Under an English heaven....

 ....using my vintage fishing equipment at the Woodfold Farm Fishery,  nestling as it does on the upper slopes of Beacon Fell in the Bleasdale fells,  some 35 minutes from our home.

There are three lovely lodges sited by the lakes and for the third occasion we spent an excellent four days enjoying the total peace and proximity to nature that is so satisfying and restful.

As far as the fishing is concerned I am trying to keep my tackle to a minimum and adopt the same techniques,  or lack of them, that I used when I was fishing as a young boy in the local ponds close to my home.

                                                                     A nice Rudd
It is incredible the amount of equipment anglers today burden themselves with,  some with four wheeled trolleys in which to carry it all to their fishing spot.

I do have a small trolley and seat,  at the insistence of my lovely wife who has rightly spotted some deficiencies in my physical capabilities.....like walking!!!!

                                          The view from the kitchen window at our lodge

The fact is that the sport has been made into a science with tackle and methods that are often totally beyond my understanding,  but the developments have certainly enriched the coffers of tackle dealers, especially during the present pandemic when many have taken up the sport.

I did have a good laugh to myself on the occasion when a keen carp angler fishing opposite me hauled in a very nice carp of about 8lbs or so.  Just at the same moment,  my float dived under the surface,  I struck and landed a tiddler that was about 2 inches long!!!!!

Never mind,  I just enjoy the solitude and the quiet enjoyment that I get from it.

Rumours of my demise..........

 ........are greatly exaggerated!!

However,  it is very true that I have not made a contribution to my blog for some time.

                                            Quick vacuum of carpets and window cleaning               

Anyway,  yesterday while polishing the Morgan I promised myself that today my dear wife and I would once again venture into them there 'ills' on a trip to buy some of our favourite pork pies in Lancaster.

The day dawned rather cloudy and I began to feel that it would not be an ideal day to go but as the hours progressed the day got brighter and the decision was made to go....but not before vacuuming the Morgan carpets and cleaning it's windows.

Once we had cleared the main road out and the A6 we were in perfect Morgan country once again.

We made a brief stop in Scotforth, a small hamlet on our approach to the Farm Shop in Lancaster.

                                                    The bridge and river at Scotforth

I waited in the car for my wife to return and it was clear from the expression on her face that something was amiss.....WHAT?  NO PIES!!!!!....well not hot ones anyway so our little picnic had to be large sausage rolls and syrup flapjack!

Fortunately our journey was not wasted as we were able to collect some pies for freezing and other items.

                                 Our picnic spot with a misty Morecambe Bay in the background

It is an appropriate moment to once again mention the appalling state of the UK's pothole ridden roads,  only really appreciated in a Morgan with sliding pillar suspension.  Modern suspension systems can cope much better so most drivers don't appreciate fully how bad the roads are.  Needless to say Covid will be used as the excuse for delaying proper repairs in the near future.

                                                                    Not far from home

You would think that we would be used to them by now but it is nerve-racking and bone shaking to say nothing about the ghastly crashing noises emitted during every impact. 

I am tempted to invite the head of Lancashire County Council to spend a week driving in the Morgan with me when he might understand my chagrin.

Nevertheless it was a good drive in very pleasant conditions and at least the Morgan has had a good run and we have had a good dose of fresh air and are both yawning vigorously to prove it.

Morganitis !!....

 ....a dreadful unremitting disease that affects anyone with an affection for the Morgan Sports Car!

Of course I suffer from this debilitating affliction and one of its many symptoms has recently manifested itself in the form of the 'Great Malvern' jigsaw which as you can see features two Morgans in the splendid Worcestershire scenery with the Malvern hills in the background.

The 'Bounty's' Launch 1789

Started around the 2nd January I have now completed this very interesting model.

It is a large model,  scale 3/4 inch =  1 foot, of the ships boat that Captain William Bligh and 18 of his crew were cast adrift from the 'Bounty' by Fletcher Christian and his fellow mutineers in 1789. The actual boat, based on plans from the Greenwich Maritime Museum, was 23 feet long, 6' 9" wide and 2' 9" deep weighing 2.5 tons.

Work begins on the building jig.

Christian and the rest of the mutineers variously made their way to Pitcairn Island,  Tahiti and freedom in England or death at the end of a rope.

First planks in place

Due to the fact that Bligh survived and wrote a comprehensive log we have a detailed account of the 4000 mile voyage from Tofua in the Friendly Isles group to Timor near the north west corner of Australia in 48 terrifying days.

Planking complete and the jig (mould) removed.

Dangerously overloaded the launch was typical of boats issued to the Royal Navy ships of the period, It has been calculated that when loaded with 19 men, gear and provisions,  she floated with a bare 6 inches of freeboard which is why the men spent all of the time in shifts baling water.

Gunwhale and foor planking completed.

Day after day, Bligh and his crew experienced mountainous seas,  rain,  wet sleepless nights, and a diet consisting of bread and teaspoons of rum. On lucky days they enjoyed seagull entrails and blood.

Completion following a challenging 'Sewing Bee' operation on the sails!

Little is known about what gear and provisions they carried but Bligh makes reference to "water vessels", whatever they were, and wrote.  "Seamen who were to go in the boat collected....an eight and twenty cask of water..." They had containers aboard to carry 60 gallons.  These included "four empty beakers" and perhaps some gourd calabashes. A carpenters chest of tools is believed to have been on board.

Note water barrels, carpenters chest and ten oars.

What is for sure is that there would have been very little room  in the boat!!

Not much room there!!

No more models planned yet.  As Spring slowly approaches there is work to do in the garden,  vegetables to plant  rehanging the old log store door,  painting the back yard and above all ensuring that 'Nellie' is ready for the road and our idyllic picnics in the local fells.....that is if the old body holds together (mine!!!!)  and Covid allows.

 

Glad Tidings

 

HAPPY CHRISTMAS

                  and a

PEACEFUL AND      HEALTHY NEW YEAR

 to all my readers worldwide

A feat of 'Endeavour'....

 ....not really,  although with Italian instructions and a rather short on detail English translation it was a bit tricky at times.  Anyway,  it's finished and is now part of my growing collection.

Endeavour is a J-Class yacht built for the 1934 America's Cup by Camper and Nicholson in Gosport.  She was built for Tommy Sopwith who used his aviation design experience to ensure that the yacht was the most advanced of its day with a steel hull and mast.

She is 130 feet long and is still sailing today,  in fact just recently she was on the market for sale at around £2.5 million I seem to recall.

Sadly she failed in her attempt as there was an industrial dispute among Mr Sopwith's professional crew and they had to crew her with amateurs who lacked the necessary experience.  It was a close call though but she was narrowly beaten by the American yacht 'Rainbow'..

I always remember my father telling me that he watched the J-Class yachts at the regatta in Brixham, Devon.

                                                           Second planking progressing.

                                                        Second planking almost complete

                                               Painting and varnishing being completed

                                                 Mast stepped and some deck detail added
                                                 

                                                                          Finished!!     

                                                           The cockpit and bow detail

                                                             The stern looking forward

                                                       Pride of place in the front window!

I've just got to choose my next model although I think that a wormery for my fishing is perhaps first on the agenda!!!!

Dusting the dustsheet!....

 ....prior to a short drive to maintain the circular dimensions of the tyres.

                                                Hoovering the dustsheet prior to departure.

What I don't want while the car is wintering are flat spots developing because it has been standing unused for long periods.  Hence the short but sweet drives to get the engine temperature up to normal and keep it in good shape.

                                                     Safely tucked up after my drive.

It was around 5 degrees,  balmy to eskimos I suppose but not to me !!