Back on Board

Still in the marina

Christine had a telephone physio appointment early this morning but we were able to get away in good clear run across to the marina. Even the Air Balloon roundabout was not a major delay - the road works for the new intersection (aka The Missing Link) are now well underway. It is certainly a major undertaking as the new road has to make its way down the steep escarpment. So far we have only discovered one item that we forgot to pack - the pieces of wood for the fire!

All was well with the boat with one (important) exception. As in several previous years, the Webasto heater refuses to start up. Despite several attempts, it quickly shout down. Steve, the engineer in the marina took a look and has concluded that it needs a replacement part but attempts to track it down are still on-going. 

We were not planning to depart the marina until Saturday at best as we had one or two things to attend to. Our new EV car somewhat smaller - 2008 rather than 3008 - so we have had to re-think our tactics. In the past we have taken a good supply of food with us so that we could make a quick getaway. 

However, this time we only brought with us a meat and cheese supply, expecting to to a 'big' shop tomorrow in Droitwich. We also want to make sure that the car is fully charged before we set off so that also entails time in town. Over the years we have developed a standard way of packing the car so that we know what we can fit in and where. This has also had to be re-thought.

One of the tasks was to clean the cabin roof - we noticed on our last visit that it has grown a significant mould/algae layer which is never easy to remove. As a result we did fit into the car our pressure washer and once we had unloaded the car and had lunch, Mike set about cleaning. The pressure washer made considerable difference, not only effectively removing the dirt but also it meant that Mike did not have to scrub on his hands and knees - sadly not as comfortable a pose as in earlier times , , , The cabin sides were not in the same condition so we can leave that, given that we are booked in for a re-paint at the end of May.

Whilst on the marina pontoon we can have hot water via the immersion heater and the stove kept the cabin cosy - the outside temperature is not too cold anyway. However, we will need to work out a plan tomorrow as we do not want to fall too far behind in our schedule to get to Nantwich.