Nothing to do with Noele Gordon or a motel (1964-1988). We’d not long set off on the Evening Walk and had just turned right from the field onto the track parallel with Alonáki Beach where a caravan and a motorhome were parked. They have been there several times over the summer and a couple of weekends since. A woman walker was coming towards us and Isabella decided she was more appealing than walking with us so went over to see her. She’s done this a couple of times lately. There was a small dog with the motorhome so I continued down the road towards the Promontory expecting Isabella to catch us up. I whistled but she was too involved with the woman so took no notice. She was only a few moments away from the camping, just across the field so I left her to fend for herself. The idea of turning back and trying to recover her with six dogs in my hands didn’t seem too appealing so on we went. She’s been that route several times each day during the past week so could either catch us up or go back to the camping.
The Evening Walk was extremely pleasant as there was no one on the Promontory, the sea was very calm, there was no wind but a beautiful sunset. The first quarter of the moon was glistening overhead. We walked the rocks and then turned back and headed towards the camping. As we walked past the group with the vans, a woman asked me if the small dog belonged to me as she was concerned. I said that I lived very near and she’d find her way. Sure enough, as we crossed the field, Luis had picked up her scent so was keener to get back than usual. Once I’d closed the gate and unhooked the dogs a small dark-coloured puppy appeared from the awning tent. The others rushed up to her and there was plenty of sniffing and wagging. She can find her way back as I suspected. Maybe she might be more cautious about wandering off to see strangers in future.
The Early Walk was warmer than the previous day although the night started off on the cool side. 02:35 was the wee-call this morning but I didn’t go out with her. She disappeared to do her thing but then didn’t reappear so I went back to bed as it was coolish. Around twenty minutes later I heard her come back inside and found her curled up on my padded chair. I put her back in her cage where she stayed until morning.
The walk itself was a forced march as I didn’t want to be hanging around. Also, Isabella can be a little annoying towards the other dogs but finds it harder if the pace is quick. It was a lovely morning and we were back after the two walks before the sun rose.
Skinny and I went off as usual and I then went for a shower and made breakfast. I was feeling a little tired following all the exercise so decided to take Isabella for her walk later. I ate breakfast and the morning trickled away. Xanthippos was working away at the building conversion and the heating guys eventually arrived to finish off the hot water boiler installation. Isabella became more active so I took her and Luis for a pleasant walk on the Promontory and over the rocks. In order to stretch Isabella a little, I chose a difficult route which included a large gap in the rocks. She sat on one side and made wailing noises then decided to jump the gap rather than find a more suitable alternative route. As anticipated, she didn’t make the jump so fell in. She extracted herself then shook off the water. Another lesson learned. Luis, meanwhile, had simply chosen an easier route although he could have quite simply jumped the ‘chasm’
We stopped to chat with the Swiss couple. Luis dung himself into the sand and Isabella curled up and fell asleep. After a while, I went back as the other dogs had now been on their own for quite a while. They were quiet and pleased to see us.
I could see the heating guys working on the new boiler by means of my gate camera which points across the camping towards the main bathrooms. I guessed they were trying to get the job finished as there were now several men and three vehicles parked outside. They eventually packed up and left just after 17:00 whereupon I went over to inspect their handiwork and check things were working as expected. From the sound of air circulating through the tank, I guessed they didn’t bleed the system thoroughly. Opening some of the basin taps resulted in a mixture of water and air which would have been a bit exciting for the customers to discover. There was little pressure but it’s been like that for most of the day. The system was working as the water was hot but then the sun has been out for most of the day to warm the water. Georgia was talking about just letting the system work automatically but I suspect that will change when she discovers how much diesel it uses up. She has it in her head that the electric heater was expensive to run, which it is, depending on how you use it. There is no way of determining how much electricity was actually being consumed by the water heater as there is no separate meter. The diesel is a different matter as the tank only serves the water heater. I think a nasty shock may be on the way.
It’s now completely dark and I can hear water dripping from the metal roof above indicating high humidity. I’m going in to consume my evening meal and expect I’ll be joined by a dog or two.
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