Oops!!!

Looking forward to a wonderful drive around the Yorkshire Dales today, I backed the Morgan out of its garage and was informed by my wife that there was water dropping from underneath the car.

Oh joy, I thought as I opened the bonnet to find it dripping vigorously from the junction where the top hose joins the radiator top.

I didn't have a ratchet small enough to fit the nut on the clip connecting the hose to the radiator so I phoned my local garage and he said to bring it down for inspection. Only a mile away, we drove there almost without any water in the engine.

Therein lies the problem!

It did not take long to be informed that the junction, where the top hose meets the radiator had completely broken off.

Note the water on the floor.

There was only one solution. Contact my breakdown recovery firm, Nationwide, who speedily and efficiently arranged for the car to be transported to Lifes Motors in Southport, an hour away, to have a new radiator fitted.

Paul, my very excellent local engineer.

Excellent service from my local garage, highly efficient service from Nationwide and a similar response from my Morgan dealer, who are ordering a brand new bespoke aluminium radiator to be supplied and fitted

How embarrassing!!

Sadly this will mean a long delay before we can once again enjoy the benefits of Morgan ownership to the full. Ah well, such is life!!

A fond farewell!

It was after I returned home that my wife told me that our neighbour had spotted the car looking gorgeous on the above trailer and thought that it might have been heading for a show....if only!!

Skiing again!!

Too old for actual skiing but not for Spending Kids Inheritance, this time on a return to Menorca which we last visited in October 2018.

The view from our balcony

We stayed once again in the very traditional Hotel Port Mahon overlooking the busy harbour of Menorca's capital, Mahon.

A regular stop for cruise ships

Said to be the largest natural harbour in the world, around 5 kilometres in length, it was a view that we feasted on every morning as we drew the curtains in our sea view room.

The centre of the city

The fish market...fabulous!

Menorca and Mahon is steeped in around a century of British tradition, the British having conquered and occupied the island three times in the course of history. The influence is plainly seen in the style of architecture and the homes of famous British residents who have lived there.

Lady Hamilton's home.

Just across the harbour from our hotel is the former home of a certain Lady Hamilton, who Lord Nelson spent the odd evening with during his visits to the port and opposite is  the former residence, now a hotel, of Admiral Lord Collingwood, second in command under Nelson at the Battle of Trafalgar.

Collingwood's house

No Morgans to be seen, in fact we didn't even hire a car but relied on our feet and completed six good days of walking. At least it kept my weight in check which is a vital necessity for a Morgan driver as there ain't much room in the cockpit. As it was, regardless of the exercise, a few extra pounds joined me on the flight home which I thankfully have now lost.

Es Castell

We can certainly recommend skiing as we already have three more holidays in the bag before February 2020!!!

Reunion in Bowland

After our recent visit to our favourite butchers in Grange we noticed that a tavern that we had frequented when we had a property in Lindale had been demolished. This sort of observation demands attention and I contacted our former neighbour to inform him of the sad loss.

Bridge over the M6, looking north.

He lives in Derbyshire nowadays and whilst shocked at the news, suggested that after a gap of around six years it was about time we met up again and what is more he would meet the cost of lunch....never ones to miss an opportunity we leapt at the offer!!

Parlick Fell and Beacon Fell in the distance.

So arrangements were made and off we went in fabulous weather to meet at the Parkers Arms in Newton in Bowland.

Blackpool Tower on the horizon!!...

Once again we had a glorious drive through the Duke of Westminster's garden, spotting a couple of his grouse en route through the Trough of Bowland whilst basking in the delights of both the sun and the 4/4, as we made halting progress caused by me taking photographs every few miles.

.....and there it is!!

What a beautiful area this is, we are so lucky to have this sort of countryside within an hour of home.

In front of Chipping Church.

Anyway, we finally arrived at the chosen venue and as our friend once owned a beaten up Kia, a car he said that he didn't need to worry about, I must admit that I was looking out for a beaten up Fiat 500 when our chum swept into the car park in  his 3 years old Fiat 124 Spider, with the top down of course.

Dunsop Bridge

A very desirable vehicle indeed with that unique Italian styling that is so appealing.

The River Hodder at Newton in Bowland

After a good lunch and a beer which allowed us the opportunity to catch up and reminisce about the past, a habit that I am all too readily slipping into, we said our goodbyes and headed home.

Starting the climb through the Trough.

Let it not be too long before we arrange a similar meeting.

The winding road to the top.

A lone tree on the fellside.

Good Crieff !!!......

.....as the member of the crew of the 'Sir Walter Scott' joked, when I explained that we had just enjoyed a very hairy drive from Crieff to catch the 10.30, 2 hour sailing on Loch Katrine.

The 'Sir Walter Scott'

Heading west on Loch Katrine

The landing stage at Stronachlachar

We arrived, sweeping rapidly into a fortuitous parking space directly in front of the Booking Kiosk, as they were about to cast off the mooring lines.

The tree lined drive leading to Drummond House

Drummond House

The gardens

During that nail biting drive, additional time was lost while I attended to a call of nature in a public convenience that I could only compare to an unsavoury waterless latrine I had the misfortune to use some years ago at the Zambian Customs Post on the border of Malawi and Zambia!

Balloon over Crieff

No longer in the first full flush of youth, we had again decided to tour Scotland in our 4/4, despite our advancing years, which means that we have constantly to assess whether or not we can get into and out it. No problem getting in, you just sort of drop in, but getting out is a different matter entirely, demanding a certain level of upper body strength to avoid ending up in a heap on the pavement!

The spacious garage at 'Garden Cottage'

We had spotted the advertisement for 'Downfield Touring' in our copy of Miscellany, the Morgan Sports Car Club magazine and what a great find it has proved to be. Wonderful hosts and superb self catering accommodation in Crieff, a great central location from which to branch out to all four points of the compass.

At Crieff Hydro

Crieff itself is an ancient market town, established around 1690 when the River Earn was bridged and is the second largest town in Perthshire, after Perth itself. Wrapped around the Knock of Crieff it descends to meet the River Earn.

Glenturret Distillery, oldest 'legal' and most visited ditilllery in Scotland.

 Historically, its wealth and growth stemmed from excellent communication links, both to the Highlands and Lowlands and by 1700 vast herds of highland cattle from these areas were driven along traditional drove roads to the centally located cattle market in Crieff.

Surrounded by a flock of sheep.

We didn't meet up with any highland cattle being driven but we did have to contend with a flock of sheep being similarly herded along the road!

Kenmore at the eastern end of Loch Tay

Pitlochrie

'The Queens View' of Loch Tummel

Eastern end of Loch Rannoch in a gale of wind

Rannoch Station

Rannoch Moor with Glen Coe in the distance

 It is a 4-5 hour drive from the Fylde Coast to Crieff and we completed this drive in 'dreich' conditions with the hood up....so we were extremely cosy and at least the hood suppresses the motorway noise to some degree.

Glen Coe

For the rest of the week we travelled open top on some great roads both for Morgans and also for cars of a similar ilk. The pictures I hope tell the story.

At Tebay Services Cumbria on our return trip.

On our return home after a blistering drive back in 4 hours, we had covered 820 miles, bringing our overall mileage up to 28000 since 2008.....and she didn't miss a beat!

Preparing for Scotland!

With a drive to Scotland planned for May, I thought that it was a good idea, to check tools and items for every eventuality, that we need to carry within the capacious luggage capacity of our Morgan!!

Some items are absolutely vital for a couple, no longer in the first flush of youth and those you will spot in the photograph!

Have you spotted them??

It is some years now that we went north of the border and we are looking forward to it.

Staying in the cottage at 'Downfield Touring' in Crieff, near Perth, we shall be centrally placed to venture to all points of the compass....let's hope that the weather is good, otherwise we shall be cosily esconced in the confines of the Morgan cockpit which bears a strong resemblance with the hood up, to the cockpit of a Spitfire!

Not only that but we will have to endure the odd drip, a well known idiosyncrasy of the traditional cars.

On that subject, it is said within the Company, that a customer who had just spent a large five figure sum on his new car took it back to the dealer complaining that it leaked and was told that if it didn't leak it wasn't a Morgan! 

And now photos of some of the items hanging up in my garage.....well you've got to do something to fill the time!

 

 

A 9 years younger Englishman standing by a foreign field.

 

 

 

 

A poster from the period when we used to visit racetracks