsby.

It was nice to look in the mirror after claire had finished and see myself looking a bit more normal. I hadn't had a haircut since I had left and it was starting to get tough to keep clean. And then I had another lovely surprise, when I went to pay I told it was on the house and the owner was impressed with my achievement so far.

I then went back to the police station collected my bag and phone and set off following the directions the officer had given me.

Heading back out to the wilderness and serenity of the trek is always nice and I must admit I always feel more confident in the peaceful surroundings. Along the way I hit an oil refinery, I believe, but to my astonishment there was no security. I passed through the complex and straight on to the river bank wall. Back with the water 

I carried on following the wall and passed a couple of huge car parks filled with BMW's and minis. I wondered how much money there was sat in these pens. Millions of pounds worth of new cars. Theb I wondered who would buy them as I've never been able to afford a new car and couldn't imagine many people could. Then I passed another pen filled with mercedes! Insane...

Next to the Mercedes car park was another dock. I had feared that I would once again have to navigate around it but to my surprise a public right of way passed right through the middle and out the other side. I walked through, dodging the lorries and containers.

On the other side I found myself back on the river bank and heading towards the humber bridge. It looked majestic as the sun started to go down and I realised I had been looking for it in the wrong direction. I'd been looking ahead wgen in fact the humber actually bends east where the bridge is situated. I walked a bit further on and found a small wooded area and set up camp. It was still light and I had nothing much else to do so I searched around for a decent sized branch and chopped it down to size then proceeded to fashion it into a spoon  never again will I be without a spoon! It took about an hour and then I had some freeze dried noodles with beef before going to sleep content I had achieved something really special.