Abersoch days

Quick update - spent some time at the caravan earlier in the summer, then went back home for a family party, meant to get back sooner than I managed, but even so had a week to prepare before John began his 3 weeks holiday here in Abersoch. I was in Liverpool for much of the hottest weather, but our kind neighbour Marie here at the caravan watered the tomatoes, beans and sweet peas for me. Lot of rabbit damage - it's a bad year for bunnies!

Most of the caravan guests (Sarah, David and Rachel) left on Sunday, John went soon after 4am Monday morning to drive back to Liverpool. It seems very quiet here now! Bit of a strange holiday this year, with John driving back to Liverpool twice to see his Mum who was admitted to hospital for an emergency operation 7 August if my memory serves me right. She's in a convalescent home now and is doing OK, hopefully will be home in a week or so.



Monday had some nice sunshine, spotted two hummingbird hawk moths on the buddleia shortly after midday, they hung around long enough for me to get out the camcorder and try get some better shots (not had time yet to look and see if they are better though!) than those from the camera a week or so ago. The painted lady was back too, got one decentish shot on the osteospermum, but when I tried to get closer to it on the buddleia it took fright and flew off - seems very alert and shy. Buddleia is generally covered in butterflies every time the sun shows even slightly - small tortoiseshells are the most frequent visitors, but there's a single peacock as well as the red admirals, large and small whites and commas. No wonder it's called the Butterfly bush!



Around 6.15pm there were clouds of smoke went up from close by, followed shortly by NeeNaa sounds. Today I finally went and checked out the Abersoch website, where I discovered that a motor boat caught fire and exploded just off our local (Marchroes) beach. Fortunately everyone onboard escaped, but the boat was completely destroyed.

Yesterday morning Trefor arrived and began to strim the bracken at the bottom of the field where it had escaped through the fence. Then he pulled out a couple of posts... He called in at Rolf's (across the field from us), the pair of them walked up into the field behind us, and I caught them on the way back. The fence is coming out, and the trees at the bottom of the field will be cut back later this week or early next week - Hurray!

I think I saw the hummingbird hawk moth again briefly in the morning, but there are some other fast and fluttery moths around the buddleia too. Though these land on the flowers to feed. So I may have confused one of them, but the hawk moth looks pinkish in the blur of its wings, and its bum looks a bit like a miniature skull, so I'm fairly sure that I spotted one.



Soon after midday today Trefor came back with a blue tractor and trailer, and hoisted the remaining fence posts out of the ground, loading them into the trailer. Then he collected up the bracken strimmings, along with all the garden rubbish that had been chucked over the (ex) fence, dumping it all in the bottom field. Will take a look tomorrow if it's dry as I need to take a bag of rubbish to the bins (that grey breeze-block thing just below the white bungalow on the right in the picture).

It's nice to see the fence go, and I can't wait for the trees to be topped - can hardly see any of the bay this year, only spotted the Seabirds racing once. Hopefully the trees at the back of the field will get chopped soon too, as they are a home to a ginormous flock of starlings in the autumn which makes a lot of mess for the folks who back on to them.