Cometh the cold!!

Wednesday 28^th November 2012 to Thursday 29^th November 2012

Diane wanted to get some shopping and lunch in Stone – on our way we were talking about the Farmer’s Market on this coming Saturday – should give Phil and Lyn a call to see if they would be in the town and maybe organise lunch with them.

We wandered down to the Italian restaurant by the Star Lock and who should be locking through but nb Valentine with Lyn and Phil looking very well – they were on their way down to the marina for a diesel fill and get a look at the kitchen progress – you cannot go anywhere secretly without being found.

So they moored up below the lock and we all enjoyed a lovely lunch together, after which we travelled back to the marina with them – Phil and I looking after the diesel fill whilst the girls were off to view the kitchen.

By the time I had got back to the boat I walked in and stopped dead as I saw the starboard side cabinets had been assembled and in place.

We now had a perfect idea of how the space would be occupied and how we would manage in the newly bounded space.

a lot more room to walk through from the kitchen to the lounge

almost there - new cabinets on the right but no worktop and
new cabinets on the left with the makeshift worktop.

probably a better view and with less mess showing

It was looking absolutely fantastic and the cabinet for the pantry was essentially finished with the wine rack at the back.

We said goodbye to Lyn and Phil as they commenced their return journey and returned back inside for one final positioning of the newly formed cabinets.

There was a reasonable amount of the left a bit and right a bit advisement coming from the management. There was also a likely-not-to-end suggestion from her about making sure of the ease of moving the washing machine out of its cubby hole whilst the cabinets were moved back a bit – in the end it was just easier to give in and do it – she had worn us down.

After that the most important item to be properly positioned was her chair so that it would be able to be fully reclined and fit in the area next to the pantry – it was a case of “it’s about me and my chair” – she was indeed pleased with the result – so all’s well that ends well.

It really has come together quite well but we were all beginning to feel pretty tired – Mike and Diane relaxed to watch Masterchef and left me hard at work at the dinette – but now I am able to see all of the way through to the lounge – unlike 2 weeks ago – it has all changed and for the better.

Wednesday night was particularly cold – the frost was already setting in by about 7pm and in the morning there was a reasonable amount on the pontoons and boats alike.

You didn't need to be outside to know it was cold - it just looked
cold - silhouette of the church spire at sunset

The day was sunny but the air was extremely cold – even a very slight movement of air went straight through anything you had on.

Diane had a dental appointment in the afternoon, Mike had the cabinet ends to prepare and fix on as well as the extension to the bed; I had plenty of work to do – at least there were a lot of emails to sort through.

The cupboards are looking really good now – just need to wait for the worktop to arrive; the bed extension is progressing quite well and we will get to test it out tonight; and my work has been finished.

During the day we have had a visit from Mick to see about his radio and setting stations into it – he needed some reference point to work from; we have returned the wine to Carol (nb Winton’s Folly) and started to remove and get rid of the rubbish.

We estimate that only about 10% of the material coming out of the original kitchen will need to be dumped – most will be re-used and some will be used as kindling wood for fires.

It seems that Diane’s trip to the dentist was successful – at least for the dentist – he will be able to pay school fees for the kids for the next term at their private school – at least judging by the quote that she was given.

Oh well, we will need to get it done so that she will have a mouthful of correctly fitting teeth – how else will she be able to nag me – errr I mean advise me what I should be doing.

Pantry party time for a wine

Tuesday 27^th November 2012

The weather today has been very much colder than the past few – the wind was biting and went straight through, so it was going to be an indoor day – glad I had plenty of work to do in front of the computer.

Mike was busy with the outer wall of the pantry – it need to be in two parts as the wood we had been re-using was not wide enough – it also meant shaping one side to the wall of the boat and as anyone knows this is not a straight up and down – the fit has come out being almost exact to the wall – really do love the way it looks – but it isn’t in place yet.

one part of the panel for the pantry wall - partially
hiding Mike "the boat elf"

There is a lot of fiddly work involved in this wall – and now we have decided to include a wine rack into the back of it all.

The pantry is 300mm wide and will use a lot of the vertical height but at the back below the gunnels will be a space which will allow us to incorporate at least half a dozen bottles of wine – red of course – we will have to find a place to store the white for Diane (maybe in the engine room).

One of the things that we needed to do this was a wine bottle for the measurements – we had some somewhere in the boat but do you think we could remember where – no way, no how could we find them – the only thing to do was to borrow a wine bottle – preferably a full bottle and where else – ask Carol (nb Winton’s Folly) – always going to be a bottle spare there – only kidding Carol!! – but of course she had one to spare but it was a white.

In the meantime the spice rack and paper towel holder have been put up and being filled.

Spice rack and paper towel roll in place

We also needed some electrical work done to complement the rest of the work – one power outlet set had already been moved, but one other needed to be done; a new set put in and also some lights. There was also a little matter of a buzzing in the switch box for the boat’s engine.

Clive Penny duly arrived and as any good tradesperson will tell you – “Of course it can be done” – well done Clive – Diane was pleased with that response.

He will be back on Monday to take care of all of the work – Mike is away that day so they won’t be in each other’s way.

The switch box noise seems to be a problem associated with one of the alternator’s and Clive will investigate to see exactly what it is and rectify.

There are some bits and pieces that Mike will need to finish off little parts of the job – so we will be off to source these tomorrow.

From high and dry to High and Cry(ing)

Monday 26^th November 2012

Fortunately the overnight water levels had started to fall – by 6am they had dropped almost 30cm – but this also produced a couple of headaches.

When I went out to do a check on boats I met Phil and he had already done a run through at 5am and moved a few forward so that buttons were not over the pontoon, but now, about 1½ hours later there were two boats with the back button firmly on the pontoon and between us we could not move them.

Solution: Andy Webb and the guys came down – one was a little easier and five guys were able to push it off – the second needed a couple of heavier ones on the front of the boat to force the back up and then it seemed to just slide off without too much problem.

Steps were then taken to prevent them coming back to the pontoon.

A nice wakening for the morning!!

Breakfast out of the way; we just needed to wait for the expected delivery – not long after 9am it arrived – but wait – no worktop in the truck – the only thing we needed and it wasn’t there.

Mike carried on with some other work that could be done (needed to be done but not necessarily straight away).

Meantime I was on the phone – two tops were in stock but both were damaged – too much to be used – the next delivery – 29^th November if they could get one– you must be joking – a later phone call confirmed a delivery now to be Saturday 1^st December.

Mike had carried on with the pantry; I was stewing on not being able to get the worktop – I arranged with Andy (nb Josephine) for a trip to Stoke to return a couple of ends which I had ordered incorrectly – would also give me a chance to verify that I was getting the right story.

A short drive and short time later we were discussing the predicament with one of the B&Q people – he showed us the worktops in question – they were correct – could not be used – we couldn’t even salvage the two parts that we needed from these two top – just too much damage.

Andy then had a brainwave – did they have a section of worktop that they could not use and would be throwing out? – in the trolley was a 160 cm section to be discarded – could we take it until the proper delivery arrive? – yes, not a problem – at least we could create the worktop and fit the sink and hob so that they could be used until the new one arrived.

With this and the new ends that we purchased we squeezed them into the car which was smaller than they were and made it back.

End result is that Mike was able to create the finished worktop with the hob and sink in place – albeit this will be discarded in a week or so, but at least we could cook again and wash the dishes.

still some work to be done but taking shape

Mondays are coffee club days and at 3pm there was an assembly gathering – Andy and Jean followed by Jo (a new comer) and then Diane and I, Elly and Mick, and coming down the path were Jill and Malcolm (not dead yet) and also Jim and Joan (recent arrivals to the marina) and a bit later was Elaine – including Mike who came up we were 13 in total and the cakes displayed on the table were enough to feed a small army or a small African nation.

Huddled around a table in one of the cedar huts the initial cold became progressively warmer and we were very comfortable both temperature wise and with each others company – plenty of joking and stories to tell.

We may need to move to the larger hut next week – especially if Diane continues with her recruiting efforts during the week.

A day starting with some headaches and problems eventually leading to suitable outcomes (some solved and some temporary resolutions) ending with laughter and jocularity is indeed the right way around.

Rain Rain everywhere; not a drop to drink

Sunday 25^th November 2012

One of the joys of being able to live (and work) from a boat is that when it rains the sound of it hitting the roof can be very soothing. Inevitably the consequences of a night of continual soothing roof-hitting rain is that the water levels will rise and if the mooring ropes are just a bit too tight then when you get up in the middle of the night (usually due to the response that the sound of running water will produce), you may find yourself walking at an angle slightly nearer to being on the wall of the boat.

We had slackened off the ropes a couple of days ago as we saw some rise in the water and so we did not have the awkwardness that others may have had.

There is now a giant step down from the stern onto the pontoon – something that we are not used to doing – may need to have to buy a step ladder to be able to get aboard soon.

In the morning we rechecked the ropes and slackened them a bit more and just did a quick check of others on the pontoon to make sure that vacant boats were all OK.

Further checks throughout the day meant further slackening of ropes for 6-8 boats.

The other outcome from all of this rain is that the rivers also are swollen and fast flowing and when we were off walking at lunch time we saw the full effects on the river near to the canal.

normally a nice placid river - now in almost full flood

the cows and sheep have deserted the place

the houses in the distance are in Stone

This is why they call it a flood plain and do not permit houses to
be built here

normally the view from the deck of this house is over green
fields - now you can throw a line over to catch dinner

Talk about Inland Waterways – we had a vast inland waterway on our doorstep.

Spoke to a couple of C&RT guys near Aston lock – they were able to tell us that the flooded river had broken through to the canal and there was a height differential of about 2-3” in favour of the river and this has been the main reason for the rising water in the canal and the marina – there was doubt that this would be reversed any time soon.

The kitchen continues with its rebuilding and Mike has been able to install the first of the cupboards – 2 which will hold the sink – the washing machine has been relocated and above it the hob will sit as it had previously.

the existing pipework in the kitchen - no need to change any of this

however the gas line to the hob needed some reforming
to reduce the distance to the new hob position

here you can see how much Mike has had to do to get it right

All is ready for the delivery of the worktop and remaining cabinets tomorrow morning and we have just been notified will be with us by 10am – so all is looking well for resumption of full cooking facilities.

cabinets in place - still a bit more to secure them completely

It has been Mike’s little touches that has impressed Diane greatly – just a little concerned about exactly what she is referring to – she can be overcome by close proximity to trades people.

now with the washing machine in place

There are still a number of things left to be done and we have the electrician coming by on Tuesday to look at moving and installing a couple of power outlets and a few lights.

The weather is starting to turn again – after a bright and sunny day today, the clouds are beginning to roll in and the reports for tomorrow are for some more rain – we will have to wait and see what eventuates.

Just a word or warning - although the sun might be out in full sunshine - please do not sunbake on the road.

K-Day with the heat full on

Tuesday 20^th November to Saturday 24^th November 2012

Kitchen D-Day had been approaching for a little while now and the final push to clear out the cupboards and ready the boat for the kitchen work to start was in clear evidence.

The best thing that I could do was stay out of the way, with laptop open and in high gear and keep the head down.

Containers of cans and tins as well as saucepans and pots in the cratch area; the bath was filling fast with things that we would most likely not need for a little while (at least we hope we won’t need them) – now where exactly did we put the dog – just have to follow the whimpering noises.

Coupled with all of this and the reason why it was being readied on Tuesday was that Diane had doctor’s appointments down in Watford for Thursday and needed to travel down on Wednesday – coming back on Friday.


a view of the marina in full sunshine - we have had some good
weather even at this time of the year

Phone call from Mike to confirm that he was arriving on Wednesday evening; Diane departed on the train early afternoon – oooh a few hours to myself and time to finish my work.

Sunshine and country lanes - perfect walking conditions

still more of the same...

Think again young Ray – no sooner had I got back on the boat than a phone call from Ed Shiers – our Mykuni heater was on its way back to be re-installed – we would be having heat again tonight.

He showed me the state of the flame tube which governs the efficiency of the heating and fullness of the burn of the diesel – there was some serious deterioration of the metal and some serious cracking as well – even to the untrained eye I could tell that is was not in pristine condition.

When it was fully reinstalled, it was considerably quieter (even with the engine bay open); there was absolutely no smoke whatsoever; and certainly was heating up the inside the boat very well indeed.

In the time since the reinstallation, we have experienced the benefit of the improved efficiency and without smoke and noise – well done Ed.

Before the renovations begin

This has become too narrow for moving
between the kitchen and lounge

There was some need early on to check, double-check and triple-check calculations with work-top measurements; oven positioning, pantry dimensions – all just to make sure that we knew that we had everything correct before doing the final ordering of units and worktop.

lazy bones

the taller than normal fridge to be incorporated

After all of this Mike was into it and had quickly removed the cupboards and other woodwork where shortly the positioning of the oven and the fridge would be renewed.

There was an evolving plan as Mike went along of the timing of things to be done and we reached lunch on the first day (with no wickets down) it became self-evident that a trip to B&Q was necessary - to place the final order for cabinets (and other pieces) for delivery as well as pick up the first two cabinets – so a little later (about afternoon tea time – still no wickets down) – we were off to Meir Park B&Q – a mighty big place.

A final bit of work to move the gas pipework, from the stove, into place and that was the end to a very productive day.

Mike hard at work - the pipe is for gas supply to the oven

plenty of time for a laugh

it is taking shape

one clear bulk head

Day 2 emerged and more careful planning before launching into it all – the planned opening up of the dividing wall between the kitchen and the lounge gave a feel and look that we had hoped for – just so much more open but retaining some separation between the two areas; after this the second bulkhead was built; oven shelf in place and insulation for behind the new fridge position and final fixing of the pipework.

Removing the washing machine out of its normal hibernating place and reviewing the water pipes behind it all.

The secret is all in the planning and reviewing and amending.

Parisien Star coming back into the marina after a pumpout and
diesel fill - note the expert control from Mick (further directions
from Elly)

Maintaining that full control over the situation - gently
pivoting off the opposite pontoon and easing Parisien Star
back into the mooring slot

Saturday has been a bit “exciting” – we took a long walk into Stone to pick up some things that we needed – leaving Mike to do what he does best – I think that is the carpentry (not the singing along to the radio) – and so we could see the expected change in full once we returned.

Not disappointed at all – the fridge and oven in place – and they were working – just as we envisaged it to be.

Fridge and oven both in place.

and a little more open to the lounge

The two cabinets have now been built in readiness for the removal of the remainder of the existing kitchen – it also means the hob being disconnected; the sink being disconnected and the new cabinets to be put in place – all of this is for tomorrow and as we all know – tomorrow is another day.

Calm before the storm

Monday 19^th November 2012

After a pretty decent sort of day on Sunday, Monday did start off in a pretty spectacular manner, but the colour of the sky, the cold of the wind and the feel in the air provided an ominous sign of what we could expect for the rest of the day – it didn’t appear to be one of great excitement.

Beauty in the colours but beware of it in the morning

Luckily the rain held off, but the cold and the wind persisted and to tell the truth, the flu that I have at the moment didn’t help one little bit.

On top of that it was back to work day and the waiting deluge of emails was the last thing that anyone needed.

Anyway somehow I have struggled through it all and Diane has invoked all of those great skills that made her a very very good nurse – I am still alive and her repeated calls to increase the insurance policy have been in vain so far – it may still be early days yet.

Monday has become cake and coffee afternoon – a group get together – bring your own coffee, tea or other drink and cake(s) will magically appear. Andy and Jean (nb Josephine) were missing today – grandchild minding duties for this week, but Gill (nb Shoehorn), Elaine (nb Caxton alias Manly Ferry) and Elly and Mick (nb Parisien Star) were all there – Mick was coerced (or maybe threatened) to make an appearance.

The numbers will continue to grow.

The essence of this week appears to be fixing problems and a lot of internal works taking place, so we are all hoping that by week’s end it will be a long way further progressed.
Diane has commenced the process of clearing the kitchen and lounge of non-essential items; the bath has become a temporary storage area; and the dog still has his bed inside the boat – for how long will depend on how much he whimpers and whines – all readying for the great kitchen upheaval.

Up and Down and around the way

Saturday 17^th November to Sunday 18^th November 2012

2 Miles, 5 Locks for this period

Totals: 1431 Miles, 1160 Locks, 46 Tunnels, 24 Lift Bridges, 96 Swing Bridges

With the car packed and the lodge checked to ensure that we didn’t leave anything behind we dropped the keys back at reception and we were off back to Stone.

As has been our case for a while now we decided against the fastest route i.e. the motorways and instead favoured the less well-travelled A roads to lead us home.

We realise it is a bit slower, but it does allow you to see so much more of the countryside and enjoy the scenery without it flashing past before there has been any chance of recognition of its beauty.

There has always been something about driving a long distance on a Saturday morning and more so when it is colder outside and the roads are a little less cluttered – of course it needs to be before everyone else is up and racing off to do their Saturday morning shop.

For us we simply had to leave around 8:30am and all was fine – a bit of a slight fog (nothing of any concern), a touch of the cold and virtually no traffic.

Driving along roads that are not perfectly straight and aligned to within a millionth of a decimal place of a degree of latitude or longitude gives you a chance to feel the road and move with the car – provided of course that it doesn’t wind too much to cause the navigator to throw up – we were in luck.

We stopped along the way when we wanted – for morning tea and the related rest stops that go with the intake of liquids and although about an hour longer, it was without any stress and without being quite so tired as dealing with the constant speed of the motorways.

This of course leads me to wondering why, in cars registered to be driven on British roads, that it is a requirement to have

a.       a left hand indicator – so many cars don’t seem to have them working (only the right hand ones work) – whether it be turning a corner; changing lanes; wishing to pull over to park – none of them work

b.      speedometer – my understanding of the motorway speed limit is that it is 70 mph and on A roads it is 60 mph – the cars that were passing by us didn’t seem to have their’s working – surely they would have realised that the 40 mph limit was just that and not the 60 mph limit outside the village limits. The same on the motorways – cars in the outside lane hurtle past at 90+ mph – I can’t understand why there is any defined speed limit it seems to just be ignored.

Of course the odometer is important – so that people will know for what distance they have travelled without being anywhere near the correct speed.

We arrived back at the boat just after lunch and unloaded the car back to a very cold boat.

Rob had been in contact with during the week as there had been a couple of problems with the servicing of the Mykuni heater which we had asked to be done – one of the parts needed for the servicing was not immediately available so we knew that the boat would be cold but you are never fully prepared for it.

We had thought about what we might do but not knowing at what time we would actually arrive back we made no definite plans.

Friends Elly and Mick on nb Parisien Star had arrived in Stone the previous day so we thought that we would move down a few locks and moor with them.

It can be a funny world sometimes and Elly messaged Diane that they had decided to move to the marina as their Eberspacher was on the blink and they too had no heating on board.

Decision made, we would follow suit and head to the marina – problem was that after settling the account with Rob and chatting with him and booking the next blacking (never too early to plan for the next one) it was now 3 o’clock and there were 2 miles and 5 locks to negotiate and a fading light.

There was also the matter of moving the car back to the marina, so we started the first lock at 3:15pm and exited the last of the four locks through Stone about 4:15pm – care being taken with a newly blackened boat – but under the expert control of “she who must be obeyed”.

That part done I relayed the car back to the marina and headed on foot to Aston Lock – a quick phone to check on her progress, to be greeted with the words “the boat has died” – I was able to garner from her that the engine had stopped and she was pulling over to the side by bridge 92 – so no choice but to hoof it off to there and see what the problem was.

Diane had expertly guided the boat in and was waiting – she explained that the engine just died and a check of that confirmed it – it sounded like a fuel problem but with, by now, almost no daylight left we did two things – rang Rob Paramore to explain the situation and see if we could get the engineer who had serviced the boat to visit the next morning (Sunday) and secondly to pull her back through the bridge hole to be able to moor up even close to the edge.

Rob had made the arrangements and Chris (the engineer) rang and we spoke about the problem – he would be with us in the morning – we were very glad to have these two available and able to help.

Our immediate problem was being able to keep warm enough for the night which was predicted (and starting to feel like it) to fall as low at freezing and maybe a bit further.

We survived the night; boat temperature inside was down to about 2C; fortunately we had enough in the batteries that we could still do all of the important things the night before (a.k.a. being able to watch Strictly Come Dancing) – my desire to see Match of the Day was delayed until Sunday morning in case there was not enough battery power left.

not for sitting on just yet - unless you want to get frozen to it

the mist off the water

freezing but not frozen in

ice on the roof - when the snow arives the ski jump will be
installed

it's a winter wonderland - only colour (almost) is white

Chris arrived and starting working on narrowing down the problem and not long after a couple of stragglers along the towpath stopped to have a chat and in need of a hot drink – I, of course, refer to Elly and Mick who walked up from the marina (you need to read of their adventurous night with power and then lack of it and wrestling with a stubborn power card).

It took probably about ¾ hour for Chris to fully find the problem – a blockage in the fuel line close to the fuel filter – we had originally thought it might have been water in the line (no pre-filter in place).

Now having a clear fuel supply the engine kicked in immediately- we made the necessary arrangements with Chris to return this week to install a pre-filter and the we were off.

Back into the marina; then did a pump out and fuel top-up and moored back in place.

Lunchtime had arrived and beckoned us to seek out another Sunday roast – this time Diane knew exactly where – The Wayfarers on the A34 – too far from the canal to walk unless need arises; so an offer of lunch to Elly and Mick and the four of us were away.

The food was perfectly fine, but in the big scheme of Sunday roast scoring it did not rate so highly as other establishments that we had visited, but I enjoyed the Vegetable Wellington and would have that again.

Return to the marina, now fed and with everything else now taken care of we could all relax – the end of an up and down and around the way weekend.

Always trust the Navigator (maybe)!

Wednesday 14^th November to Friday 16^th November 2012

 Wishing to see much more of the south-west of Wales we headed off on Wednesday to explore the northern area of this region, but the navigator was busy giving instructions and directions that took us through some very narrow country lanes – all the time assuring me that this was indeed the main road and that there was just a slight detour along the way.

Picture of a Chocoholic - maybe a good name for a book

Slight Detour !!  I don’t think so – there was something about needing to support local business, which I agree with entirely – but in this case is was the support of Pemberton’s Chocolate Shop/Factory – the sweet tooth strikes again.

Back on the road after a short (well longish break for chocolate) we made our way back to the proper main roads and onwards to Cardigan.

The bridge at Cardigan over the river

Further down from the bridge and boats moored in mid-river

Not too difficult to find the main shopping area – travel over the bridge and below the castle and up the hill (one-way street) – found the parking area and the indoor market.

Morning tea at one of the cafes – food and drinks were lovely.

But we still had more to move on to and see so we were off again – this time towards Aberystwyth (that’s about the right spelling – I think!!).

This is a university town and it could easily be seen as such.

The local museum is always worth a visit as it shows so much about life in that area and how the town developed.

The seaside was very lovely indeed – reminded us a bit of Blackpool and also Llandudno – except the sand / grit was charcoal in colour – someone had forgotten the yellow paint.

Her first "pole-dancing" lesson and practice session

A longer view of the foreshore area

The remains of the castle on the headland, where the war memorial was also located was a focal point for many students; other locals and tourists alike – some extremely lovely views of the bay and the harbour inlet.

Part of the remains of the castle at Aberystwyth



View to the northern healand - a cable tram operates to the top
in the warmer months

Every evening thousands of starlings arrive from all points to
participate in a huge fly past

We were a bit late heading back and a quick stop at Tesco’s (Carmarthen) on the way back for a few things, but we were back in time for “she” to be able to see It Takes 2.

With the weather reports indicating that Thursday was going to a better day than Friday we decided that it would be perfect for a trip to St.David’s.

There were no detours past cheese factories, chocolate shops or boiled sweet outlets and we enjoyed the lovely weather along the way – so lovely in fact that we both questioned exactly where we were – was this really Wales in November – should have brought the suntan lotion.

One of the locals looking down on Aberarth - note the sunshine

Visit to the cathedral – such a magnificent structure and with a long long history in this location – a dedication to the patron saint of Wales.

St.David's Cathedral

Surprisingly it was set down in the valley rather than the usual place at the top of the hill, where you see most churches.

down in the vale rather than  a higher vantage point

 A bit more travel – this time to the beach area at Whitesands – to give it a more official “title” – the surf beach. It is fair to say that the king of the waves titles at Bondi Beach and Bell’s Beach are both safe.

"Huge" waves but not one surfer - did they not know what
they were missing out on

It was still however a very sunny day and sitting down in the sun for lunch was such a pleasant experience – rather than sheltering from rain and wind – walking along the wide and sandy beach was an unusual experience for this time of the year.

An idyllic location

Sun, sand , "surf", hills, walking trails - it is all here...

Diane had her little dip in the water – I guess it would have been more special if she had actually taken boots and socks off.

...even the bathing beauty

Friday was very much a stay in and do very little day as the morning mist moved in and only got more dense as the day went on – it is our last day here so consequently it was also laundry day.

Plenty of reading and relaxing – holiday almost over and tomorrow we will be driving back to Stone to pick up the boat.