Been shopping!

For the last few months I've been in need of various new bits of gear such
as a small rucksack, raincoat etc but couldn't afford it. :-(
Well, that was true until this month when I got a little pressie from the
Inland Revenue so I've been shopping!

After looking round I went to Freeport at Braintree http://www.freeportplc.com/braintree/, which is
one of those retail outlet places where you get end of range and slight second goods at a reasonable
price. First stop was the Regatta store where I replaced my waterproof jacket for just £22, (reduced
from £75 down to £52.50) no fleece included which was fine as the old one is still good. Also
grabbed a couple of pairs of walking trousers for just £8.99 a pair.

Then I moved on to Mountain Warehouse from whom I have just bought a pair of Brasher Tourlite's for
£79.50, down from £110, to complement the Meindl Bricks..^..^..ahem Borneos I already have. As I'm a
size 13 actually finding a comfortable pair of walking boots is a real surprise, I wore the Brashers
at work yesterday and the only problems were the socks! Have got to compliment the MW staff for
their helpful and friendly manner, unlike the Regatta staff.

On the way in I noticed a footbridge being built over the A120 just outside Braintree to link the
Flitch Way directly between Rayne station and the main stretch rather than the awkward 'avoiding'
route or running over the busy road. Should improve the path a lot IMHO although the new A120
building work will not finish until this summer.

Nick