Soil erosion

I recall learning about soil erosion in O level geography and these last few days we’ve experienced it first hand. The fields of the Lancashire moss will no doubt be empty soon after all this wind. Yesterday we walked to Burscough to do some shopping and it was probably like a trek across the Sahara Desert. It was like walking  through clouds of smoke.

 

After we bushed off most of the dust we attended a family picnic that Heather had organised. It was super, seeing everyone and at very respectable distances. The furthest apart were 480 miles. The closest we were was 4 miles away from Heather, 9 miles from Ada, 223miles from Edmund and 270 miles from Samantha.

Inside the boat has a considerable black coating. We’ve cleaned the kitchen surface & dinette table but are leaving the rest of the boat until the wind dies down after the weekend.

Last Saturday evening we had a huge fight at the marina that took hours to resolve. The family of swans who were nesting above Rufford Lock had decided to pop into the marina. Mute swans are hugely territorial and the male from here was obviously not having any of it. It was distressing to see the two of them with their necks twisted together & the dominant one had the other ones head under the water. Our neighbour went out in her kayak & managed to separate them both. The swan that surrendered swam off & was hiding under one of the jetties. I thought if the other lad decided to go after him he’d no doubt end up being killed. So armed with a couple of bath towels we set off to relocate him back out onto the canal. He let me pick him up and we put the towel over his head. He was SO heavy one of the other chaps took him off of me. In the morning we were all shocked to see just 5 cygnets in the nest, s0 John went for a stroll out onto the canal and found the huge family of 9 cygnets & both parents. So it appears they have been evicted from their home!!

Thursday we decided to take the grandchildren home on the boat. Canal and River Trust have said we can cruise short distances. To our delight we met our gorgeous swan family as we cruised.

There was a wonderful welcoming committee awaiting us at Tarleton, loads & loads of geese and their goslings. We were busily trying to get the school work done before Heather came to pick them up, but the geese were such a distraction!!

On one of our walks to school the kids decided they wanted to catch tadpoles with theirs hands. Needless to say, we were very late getting back to start lessons!!! Such fun.

 

 

And another day we were late for school because we stood ages looking at the lambs.

As some of the lock-down measures have been lifted we went to the park, on our way to school last Wednesday. We were up bright & early & the kids knew the moment anyone else arrived we’d have to leave. No one came so guess what? Late starting school yet again!!!

 

Most evenings before bed the kids like to have a game of tag, which helps nan & grandad keep fit too.