Summer's back...

...and Christine and Mike are on their way. It's a beautiful day, and the summery, peaceful atmosphere here at the marina is brilliant. Everyone's so cheerful, loving the return of the sun and the opportunity to get out on the cut without getting wet or blown about.

The first thing we had to do when we woke before 7:00 this morning was to fill the water tank. We discovered it was empty just before we went to bed around midnight last night, and we weren't going to do anything about it then. It was a lovely morning, though, and warm even that early.

We lit the bubble stove, but only because Grace had a lot of washing to dry, and wanted to use the radiators for some of it. It's against marina rules to hang washing outside the boat, and there's only limited space to hang on three short lines under the cratch cover. We opened all of the doors, hatches and windows, but it was still too hot!

Later, I gave Kantara a long-overdue wash, and was dismayed by the amount of paint which was washing off into the marina water. There's no getting away from the fact that the re-paint next spring is an absolute must. With that in mind, I'm not bothering to deal with the chips and scratches which we're collecting each time we cruise. We've run out of the blue paint, and it's no longer available, so the boat's going to have to look a bit shabby for some months.

You can see the extent of the scratches in the photo. The rather fetching bit of gaffer tape holding on the ventilation grille will have to stay put for a while, too, until we get our hands on a rivet gun. This grille and the one opposite it on the other side of the hull are very vulnerable to protuberances on the armco moorings we favour, and they keep getting pulled off.

Let me introduce you to Frank, the Viszla belonging to Carol and Stuart on Jimsonweed just down the pontoon from us.

He was difficult to photograph!

He's a lovely character, very affectionate, and very funny. My photos failed to capture the huge, lop-sided smile with which he greets everyone.

Grace has just taken a banana cake out of the oven, and is starting to prepare supper for when Christine and Mike arrive. I'm very hungry, and the smells are too much for me! Tomorrow, we're off to the Ashby Canal.