A WEEKEND of messing about in boats awaits West Fifers at the first Limekilns River Festival, which starts today (Friday).

The Forth Cruising Club will host the three-day event from July 1 to 3, with historic vessels, boat trips and a flotilla in store.

Boats joining the festival will start arriving in the harbour today, and on Saturday the fun runs from 10am to 4pm.

The Reaper, a 70ft sailing lugger built in 1902, will be visiting from the Scottish Fisheries Museum and visitors will be able to go on board.

Other classic boats visiting are the Christina II, a 1950 40ft Ringnet fishing boat; St Andrew, a 1951 40ft lifeboat; and Samsara, a 1959 Millars yacht.

A fast motor boat will run trips on the Forth for visitors to view the Forth bridges from the water, and there will be handicraft stalls, refreshment stands, a licensed bar, barbecue, and games for the kids within the club garden and Capernaum Pier.

On Sunday, boats will depart the harbour just before high tide and sail up to Charlestown, before turning back to sail past Limekilns promenade between 1pm and 2.30pm.

Club member Bob Colquhoun said: “We've been working on this for the last six months.

“There are similar events, such as the Scottish Traditional Boat Festival in Portsoy, and we were thinking, why don't we do something like that here?

“Although this is the first year we're doing it, we would want to do it next year, and going forward, we want to make it a big event with other villages involved.”

For further information, search for Limekilns River Festival on Facebook.