Nature red in tooth and claw

We seem to have had several rather gruesome days at the caravan!

A couple of days ago I looked across the field to see a large gull tucking into what I thought looked like the remains of a young rabbit. It was quite a big and elegant bird with a black back, a gull that I don't recall seeing in the field here before (we usually have herring gulls), our neighbour from across the field reckons it was a Great black-back gull. He was sufficiently intrigued to take some video of it (eek!) and told us it actually stood on the rabbit and then tore off strips of meat. Two herring gulls were standing by looking hopeful, but they didn't stand a chance!

Yesterday it rained from around 5am, very hard, and with a strong south-easterly wind, blowing hard on the side of the caravan. John was making lunch when he began cursing - water was dropping down on him from one of the spotlights in the kitchen! Not a lot to do at the time, as it was raining too hard to investigate. So we called our landlord, who said he'd get in touch with Gwilym to come and take a look. We suspect the vent/skylight over the shower is the weak point, especially since we were getting water coming into the shower.

Despite the rain we had some rather bedraggled goldfinches feeding on the niger seed and the sunflower hearts for most of the morning. The rain cleared soon after mid day, though it still looked rather nasty over the mainland. We watched a kestrel hovering over the fields by the farm, and then over our field, and it stooped over the next door field further over to us.

Meanwhile we had about seven goldfinches trying to feed from the niger seed, and it only has four perches. Two of the goldfinches got into a kerfuffle, flying up into the air with an explosion of wings, circling each other and making a racket. Suddenly a brown bomb descended from the sky, a flurry of brown wings flying away, with a small body dangling from its feet. So we think that the kestrel had missed its prey before, and taken a goldfinch instead.

This morning there was a similar altercation between a couple of the goldfinches. For a while nothing happened, but then there was another avian explosion. I missed the hunt, but John saw a large bird dive and chase a small one into the hedge. Suddenly it was there, sitting on a post just outside the caravan window. Bright yellow eye, yellow tallons, but nothing in beak or tallons - we think the little bird got away this time! I managed to take a photo, and from that we think it was a male sparrowhawk this time.

A rather different New Year

John was able to get most of New Year's Eve off work - just had an hour to do in the morning. He had a part day of holiday left since he began working only 3 days a week. So we headed off to the caravan around 2pm. Bit of a grey day until we got past Conway, when the sky brightened, and by the time we reached Pwllheli we were in glorious sunshine... But bitterly cold! I was very glad of the heated seat in the car!

We arrived at the caravan while it was still fairly light, John got the central heating going (and lit the gas fire as well!) and unpacked the car. I was very tired after the journey, so climbed into a nest of duck down quilt and slept for a while.

I woke up in time to see most of Jools Holland's Hootenanny, and we saw the New Year in together. John was pretty tired by then so went to bed, I began to watch the Kath and Kim Christmas Special. Suddenly around 3am the lights went out, everything went off (including the central heating- urgh!) and everywhere was pitch black. Drew back the curtains, but only starlight. In other words, very dark!

I couldn't remember where the candles were (note to self, in future put ready when arrive in caravan!), so shouted for John, but he was really fast asleep. Eventually he woke, and between us we found the night lights and got one lit. We could see the lights were on in Abersoch, but none by us in Bwlchtocyn, so we both went back to bed. I lay and looked at the stars through the front windows, and eventually fell asleep.

Woke early to a beautiful dawn.

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Power back on, but only on low voltage. Enough for lights, and to boil the kettle (though that took ages!), but not enough for the central heating pump or the television. Lovely morning though, just awful cold! We were both really glad that we had the gas fire, just wish it was easier to get lit and turned up to full. But we got there in the end.

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Power came back on fully around 3pm, after another total outage - presumably for final work on the system. We were really glad to get the heating back on, made the bathroom much more bearable!

John got in a couple of walks, but since he started his own blog I'll let him write about them.

We enjoyed looking at the new decking - Tim has done a fantastic job.



I just did one gardening job - pruned the oregano. I cut it back really hard, we really hope that it will grow back as it did last year, as an almost perfect part sphere... until the wind changed its shape and it became more wild.



We had intended to come home on Sunday, and had packed the car ready to come home. Had a variety of error messages come up, and car wouldn't start. Called RAC Motability number, and they could arrange transport. But by then I was so knackered was almost asleep.

So we deferred travel till Monday.

With one thing and another (mainly the freezing weather so lots of accidents happening) we didn't get our tow till about 2pm. Our rescuer, Jasper, told us that it was incredibly snowy in Beddgelert and around, he'd had some scary rescues to do with folks sliding on the ice as well.



Took some time to load the car onto the trailer.



Our driver was Jasper, and he had lots of interesting stories to tell us - he knows the area well, and many local people and places. He came from the North Wales Recovery service who I highly recommend as being friendly and helpful.

We got towed on the loader to Conway. At the office there we were offered a very welcome cuppa tea, and then were then given a courtesy car to drive home. We got home about 7pm, unloaded the car, and I went to bed while John headed for Tesco to get some food in.

Today I've handed back the courtesy car (collected by a very cheerful chap), and taken delivery of a hire care (delivered by another very cheerful chap) from Motability. I have this for 2 days, if repairs on Big Blue 2 take longer than that we must contact them to extend the hire. While the whole business has been a nuisance, it has been mitigated by the helpfulness and cheerfulness of everyone I've been involved with.

Am so glad I went for another Motability car - wonder if the care and service we have been so fortunate to have would have been so good otherwise.

Been busy and then exhausted

Thought I'd begin with a few lamb bananas.

This one is by the Mersey Tunnel ventilation shaft building.



And this is in Kensington, just up from the Royal Liverpool University Hospital.



Outside Lime Street Station entrance.



We had nearly a week away in Abersoch... Didn't make it till the Monday though. The previous week we did two test drives, and ordered a new Motability car. So we were fairly knackered after that and decided to try and have a rest day before heading for Wales.

Oh the car? Another Grand Scenic, but a diesel this time. With heated front seats, a sun roof, and a dash mounted 6 CD changer. Oh, and a rear parking sensor. If I get back to driving again I'll need it! It's going to be dark blue again, but this is much darker than my current Big Blue. Delivery mid September we hope.

The courgette plants are doing OK, and we had a tasty courgette and cheese starter for one meal.





We did have some nice sunny weather, and even some warmish weather, but this is the only picture John took of me this time...



At least I have a lovely garden to look at while all bundled up in blankets!



Here's the first agapanthus flower of the year.



Lots more flowers still to come, probably some are out already. But we were too shattered to get back to the caravan this weekend. Maybe next weekend.

Day Trip to Abersoch

January has been quite a difficult month so far, but I think things are improving now.

Saturday morning we got a phone call from Harold, our landlord for the caravan pitch. He's found us a second hand caravan and wanted us to go and see it. Phone calls round all the family, and arranged to visit Sunday morning. Sunday morning Helen got here around 8am and we set off.

The new (to us) van is nice - much paler "wood" furniture than the old one, so seems much brighter inside. Nice big windows across the front, similar to how they were in the old van. (we had been put off many of the more modern vans by their small windows at the front)



One double, two twin bedrooms, the twin beds can be pushed together to make double beds. The cooker looks as if it's never been used, as does the gas fire.



The curtains and bedhead fabric in the bedrooms is not really what we'd have chosen, but we'll only be sleeping in there so that shouldn't be too much bother! The living room curtains are thankfully plain, a sort of burgundy colour. Upholstery in the living room is patterned and not really to our taste, but it's livable with.



It's double glazed and fully insulated (that'll be a big improvement on the old van!), but hasn't got central heating. Harold will arrange for the manufacturers to install that for us.



Only downside is that the loo, washbasin and shower are all in the same room. In the old van we had separate toilet with washbasin and shower room with another washbasin. But we'll fettle up the loo in the shed for emergency use, so we can live with that.

Harold gave us lunch, so we didn't get to the old van till about 2.30. Helen and John packed the kitchen stuff up and took it to Harold's shed in the next field for storage, and I packed up all the clothes and stripped the beds etc.

We left the caravan around 6pm. It was clear, and the sky was full of stars. Seemed strange to see the constellations so different to Summer nights! Cassiopea and Orion were clear, and Mars was bright above. Could make out 5 of the Pleiades (Seven Sisters). It's just fabulous to be somewhere where the night skies are dark. Can only see the occasional star from Liverpool - too much light pollution.

We still have more stuff to pack up and bring home, so John has taken a day of work on Friday, and we'll do another day trip. We can't stop over as it's the time when the caravan site is closed, and besides Sarah is coming up for the weekend and we want to see her.



Primroses growing in the bank by our caravan

Went fishing...

Well, not exactly, but we did make it to Abersoch for a week.



The agapanthus only had 3 flowers this year, and John managed to knock off a flower head while on a mad snail and slug hunt amongst its leaves. Sarah (elder daughter) said it was a casualty of war. ;-)



Took a pile of knitting but mislaid the bag till packing to come back home. Ah well! Spent more or less the whole week in a nest of our double down and feather duvet on the bunk with the best view of the field and read some books.



The garden hasn't done too well, though we did have some plants survive. But I didn't get to trim the brambles choking the shrubs beside the shed - next time hopefully! Which we hope won't be too much later, maybe mid September, time will tell I guess.



The lily got chewed by bunnies I think, but badly snail or slug damaged too. The leaves you see in the background are the agapanthus. The lily still smelled wonderful, and I took some time to smell the flowers.



John and "the kids" went sailing, and friends and relations called, all good fun but I slept through vast amounts of fun. I was just really shattered.

It's going to take me a while to catch up, have a lot of stuff I want to think about and then write about. Still not really got to grips with everything that's happened.

John went to Abersoch yesterday

All photos in this post taken by John, and used with his permission.

I have been gifted with a cold from John's work again. Feeling better now than I did this morning, but still worse than I did yesterday. Still haven't got out to buy seeds yet, should have bought online. Maybe will yet!

John had a swim yesterday morning, and then brought me breakfast in bed before heading off to Abersoch to visit the caravan and see how it had weathered the winter.



Some of the plants are doing really well.



But the oregano always seems to thrive!



So far it looks as if there are 3 buds coming on the agapanthus, but more may appear still if last year is anything to go by.



This hydrangea has some good looking buds coming. This is the one we "pruned" at the end of last season, and took the flowers to GranMary in the rehab nursing home she was in following her op last summer (she's back home now). I hope we get such beautifully coloured flowers this year.

Some plants aren't doing quite so well!



These were left on the table over the winter. I think the greenest one may be chocolate mint. The twiggy one with a few green shoots is Blackcurrant Sage I think, and others are maybe thyme (looks totally dead) and Curry Plant (which looks a bit questionable as to life). Ah well, yer win some, yer loose some.

There are two new caravans at the bottom of the field. These are called 14 & 15, there isn't a 13.



The row of tall trees behind the site have been chopped down over the winter. This should make a lot of the site much sunnier I think, especially late afternoon and evening in autumn time. Here's what it looks like now looking up the field across our neighbour's area.



Oh yeah, as well as the 2 new caravans we have a track down the rest of the field now too.



But the lushness of our bit of hedge hopefully makes up for the loss of grass.



I wonder how the bunnies are doing this year - forgot to ask John last night, and he may not have remembered to ask the rest of the folks on the site. Looking at my plants, I think maybe there are fewer than last year. Time will tell!