You've got the Caravan Keys Haven't You?!

This story happened many moons ago, Easter 1997, when our children were still young and caravanned with us. We had decided to visit - at the time the recently refurbished and just reopened - Lincoln Farm Park in Standlake Oxfordshire for the first time.

 In those days we stored our caravan at my in-laws arrived early afternoon to get hitched up. Just as we arrived the heavens opened and a famed Lancashire deluge pursued!! In order to save my wife getting her coat wet through the mother in law gave her an anorak to wear and we set about getting hitched up and on our way as quickly as possible with the children already getting restless in the car!

The journey south was around 180 miles and although uneventful the wet weather which followed us all the way to the site made driving difficult especially with the additional Easter traffic on the M6/M40. The journey which I had thought would take around 4 hours was in fact over 5 and we finally arrived on site around 7.30pm.

The staff at Lincoln Farm Park, who remain excellent to this day, booked us in and then escorted us to pitch and assisted in guiding me on to it. It was at this stage that I turned to my wife and said “you have the keys don’t you?” only to be met with a look that said no – why should I!

After searching every pocket and nook and cranny in the car – whilst the children continued to grow ever more restless and troublesome – and we became every more short tempered we realised that the keys to the caravan were not with us at Lincoln Farm Park. A phone call to the mother in law confirmed our worst fears – the keys had been left in the anorak my wife had worn whilst hitching up. My heart sank with the thought of having to head back home and another 4 hour drive.

However the site staff who had watched the whole catastrophe unfold were amazing. Whilst a couple in a caravan next our pitch invited us in for a brew the staff set about taking a note of our lock number and going around the whole site knocking on caravan doors to see if anyone by any chance had a matching key.

We couldn’t believe it when 20 minutes later they returned to our van and successfully unlocked it allowing us to get pitched and settle in.

The following morning was a wonderful bright spring day and as we were preparing breakfast  a member of staff called to tell us they had spoken to a local caravan dealer sourced a matching supply of keys and arranged for them to be dropped off at the site for us.

This amazing level of service from the site staff and our fellow caravanners meant that we had a fantastic Easter break and we have since returned to the site on many occasions.

Needless to say, even after another 15 years of touring, we have never driven off with the caravan hitched up since without both of us going through the well practised ritual of showing each other a set of caravan keys!!