Sea-side

Winter is a new challenge for us - our previous experience of Brent III in winter is limited to bright frosty weekends which were always very enjoyable.   One of the main concerns for a boater is condensation which can quickly build up in the confined space.  Good ventilation is the resolution and so far this seems to be working for us.  

My other concern was drying the washing.  There are tumble dryers on the marina but using them every time would be expensive.  As we cannot use the washing line the wheelhouse has been taken over as a drying area.  This works very well especially on a windy day with the back doors open.   

Since my last blog the weather has turned and our waterproofs are being put to good use.  As Bess didn't have a jacket we took her to buy one and she wasn't the only dog trying on coats in Pets at Home that morning.  

Bess in her new coat

Bess isn't the only one with new attire, I've bought a bright pink cycling helmet but there are no photos of that for the blog!

The coast of North Wales isn’t far from Tattenhall so we decided to take Bess on her first trip to the seaside.  The beaches of Prestatyn were deserted and Bess enjoyed chasing across the sand but she wasn’t so sure about the sea.   

The seaweed looks interesting. 

Not sure about that wave.

Bess avoided getting wet in the sea but the next day she had a soaking.   As we were setting off for a walk she stepped back off the jetty and went straight into the water.   She soon dried out in front of the stove and enjoyed a drink of warm sweet tea but hopefully she’ll watch her step in future.

Shaun, Laura and the kids were lucky with the weather when they came to visit us on Sunday.  We enjoyed a walk around the ice cream farm looking at the animals, the goats and miniature horses were very friendly and stood to be petted.  Of course some of us couldn't resist sampling an ice cream.  As always we enjoyed the visit, chatting and catching up with all the news.   

Since the weekend we've had some heavy rain but fortunately we've not been affected by high water or floods.  During the bad weather we battened down the hatches and stoked up the fire.  There is now plenty of time for relaxing and occasionally tackling those little jobs which need doing.