Propping

This morning a big delivery of oak for the first floor, plus the final materials for Pont. I ferried them over in the trailer, collected tools and acro-props before a trip to St Girons for ballast and cement. Once home the props were quickly put into service shoring up the wall. Very hot until a storm approached! It skirted all around Quelebu but never really arrived.

Urgent works in the coming days to ensure the wall is rebuilt solidly. I am feeling rather daunted at the moment by the works to come.

The septic tank works here are rapidly nearing completion.

Progress

Lots of progress today. I had to stay to answer queries and find places for discharging the excavated soil, so pressed on with rebuilding the front wall. It was 38 in the sun today, so hot work but I managed to get the wall upto window seat level - it's going to be a great view.The existing gable wall towards the rear corner must have been built against an excavated face as the stonework isn't faced at all - some difficult rebuilding to do. We also encountered some bands of rock which required breaking out - I hope it won't be an extra.Elderflower champagne now on the go...should be ready for Susie's next visit.

Excavation

This morning the bullfinch chicks were born.

At dawn I got on with scything all the fields and at a little after 9.30 the diggers arrived. I spent most the rest of the day breaking out the solid rock outcrops with a sledge hammer and pick and trying to find somewhere to put all the excavated ground. I had originally planned on putting it opposite my house but it transpired that the land didn't belong to who I thought it belonged to, so I had to think again and quickly as the mountain of soil rose!

There are some huge rocks in the wall and unfortunately one of them crosses the doorway...a problem to solve another day as tomorrow I must progress with Pont, as I have a valuation on Friday.

and finally...the elderflowers are blossoming - champagne season is again upon us!

Return

Susie's dance show was amazing, although she wasn't performing this year, she's such a talented choreographer (particularly liked her piece "Three wise monkeys") and she obviously inspires her students immensely.

I'm now back in the Pyrenees. There's a jungle to scythe, masses of flowers, masses of strawberries and fences to repair....not to mention houses to build!

Totnes

A week with Susie, Jasper and Ruby in Totnes, before the major groundworks get underway at Quelebu. A trip to Jen's birthday party at Shenmore at the weekend, local walks/cycles with Susie, Dom and Al in the evenings and tonight is "Sprung" the annual dance show at KEVICC the school where Susie teaches dance.

The days have been spent doing the construction drawings for Quelebu and researching dormer details.

Land acquisition

Today a long trip to the Notaire to buy the last two parcelles of land required for the extension. The last remaining hurdle is planning permission (permis de construire) which I should hear about in a few weeks time. In the morning a lot of digging to locate the sewer pipe which will need to be connected to the new septic tank.

After the Notaire and some final material purchases for Pont I fenced in the vegetable garden to try to keep the chickens out. Of course they can fly but it's a deterrent whilst the plants are still young.

Humid

Hot, humid and thundery today - finished off the concrete, pointing, cleared a lot of enormous stones out under the doorway and made the oak window surround for the 'little' window.
A short storm at 6.30 with good sized hailstones - enough to move the car to the safety of the garage!
Back to Pont tomorrow.

Yet more stonework!

After dawn scything a long day wall building. Its always difficult to keep it plumb and true when working at the top of a ladder, but it's good enough.

Pointing

Another long day, planting the last few vegetables in the early morning - carrots, chard, spinach, radishes, turnip and parsley. A bit of weeding and my first strawberry! The bullfinch is sitting on 5 eggs.

Then off to Pont to cut the grass and do more pointing - another 2-3 days should see the end of it then it's just a floor, some second fix joinery and a bit of painting.

Home in the late afternoon for yet more pointing on the ruin and placing the lintols.

More stonework

A lovely day, so I stayed home and continued with the stonework here. Good progress building the seat of the window and doing a lot of the external corner and pointing. Lots of visitors too, Annie, Lucette, the mayor and a couple researching their second cousins who used to live here.

Stonework

Another morning stone pointing at Pont in the last and fourth bedroom. After a trip to St Girons to chivvy the Notaire along with the land purchases I headed for home for a little more wall building.

Progress

All day digging out compacted rocks and clay behind the front wall of the ruin. Good to have finished floor level inside the extension. When the showers started I did some yoga before peening the scythe.

A day of sunshine and showers.

Busy

Up at dawn today scything fields 1, 2, 3 and 4 before the rain started at 9.00am. It was torrential until about 2.30, bringing fresh snow to the mountains above 2000m.

By 11.00 I was at Pont to check out the tenants and continue with the works there...another 7-10 days should see it finished. I called in on Jason and Grace on the way home whose 5 kids are in various stages of measles.

Home at 3.00 to finish scything fields 5 and 6, before demolishing the front wall of the ruin and moving more rocks. Phew!

First frame in place!

Other news from the week.

We also managed to get some work done here at Quelebu during the holiday. The garden was dug over and we planted potatoes, courgettes, celery, aubergines, beetroot, lettuces, onions and leeks...more to follow this week.

We "excavated" what will be a new doorway from the ruin into the entrance porch (the existing ground level is still at first floor level on one side) and Jasper and I built the oak door frame and lintols...I'll probably put this in tomorrow.

A pair of bullfinches have decided to nest in the holly bush in the front garden.

Jasper and Ruby

Ah those beautiful children...!

Cabane d'Eychelle (raquettes)

The expedition leader!

Lunch spot

An overnight snowshoeing expedition to the Cabane d'Eychelle with Susie, Jasper and Ruby. After a late morning start from the Col de la Core with large packs, we picnicked below the frozen Etang d'Eychelle before pressing on in our snowshoes to the cabane. It was still clean and my my cache of wine, food and firewood safe (though I took a while to find it again).

We spot our home for the night (to the left of Jasper in the snow)

The comedy duo

Ruby tests the snow thickness.

Jasper and Ruby found a tiny mouse which was tame enough to stroke.

"Timmy nuts"

We climbed up to point 2246m above the Col d'Aubies before returning to the cabane for supper around the fire. Alas I forgot the sausages, but we had plenty of other food and some lentils made for a windy night!

Ruby on the summit at 2246m

After a cosy night in the hut, we descended before the snow got too soft.

Descending in the morning

On the way home we also found a fire salamander.