Typical British summer! Wild weather means Ravensdale is stuck in the marina ☹

Big waves whipped up by high winds on the shore at Maryport in Cumbria, UK

We’ve had no chance to take Ravensdale out on the water this week due to high winds.

And, even if it hadn’t been so windy, we probably wouldn’t have taken our Neptunus 133 motor cruiser out on the Solway Firth in Cumbria, UK, because there’s also been a lot of wet weather here this week.

Thankfully, the forecast is for warmer, calmer weather this weekend so, hopefully, we’ll be able to go fishing either tomorrow (Saturday) or Sunday – possibly both 😊

Meanwhile, Phil has replaced the water in Ravensdale’s starboard engine with a new 50:50 mixture of water and antifreeze because the heat exchanger had to be drained while our new calorifier was being fitted.

Ruby in her inflatable collar on Ravensdale's aft deck

Poor little Ruby has had to wear her inflatable collar to stop her scratching again when she developed yet another ear infection ☹

And we’ve walked further than usual this week because we’ve been carless so all our shopping has been done on foot, not that we minded as we know it's good for us.


Antifreeze

Phil flushing the heat exchanger with clean water before filling it with the water/antifreeze mixture

The heat exchanger on Ravensdale’s starboard engine needed to be refilled with water and antifreeze following the replacement of the calorifier that provides our domestic hot water.

The engine had to be drained before the job could be carried out.

We bought some new antifreeze before the engine was drained down but discovered that we didn’t have enough so it was temporarily filled with plain water until we could purchase more antifreeze.

We couldn’t go and get more straight away because our car was out of action while it was waiting for the garage to have time to replace the rear disk brakes and carry out an MOT.

Once we got the car back, we were able to drive to nearby Workington to buy some more antifreeze.

Phil pouring the antifreeze into the heat exchanger on Ravensdale's starboard engine

Phil drained the water out of the heat exchanger, flushed it through with clean water, then refilled it with a 50:50 mix of water and antifreeze.

Ruby watching Phil working in the engine room

Ruby was very interested in what Phil was doing and sat on the edge of the hole in the saloon floor watching his every move.

Ruby of Ravensdale

Ruby in her inflatable collar

Ruby developed yet another ear infection this week.

She will be 10 months old next week and has already had three ear infections and a nail bed infection.

The vet now thinks they've all been caused by allergies causing her to scratch. The scratches then become infected.

We don’t know what she’s allergic too, but grass seed is a distinct possibility, which would be a real shame given how much she enjoys running around in the long grass, rolling around in it or just laying down in it.

Ruby playing in the long grass before her latest ear infection

The vet treated Ruby’s ear infection and put her on anti-allergy medication.

We’ve got to take her back for a follow-up appointment on Tuesday when the vet will decide whether they will be likely to go ahead with the spaying surgery she’s booked for on Thursday as they won’t operate unless her ear is fully healed. 

Meanwhile, Ruby’s had to wear her blue inflatable collar again to stop her scratching and seems to like it less this time as she tries to run away when we go to put it on her.

Ruby playing with a ball on Ravensdale's aft deck

Once, it’s on she seems to accept it and carries on as normal, which is just as well as she’s going to have to wear something to stop her biting or scratching her stitches after her operation next week, if it happens then.

We took to collar off while taking her for walks this week as she doesn’t tend to scratch so much while out and, if she does, we can stop her, and we were able to remove it totally yesterday (Thursday) for which she was very grateful.

Ruby cuddling up to my side after her collar had been removed yesterday (Thursday)

Ruby has become obsessed with sticks lately and wants to bring them all home, but she attempted to fetch home a couple that were much too big for her when I walked her on the beach on Tuesday afternoon.

Two were just too big to bring home but she had a good go at them - one was more like a whole tree trunk 😊

Ruby playing with a large stick she found on Maryport beach

Ruby with an even bigger stick that looked more like a tree trunk

Ruby with a smaller stick that she carried most of the way home

Our car is back on the road

Thankfully we got our car back on Monday afternoon, just in time to take Ruby to the vet with her ear infection.

Last Wednesday, we left it at the garage to have the rear brake discs replaced after a chunk dropped off one of them. We also asked the garage to carry out an MOT test.

When we took the car in, we were told they probably wouldn’t be able to do it until Monday but we weren’t going to drive it in that state so the owner said to leave it with them and they’d do it sooner if possible.

And they did get the brakes done sooner.

When we were returning from a walk with Ruby on Saturday lunchtime, we were surprised to see our car being driven towards us.

The mechanic recognised us, so he opened the window and told us he was just testing the brakes.

He said the work had been done and he could take us back to the garage to pay for the work so we could have the car back there and then, so Phil, Ruby and I climbed in.

At that point, I realised we needed to pop back to the marina first, so he drove us to the marina where I checked that the MOT had also been done.

He hadn’t been aware it needed an MOT as well, which meant it hadn’t been tested so he dropped us off at the marina and took the car back to the garage.

I called the garage about the car on Monday morning and was told it was ready to collect but we’d already arranged to go out for lunch to celebrate Phil’s birthday, so we walked to the pub and then on to the garage after our meal.

I called the vet as soon as I knew we would have the car back and managed to get the only available afternoon appointment for Ruby, which fitted in perfectly.


Cooking on gas

We have a gas cooker on Ravensdale and have discovered that a 13kg propane cylinder lasts us three months and a 3.9kg cylinder lasts about three and a half weeks.

We use a 3.9kg cylinder when the 13kg runs out, while we order a new one, as we don’t have room to store a second 13kg cylinder on the boat.

13kg and 3.9kg propane cylinders in Ravensdale's gas locker, which is under our freezer

Our last 13kg cylinder was fitted on April 26 and ran out on July 26.

The last 3.9kg cylinder was fitted on July 26 and ran out yesterday (August 22).

I started keeping a record of how long each bottle lasted when we first moved onboard Ravensdale in November 2016 so we could gauge our usage and therefore the costs involved.

I now know exactly how long they last but can’t stop filling in my list – probably because I’m a very sad person who's addicted to writing lists 😊


Litter louts strike again ☹

Broken glass and other litter in one of the viewing areas on Mote Hill, Maryport. The information board has also been vandalised

Litter by the path along the River Ellen in Maryport

I was saddened to see so much litter on a walk along the River Ellen and up over Mote Hill on Saturday.

The footpath up Mote Hill was also very overgrown and wearing shorts was definitely not a good idea as there were stinging nettles, thistles and brambles across the footpath. Ouch!

I later discovered the route was supposed to be closed due to a landslip, but someone had removed the signs, so I had no idea it was out of bounds.

I guess that would explain why no one has cleared the path in recent months.

However, it doesn’t excuse the cans, bottles, food wrappers and, worst of all, the broken glass along the pathway and in the viewing areas at the top of Mote Hill that look out over the Solway Firth.

I will never understand why people can carry their food and drink to the location at which they consume it but are incapable of carrying their empties back home or to the nearest rubbish bin.

I'm just glad I didn't have Ruby with me on that walk or she could've ended up with cut paws ☹


Photography

Big waves crashing on the shore at Maryport in Cumbria

My favourite photos from this week were from a walk along the beach here in Maryport on Sunday to photograph the big waves whipped up by the high winds.

Waves whipped up by high winds on the shore at Marypost

Wild waves by Maryport Pier

Storm clouds over Maryport beach

I also converted some of the images to black and white as I feel wild weather images work particularly well in monochrome.

Black and white image of wild weather at Maryport

Black and white image of wild weather at Maryport

Black and white image of wild weather at Maryport

I took my camera for a walk around the harbour on Saturday.

Fishing boats and swans at Maryport Harbour

High tide at Maryport Harbour

More fishing boats in Maryport Harbour

I then decided to extend my walk and headed along the River Ellen and up over Mote Hill.

The River Ellen from Mote Hill, Maryport

The Solway Firth from Mote Hill

View across the River Ellen to the Solway Firth with the marina's hard-standing in the distance

On Sunday, on my way back from taking photos of the wild weather on the shore, I took a few snaps of Maryport across the basin.

Christ Church at Maryport from across the basin

Shipping Brow at Maryport from across the basin

And, the only time we saw really calm weather this week was on Tuesday evening while the marina gate was shut, so we couldn’t take Ravensdale out on the water.

But it gave me the chance to take a wander around the marina and take some photos of the boats reflected in the still water.

Reflections on the still water at Maryport Marina

Boats reflected in the still water at Maryport Marina

Sunset at Maryport Marina

A calm evening at Maryport Marina

Weather watch

It’s been a wet and windy week here in Maryport, Cumbria, UK, this week and not particularly warm – considering it’s supposed to be summer.

I guess it’s what’s known as “a typical British summer” 😊

The temperature only reached 18C (64F), and then only briefly, and we’ve had wind speeds averaging up to 34mph with gusts up to 52mph.

Blue sky

Saturday was dry and bright but very windy with a few spots of rain during the evening. The top temperature was 16C (61F) and the top average wind speed was 26mph, gusting 36mph.

Sunday was another windy day with rain first thing followed by dry and bright weather with a few showers during the early afternoon. The top temperature was 16C (61F) and the top average wind speed was 28mph, gusting 38mph.

We had rain first thing on Monday. It was then overcast with the cloud cover thinning as the day went on. The top temperature was 16C (61F) and the top average wind speed was 19mph, gusting 29mph.

Monday evening at Maryport Marina

We woke up to rain again on Tuesday morning. It then cleared up and the rest of the day was dry and sunny, except for a light shower in the evening.

The top temperature at St Bees Head - our nearest weather station - was 16C (61F) and the top average wind speed was 19mph, but it was warmer than that here as the thermometer in the car was showing 18C (64F).

The wet view across Ravensdale's aft deck on Wednesday afternoon

Wednesday started dry and bright with the cloud increasing during the day. The wind got up during the afternoon and heavy rain arrived at about 5pm. The top temperature was 16C (61F) and the top average wind speed was 28mph, gusting 40mph.

After another wet and very windy night with average wind speeds up to 34mph, gusting 52mph, yesterday (Thursday) started wet again and it didn’t stop raining until lunchtime.

Maryport Marina yesterday (Thursday) afternoon

It stayed cloudy and windy throughout the day. The top temperature was 16C (61F) and the top average wind speed was 22mph, gusting 32mph.

And, today (Friday) the weather has been dry but breezy. It was very overcast first thing, improving as the day went on. The top temperature was 16C (61F) and the top average wind speed was 19mph, gusting 29mph.

A grey start to the day today (Friday) at Maryport Marina