Life is slowly getting back to normal although it hadn't really changed that much for us really. The plasterboard finally got delivered to Badlaurach jetty so we took the boat across to ferry the first lot over. The weather was calmish (although not as calm as forecast) and it was high tide so we decided to take the first 12 boards. They're quite heavy, 21 kg each so both carried them down to the jetty and onto the boat one at a time. Once loaded we set back as it was starting to get rougher. A couple of waves splashed over but not too bad. We loaded them all onto the trailer and started back. All went well until the trailer hitch broke bringing everything crashing down. Luckily none of the plasterboards were broken and we were near home but as it was now raining it meant we had to get them undercover as quickly as possible so we had to take all 12 up one at a time to the cabin.
A few days later after the arrival of Rich's daughter and her boyfriend it was decided I'd stay home and bake more bread while Rich took the boat across with them to fetch the rest of their stuff out the car and collect more plasterboard. Unfortunately Rich got a bit adventurous and overloaded the boat, it was also a bit rough which combined with the front of the boat being low in the water meant the waves were coming straight in. Rich didn't notice until looking down realised he was in water halfway up his wellies and it was rising. He had left the jetty at this point and was on his way back across, he had to turn round and beach the boat at Badlaurach in order to take the bung out and release the water. My Suma order which Rich's daughter had kindly brought from the Midlands for us was also in the boat. The 5kg bags of pasta were soaked as were various other items. Luckily the 25kg sack of flour was still in the car.
The fuel tank was floating upside down in the boat which was a little worrying but the engine started straight away so they could finally come back across. Rich had wisely decided to leave some of the plasterboards behind with the others to bring over another day. But as luck would have it a neighbour with a bigger boat than ours offered to bring it so we managed to get all 22 boards over at once to Scoraig.
Of course I knew none of this until I went down to meet them at the jetty. Luckily the new trailer hitch had arrived the day before so we were able to start bringing the wonderful plasterboards up again. At least this time we had help from our lovely visitors bringing them up to the cabin and also to start fitting them. Holding 21kg boards up above your head while Rich screws them to the ceiling isn't much fun but it's so much easier with more hands.
We had a lovely week, it was Rich's birthday so we all went for a walk over to the other side of Scoraig.
At the end of the week we took our guests back across the loch as Rich's daughter was going to drive to Inverness railway station to drop her boyfriend off. The boat was a bit sluggish and didn't want to start then halfway across the engine cut out and took a few attempts to restart. We finally reached the other side and said our good-byes before returning to the boat. Engine started first time and all was well until a little way across it cut out and refused to start again. We ended up having to row back to Badlaurach jetty. To cut a long story short we then had 2 trips to the nearest Post Office/General store/Petrol station where firstly we bought a set of screwdrivers and adjustable spanner which didn't achieve anything then returned to fill up a spare fuel tank we'd luckily found and borrowed. To add to the fun it was raining heavily and we were getting soaked. But the boat started first time with the clean fuel in the borrowed tank and as it had taken so long we only had to wait a short time before Rich's daughter was back from Inverness so we all headed back together. What should have been an hour's trip at the most had taken all day!
Rich drained the fuel from our tank and managed to separate the water from the petrol so all was well, finally! We seem to be on a steep learning curve at the moment.
Aside from the boat shenanigans, the polytunnel is doing well. Everything is growing. We're getting at least a couple of courgettes a day, I'm having to find different recipes to use them in. Up to now they've been in stir-fries, curries and pasta dishes. Tonight I stuffed them with garlic, mushroom and vegan cheese and baked them in the oven. Our tomatoes are small and green but definitely getting bigger and I've 2 very tiny butternut squashes just forming. We've still lots of salad leaves and spring onions. Outside, our onions are nearly ready, they're definitely better than last year. Early potatoes are up, dried and stored, the ones we've had so far have been delicious. Unfortunately some of the rest of our potato crop has blight, I've spent the day chopping the plants at soil level and removing leaves off the one's that aren't so badly affected. We'll need to keep a close eye on them.
Our water supply is low at the moment, not helped by the fact we forgot to turn the tap off to the hosepipe after watering the polytunnel. We're looking at getting another tank as one isn't enough now we're watering the veg more and having baths particularly when we also have visitors.
So still lots to do and we've still a lot to learn. But we're enjoying it for the most part and the little joys along the way, the newly hatched family of wrens in the croft, the frog sitting in the middle of a courgette leaf in the polytunnel or watching a calf being born all make it a magical place to be.
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