Art in the sunshine !

Saturday 17th September 2016

A lazy start today - then Jackie took penny for a long walk on the sea front and met an English couple staying in a hotel - they quizzed Jackie about this lovely area.

I attended to domestic duties and booked our ferry home.
We have opted for the long drive to Caen, on Monday, because the day crossing from Rosscoff has its full quota of pets !!
So we have to leave here at 4am to be at Cean by 7am for the ferry that leaves at 8.30.

Then the ancient printer wouldn't work - I tried every trick to coax it but it wouldn't go online because of an error. !!
So I went to the office and they said no problem - just log in to our computer and we will print it.
Of course I had no idea what my google log in is !
By the time I had the log in details the office was closed for lunch - ARGHHHH !

So off to Ille Grande at very low tide.

They have put up loads of very good posters on rustic frames all around the coast advertising the art weekend and the artist on show.

It's hard to see from this distance - the artist has formed a sea sculpture designed to be covered at high tide !

                                                      Penny in her very comfy transport.

Then off to our favourite cafe for mussels and chips !!

                                                           L Bout de Ille Bistro

Back on board we chilled out and then I had another go at coaxing the printer - BINGO !!
It printed - sorted.

We took penny for yet another walk on the prom to see the sea crashing up against the sea wall !
The upstairs bar was open - amazing - so we had to have a drink up there great views !

A good day overall.

A big clean up day and packing tomorrow - so this will be the last blog until we return soon.

Mike - Jackie + Penny.

What shall we do.?

Friday 15th September 2016

After the poor day yesterday and a poor forecast for the next 5 days I wondered if we should cut the trip short and go home.

I also have some office work to do and have not brought enough information with me to sort it.
We have checked Blazer out - she is in great condition - and I have completed the projects that I wanted to do this trip.

So I made the decision  to make plans to go home on Monday.

We called at the vets in town and they arranged an appointment for Penny to have her worming tablet at 11.30 - great. - No problems - the vet examined Penny and said she was fine - all set to travel.

We shopped and bought a lovely seafood spread for our evening meal - Fantastic !
The sun came out so off we went to take Penny on a beach.
The tide was way out ( Springs now ) and we spotted people collecting cockles on a beach we never go on.
We had our tools with us - so cockling we went.

It was really easy to fill our bucket with all sizes of clams and cockles - a good kilo in less than an hour !
Penny loves doing her own thing while we are busy - sometimes wandering off a long way !!

Back on board I steamed them just in water and we ate them with a little vinegar and black pepper - Lovely !!

                                                        Non for Penny - All Gone !

In the afternoon - Jackie read her book in sunshine in the cockpit while I did some overdue engine maintenance - changing the twin fuel filters.
I was shocked to find just how much gunge was in the primary filter - Must change them more often !!
It was a messy job with diesel fuel everywhere but I managed to contain it all and soon had it all squared away.
Jackie took penny for another long walk then cooked our seafood meal.
Lots of Prawns in the shell as a starter and baked white fish with noodles and fresh bread - WOW !!

A lovely day !!

Mike - Jackie + Penny.

Wash Day

Thursday 15th September 2016

Raining this morning so a lazy start - the rain cleared away - so we dug out the twin tub and did the weekly wash !
We found filling the washer was easier now with the shower hose and we soon had it all washed and cleared away.

We dried it all up at the launderette in two driers - no chance of drying on the line today - looks like rain any minute.

We took Penny to Ille Grande and found the artists setting up a beach sculpture - designed to be covered by the sea at high tide !
It's part of an art exhibition all along this coast this weekend - might be interesting.

I set off to the waters edge and after only a few yards slipped on some mud and crashed to the ground !
I fell on my new hip and my shoulder but no damage except my jacket and shorts were covered in mud !

We continued the walk but after 10 minutes it started raining again so back to Blazer.

So - a working / rainy day.

Mike - Jackie + Penny.

Lovely Sunshine

Wednesday 14th September 2016

An early start to finish the cockpit shower - a nice dry sunny morning.

I soon had the shower control mounted to the shelf  / tray and the flexible pipes feeding it hot and cold water.
I fitted the shelf nice and solid inside the cockpit locker - the spot that I chose to fit it is very awkward to get to from inside the locker but it is a good use of unused space.

I then swapped two push in elbows for t pieces and piped up to the flex's  with plastic plumbing pipe.
The shower head is an unusual one with a squeeze trigger to turn on the water and I coupled it to the shower control valve with a really long hose.

It works great !!!
Everything fits well on the shelf - the access panel is easy to open / close - the water gets to temperature really quickly - lovely.

After putting all the tools and locker contents away - Jackie gave me a haircut in the cockpit - ( yes we keep a set of barbers gear on board ) - Then we tested the shower -

We washed Penny !! - she hates it !!
We have tried washing her with the hose pipe before and its no good - too powerful and too cold.
The new shower is warm and a gentle spray - just right.
We were all done in a flash
Penny didn't seam to mind much at all !

We then swapped to the hosepipe  and gave the whole boat deck and spray hood a good clean - lovely.

Then off to Ille Grande for a walk with Penny  - from the port to the bird sanctuary.
We stopped off for Penny to go in the sea for a while - then coffee at the restaurant - "Le Bout De Ille"
Lovely.

Back on board for cocktails and dinner with music from the Ipod - fantastic.

                                                       The view from the cockpit at 8pm

A great day.

Mike - Jackie + Penny.

Sunshine and Thundery showers

Tuesday 13th September 2016

A thundery / rainy start to the day - then full sunshine.

First a visit to Mr. Bricolage at Tregestel to buy plywood and a piece of square softwood to make the tray to hold the cockpit shower.
While I was doing that, Jackie shopped at the big supermarket across the car park.
I found two pieces of half inch ply exactly the right size in the off cut bin at one Euro each - great !

Then off to a nice walk close by - round the lake in an area across the water from Ille Renote.
Lovely sunshine but no sea for Penny to swim in today.

We didn't take a flask today so we went to the port of Tregestel and had coffee in a restaurant overlooking the bay - lovely.
All the people eating made us want to order lunch but Penny was not settled so - back to Blazer for a nice long lunch in sunshine sat in the cockpit - lovely.

We chilled out on board in the afternoon - I walked Penny around the rocks near the marina and spotted lots of black berries ! Then I made some progress with the tray construction in between the thundery showers.

By the time it was dark, I had the shelf / tray made and the cover secured over the access hole and sealed.
I need to drill a 30mm hole in it for the mixer valve, then it can be fitted and painted tomorrow.
I have enjoyed making it - fitting it around all the shapes and angles plus joining the parts with nice brass screws - satisfying.

 No photos today - I forgot the camera !

Mike - Jackie + Penny.

My Kind of day !

Monday 12th September 2016

After the early rain we set off for Tregestel market in sunshine - Not as big as the market gets in July and August but bigger than we normally see.

We met an old man who was interested in Penny - He was a French man brought up in Engalnd and so spoke with a very posh British accent !

I bought half a dozen big oysters from this stall for a very reasonable 50 cents each.

Penny behaved well despite lots of tourists  

Jackie doing self service for our favourite small tomatoes from the best stall, they taste devine - we eat them like sweets !

From the market we drove to Ille Renote to walk Penny and to make a change we walked it in reverse direction - lovely.

                                                      Penny up to the neck in it !

                                                                A coffee stop.

We took a rucksac from home this trip - much better.

                                                            Second coffee stop.

Back on board the sun was really strong, but I wanted to sort a couple of jobs.

I put together a hand pump to transfer the contents of our toilet holding tank into a 5 gallon black container.
It went together well and I tested it - No Problem - we now have self pump out when we need it.
The contents of the container go down the toilet in the shower block - easy.

Then I started the installation of a cockpit shower.
I have wanted one for years - for washing sand off feet - showering when we have had a swim and now for washing Penny !

All I managed to get done was cutting the six inch diameter hole in the cockpit for the access cover and I worked out the size of plywood that I need to make a tray inside to hold the shower control and shower head.

Jackie made a great meal of steak with Ratatouille and Dauphenous potatoes - Wonderful.

My kind of day !

Mike - Jackie + Penny

Hot and Sunny Sunday

Sunday 11th September 2016.

An early start today - I was up at 06.00 - still dark - it gets light about 08.00 here at the moment.
One oil lamp on - coffee - good Internet connection - great !

Penny has her first short walk as soon as it gets light then after breakfast and shower we headed off to Ille Grande for the first visit this trip.

Penny loves this area and it showed !
We walked the paths to the sailing school in hot sunshine and I took pictures and studied the electronic chart on the Ipad to sort out a good route to a spot where we could dry Blazer out for maintenance between tides.
Next weekend is spring tides and that will be ideal for that job.

We picked about a pound of blackberries on the way back to make a pudding with some apples from home - Great !

Then onto the beach with chairs and coffee and Penny running free.
The beach was fairly busy, in the hot sunshine, with about 20 people that we could see.
She ran her legs off ! and then started burying stuff all over the place non stop.

I spotted a guy gathering cockles and went to see him - he had a unique method which gave good results.
He stirred up the sand, as the tide came in, with a garden tool while walking backwards - then when the water cleared - the cockles were sitting on top of the sand - easy.
there seam to be only cockles on that beach - no clams.
I will adopt that idea next time we go to that beach.

Back on board about 2 pm for Jackie to start Sunday lunch and bake the pudding - apple and blackberry sponge - WOW.

We chilled out in very hot sunshine with cocktails while the brisket with all the trimmings cooked - Bliss.

Another long walk with penny on the beach and Jackie braved the cool water and had a swim !!

Lovely day.

Mike and Jackie + Penny

Rain and then More Rain !!

Saturday 10th September 2016

A cloudy, cool and drizzly start today - so a slow start pottering on board - I tackled a job that I have been putting off because I thought it would get sea water on the fridge unit under the sink but in the end it was fine.

The galley sink waste pipe was blocked and had to be plunged regularly - so I fixed it.
No amount of rodding and pumping got near the problem so - I drained it as low as I could and then closed the seacock and took the pipe off !
The cause was visible straight away - a small mussel was wedged in the pipe along with a piece of mussel shell - I would never have fixed it from the sink !!
All back together - sorted - WONDERFUL !!
I must be more careful when I wash mussels in future !!!

Jackie noticed that there were lots of people congregating near the fishing boat area and we went to investigate with Penny.

It turned out to be a big celebration to dedicate a new lifeboat for Trebeurden with a Bishop and dignitaries from all over plus a famous French actress.

About 10 other local lifeboats attended  along with a crowd of 2 or 3 hundred people.

                                                        Old fashioned police ?

We saw the dedication accompanied by a small band - all in a drizzle !!

                                                      New lifeboat.

Then the new lifeboat led off out into the bay with all the other lifeboats following - they were all full of the dignitaries and visitors - then the rain really came down - for hours !!!

They had laid on big marquees and a stage for bands - plus stalls with demonstrations and bouncy castles - No fun in the rain.

We dashed back to Blazer and got on with a few jobs.

I fitted a small TV to the forward cabin and a DVD player so that Jackie can chill out with a girly film when she needs a bit of space - it works well.

 I found that the main computer built into Blazer didn't work - it had been fine in the morning - so I started to sort it - very frustrating !!
I put in a lot of work - all to no avail - then texted Paul my computer wizz for support.
I did what he suggested and BINGO all good !!

We then took Penny out for a long walk on the beach in sunshine ! - lovely - and when we got back we fitted the spray hood that had been home for a proper sewing job with UV resistant thread.

All together a useful day - nice to see the event and a good few jobs done.

Mike - Jackie + Penny.

Back in Trebeurden - Yippee !

Thursday 8th & Friday 9th September 2016

A quick summary since we left Trebeurden in early July -

Visited Fiona's in Cornwall for a few days.
Had a weeks Villa holiday in Spain with Scott and family.
Put in a lot of effort at home in Derby sorting the garden + chicken run + repairing the summer house.

We had invited Jackie's sister, Zoie, to spend two weeks on Blazer but she unfortunately broke a toe and has to wear a boot for a few weeks ! - so not ideal for sailing - Zoie will stay at home this trip.

So we packed the car to the roof with stuff - popped Penny in the back - ( fully recovered now from her operation ) and set off at 11 am on Thursday.

A great drive down to Plymouth in sunshine with two half hour stops to stretch our legs - 260 miles.
We made our way to the dog friendly cafe overlooking the harbour for a pasty - great.
We were on board the Brittany Ferries - Pont Aven - by 20.30 and locked up Penny in her kennel for the night. It really upset us to leave her there - a very clinical - clean - stainless steel cell - one of a hundred on the top deck - Penny was not happy and it showed !!
We did put her bed in the kennel to make her more comfy which helped a bit.

The ferry was huge - our first time on this one - like a cruise ship !!
We explored and watched one of the entertainers in the cabaret room - quite good.
We had a little cabin - cosy - and tried to sleep with the boat rolling a bit.
I visited Penny once during the night - she looked rough ! - never mind - it will soon be over.

We docked bang on time - 08.00 - in Roscoff - and we set off in sunshine for Trebeurden about 90 minutes drive.

Penny recognised where she was and raced down the main pontoon and stopped exactly at Blazer -
amazing !!
I spent the day unloading the car and sorting stuff - Jackie worked hard getting Blazer ship shape and homely.
Jackie cooked a rabbit stew with dumplings - fantastic - then off to the beach with Penny at 7pm.
She went ran full pelt - straight into the sea - she loved it.
On our walk back we stopped off at Le Benji's and got a warm welcome - lovely.
We stopped for about an hour then crashed out on Blazer.
A very busy day - great !!

We are aiming to stay about three weeks this trip - no serious passage making - just day sailing and we aim to be home in early October for a visit from Jackie's brother Ian from Canada.

Mike and Jackie + Penny.