sheep shearing

After the successive heatwaves and droughts last summer and then a very dry and hot March and April this year we were very worried about our meadows. The clay soil was baked hard and fissured, there were too many bare patches and nothing seemed to be growing. Fortunately May and June have been incredibly wet and although things are late this year, everything seems to be doing better now. We've kept the sheep off the meadow in front of the house since March which has also helped. It's now full of the usual diversity of grasses, orchids and other wild flowers. The rattle has spread in the dry conditions, so there is a little more of that than usual.

The wet conditions have made sheep shearing less easy. The sheep have to be confined to the bergerie for 48 hours so their fleeces can dry out. Our first shearer cancelled at the very last moment so the sheep were released. Finally we found another shearer and today the 24 sheep were sheared. Our new shearer is Chrystelle from Erp who has done a fantastic job. In the afternooon she went to shear Jerome's 42 tarasconaise at La Coste and I helped as Jerome was without his usual helper. The tarasconaise are huge compared to our ouessants so all in all it was quite a physical day.

Our flock waiting for their haircuts

Volucella bombylans

Volucella bombylans or the bumblebee hoverfly...a convincing bee imitator, only on closer inspection it only has one pair of wings, its eyes are too large and its mouthparts too short.

Pic de Crabere

With thunderstorms and very heavy rain and hail every afternoon, Sheri, Michiel, Susie and I decided to try and get out and up a mountain in the morning ahead of any storms. Pic de Crabere above the Etang d 'Ayes had yet to be summited by us and seemed a suitably short day out. 

The piste forestière de Mont Ner which gives access from the Etang Bethmale is only open from the 1st of June. This greatly shortens the approach.

One of the cascades feeding the Etang d'Ayes

Looking down on the Etang d'Ayes

It's not a commonly climbed peak and there wasn't much information on the best route of ascent, certainly no paths. From most sides it's very steep grass and bilberry with rock outcrops. The north ridge looked promising so we left the GR10 just before the col and took the path leading to Etang de Bellongue. After a 100m or so we left the path and started a rising traverse looking a for a suitable place to make the North ridge. We climbed too soon and a very steep and slightly slippery slog eventually put us on the summit. Which has surprising good views.

Great views towards Pic de Barlonguère

From the summit the north ridge dropped to a col from where a simple path lead to the Etang de Bellongue. this would have been a very simple ascent!

Etang de Bellongue with Pic de Crabere behind. We climbed straight up the middle of the face.

Reflections in the lakes

By the time we reached the Etang d'Ayes once more the hailstorm started. fortunately it was only 45 minutes or so back to the car which we reached before the thunder started. 8km and about 640m of ascent.

Medium spotted Woodpecker

Starting to get the hang of the new camera....still lots to learn!

 

Spotted flycatcher

 First bird photo with the OM1. After taking the photo I realised that the bird was stuck. If you look very carefully there is a tiny bit of thread wrapped around one of his legs (probably from nest material) which had got caught on the bramble. When I went rescue him, he finally managed to snap it and escape.

First few shots with the new camera

Goodbye Olympus OMD-E-M5ii, hello OM1. Quite a bit bigger than the old camera but hopefully it'll come into its own with the wildlife photography....lots to learn....more later.

Naughty Mr Fox

 

Cascade d'Ars

There's been a lot of rain and few opportunities to get out into the mountains 5without getting very wet and seeing nothing), but yesterday despite the forecast things seemed bright and dry so after a hurried call, we met up with Sheri and Michiel for an afternoon stomp up to the head of the Cascade d'Ars. Great to stretch the legs and look at the recent snowfall.

 

Sauna phase 2

A couple of days of preparation for the arrival of the flat pack sauna. First collecting and erecting a scaffold tower beside the gable of the house from which a plank could bridge to the bedroom window. The larger panels would have to go through the window as they wouldn't go up the stairs. To make life easier I also built a trolley to run on the plank and installed a pulley above the window through which a rope would provide some assistance in dragging the panels up the incline.  The packed sauna weighing in at 300kg was due to be delivered in an 11m lorry...too big to pass the tight corner in Castet d Aleu, so we would have to transfer it to our little trailer and transporter it the last 5km. The palletised package was 1.6 m long, 60cm wide and 2m high, so some modifications were necessary to the trailer too so it wouldn't topple over on route.

I waited in all day Monday only to discover at 3.00 that the delivery day had been changed to Tuesday and I hadn't noticed. Tuesday the delivery arrived at 10.00 and fortunately it was in a small 6m long van. We quickly abandoned the trailer idea and the delivery van drove to the house and deposited it on the drive. 

Sheri and Michiel had stayed the night on Monday and they agreed to help us. The first few panels were small and passed easily up the stairs. They got progressively larger and the side walls 1.2 m x 1.9 m where the first up the scaffold and through the window. They were realitively light and easy. The front and back panels 1.5 m x 1.9 m were super heavy. One was fully glazed with 8mm toughened glass and the other was clad in stone tiles! It took all four of us to lift them out of the crate and move them to the deck. 

I worked out I could remove the glass (3 pieces) and transport them individually but the stone clad panel was going to have to be lifted through the window. It weighed over 100kg. The lift onto the tower was 2m so we moved the picnic table to create a 80cm stage to reduce the lift so with Michiel and I on the tower and Susie and Sheri on the table we managed to haul it up. The worst was over and finally all the parts were in the house on the first floor and just in time as the rain started tipping down. 

A quick celebratory cup of tea, then it was on with the build, which went pretty straightforwardly. Sheri and Michiel left once the last panel was lifted and by 6.00 we had cleared up, wired everything in and we're enjoying our well earned sauna!

 

 

Problems finding a small delivery lorry for the sauna, so I ve switched to extending the deck around the pool, something I didn't have time to do last summer.

Project Sauna

Next project - home sauna. Ways to heal the cripple cracked body....sauna is number one (well maybe personal masseuse is top but unaffordable!). After some debate about infra-red (cheaper to run) v traditional, we decided on tried and tested traditional. There's space at the tope of the stairs after some alterations, so a door is blocked up and a little door added to give access to the space behind the sauna that can be used for storage. 

Next step wiring. Installation will involve bringing panels through the first floor window which may be strenuous and problematic! I'll need a sauna after that!

Morels!!

 It's that time of year again....yummy

After a bout of COVID/flu, food poisoning and increased signs I may have rheumatoid arthritis attacking my Cartlidge and ligaments, my 55th year hasn't got off to great start....oh well things can only get better!

Garden mulched for another year - leaf litter and straw

First morels on their way...another 2-3 weeks and they'll be ready.

Frogs

Rain and warm temperatures (22 in the shade today) have stripped the snow on the mountains and ended the ski touring, probably for the year. The frogs in the pond are loving it. Susie and I are starting on the garden preparations.

 

Latest weave off the loom.

Susie has also been busy with her knitted creations

 

Ski practise

After watching some footage of my skiing on the last ski tour, I realised too much ski touring and no practise has lead to an awfully large decay in my technique....I ski like an old armchair! So today I spent 3000m of vertical descent at Guzet ski station practising and remembering how to ski. Time well spent.

Another project on the loom, which promises to be very three dimensional. A combination of pleats and origami if everything works. The mix of linen, silk and stainless steel, cotton and high twist wool could be problematic.

Ski tour Mont Ceint

Snow over the last couple of days hatched a plan for ski up Mont Ceint/Pic de Girantes. Only Paula was available at short notice so just the two of us headed up from the Etang de Lers. Low cloud and cold temperatures forced a retreat from the col at 1830m. The snow was so good we skinned back up for a second descent before heading for home.