The Charmouth Court, Fairfield Park resident, then 54, undertook the record- breaking 2,375-mile journey with his nephew Austin Spindler, 27, from Grantham. "The military questioned us for a long time and finally we were hauled before a judge who thankfully believed our story," said Mr. Hobbs. Mr Hobbs used a tourist guide map to navigate his 12ft dinghy down the Rhine. Recommended reading:The journey cost Mr Hobbs £1,200, two thirds of which was eaten up in fuel bills. Next Mr. Hobbs planned to take his dinghy back to Istanbul through Iraq following the River Tigris to the Persian Gulf.