Another great walk with Lily

We’ve not long returned from another walk with Lily. This time it was Jan with Lily. Paula took her the other morning. Jan is trying to ensure Lily is obedient as she’s going to be a big girl when she grows up. At only eight months of age, she just wants to play. My lot were as excited as usual at the beginning of the walk so a certain amount of calming down was in order. They all played nicely together and Jan was jubilant with they way Lily behaved and played.

Today I decided to check the fluid levels in my lighting batteries so there was a lot of messing about as I dug down through the layers of stuff in order to access the batteries. Note to self: lead batteries should be easily accessible so they can be checked often. The batteries are very old and do not hold a sensible charge. They need replacing but I’m considering a solar power installation which would render the batteries obsolete.

The Early Walk passed without incident. Was mostly dry, windy and a little cold. I wanted to get in a core workout and shower so didn’t hang around longer than necessary. The dogs were all in the van as I prepared my breakfast however it was warm enough for me to eat it outside in the tent despite the clouds and wind which has been battering us for four days so far.

My weekly phone call followed during which I booked a flight to UK for 26 April until 8 May. Ursula kindly agreed to look after the dogs during my absence and Maria has been informed that I’ll be away so she needs to be here to look after the camping.

I had a missing hour following my weekly call and then started doing a couple of odd jobs. Fixing the entrance gate CCTV camera to the pole up a little higher and dealing with the batteries. The batteries are in an awkward location if you don’t have a driver’s door. It’s necessary to hang upside-down over the driver’s seat in order to lift the board and carpet which cover the batteries in their well below the floor. The driver’s seat is used for all manner of storage so these items required relocation beforehand. I vacuumed up some of the cobwebs and the mouse nest created in the battery compartment. One battery was ok however the other was very low and required an appreciable amount of water. During this process, I was called away by Jan who wanted to empty his loo and pay for the camping. At the same time I collected the money from Hans, the guy who arrived last Saturday. He is now paid up until March so has extended his stay to five weeks. Jan paid for a week and has emptied his loo! It was at this point we decided to take all the dogs out together.

I came back after the walk and fed the dogs. I’d not had time to prepare my food so did that before anything else. The strong winds have broken some of the elastic straps which hold down the tent sides so these required my attention. Once one goes, the ones either side are put under additional strain so go out in sympathy.

Things are now in reasonable order, the dogs are all sleeping in different locations and it looks as though Ursula’s post of their local electronic bulletin board may have found a home for Charlie. I will talk to the woman tomorrow and then try to convince Carol and David they would like to take him back with them when they return at the beginning of March. I’m pretty certain the woman in question could not afford the additional cost of transport with the musician David.