The Countdown Begins

Well this week saw me presenting our old bus in almost factory condition (SAS's Patent Elbow Grease a tried and trusted product) at the Pentalvers Depot in Southampton. The guy in charge of lashing (!) was friendly, helpful and very laid back. After taking a copy of our shipping note and filling in a condition report he took a key off me and assured me that the van would in due course arrive as stated in Auckland some 5 weeks hence - easier than posting a letter!

Got talking to a group taking 3 Land Cruisers to Egypt for a month in the desert - each vehicle carrying 700l of fuel and 300l of water (apparently diesel is 7p a litre over there.............)The lashing crew would be in charge of stowing the van in a 20' container, chocking and securing the load ready for placing on the Kuala Lumpur Express curently lying south of the Isle of Wight and due in on Saturday.

Sarah is due back from Peru next week having cunningly avoided any involvement (and thus any responsibility) in said procedures. After a brief 10 day turnaround we leave for a fortnight in Japan en route to NZ - the contrast to sleepy Ceredigion should be palpable.

Last weekend's Brecon Beast Charity Mountain Bike Event was a run away success with in excess of 600 riders tackling 60km or 100km routes in superb conditions - full details and pics available on http://www.breconbeast.flinthosts.co.uk/

Things Are Really Flying

Latest news is that we are now loading the van in to a 20' container as this allows us to ship all our various personal goods without customs problems - the estimated departure date is now the 18th of September for arrival in Auckland on October 25th. Meanwhile we have subscribed to the excellent www.nzmotorhome.co.nz site which has supplied loads of useful info. and even some very kind offers of accommodation.

In other news we managed after weeks of unsettled weather to get Sarah her flight over Pembrokeshire.A 30 year old plane with controls and trim reminiscent of a 60's Triumph Herald took us over our old house, those of various friends and then a spectacular exploration of the superb coast and back up the various tributaries of the Cleddau. This shot shows Dinas Head north of Fishguard, looking north towards Newport and the coast towards Cardigan where we live.

Photographic archive.

http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/sjarratt5/TopPics?authkey=Gv1sRgCPWgsuyR_MrIMA&feat=directlink should take you to a selection of pics taken over the last decade or so covering former life on the farm, caving memories, a new start in Pembrokeshire and images from life on the road in the UK and around Europe.

New skills for all.

One of the many pleasures of living in Pembrokeshire is the proximity of the spectacular coastal path. Having walked it many years ago it is a bonus to be able to join local kayak enthusiasts for a seal's eye view.


Memorable evenings have been enjoyed courtesy of http://www.haverfordwestkayakclub.co.uk/
and www.mikemayberrykayaking.co.uk and Sarah will no doubt extract her revenge when I resume horse riding lessons later this week.

The Countdown Begins!

Our plans are now taking shape with final negotiations ongoing with the shipping companies as they have different definitions for 'personal goods' and we wish to ship our mountain bikes, wetsuits and camping gear in the rear secured section of the van - both the shipping lines and Customs need to be kept happy on this issue although if we chose containerisation rather than ro ro it would be easier. Ro ro however is cheaper and quicker and as you can see from this link http://www.eukor.com/homepage/manage/visitaship.jsp there is much better protection for the van on a cargo deck.

NZ quarantine regulations also dictate that all gear and the vehicle must be cleaned and disinfected prior to clearance after which we need to arrange a Warranty Of Fitness ( MOT effectively) for the van not us! Then its pay insurance, join NZ AA - breakdown cover not booze issues, buy a NZ/Aus sat nav, arrange for local gas cylinders to be connected and set off.

Our expected arrival in Auckland is the 20th of October after two weeks in Japan with the van arriving on the 23rd having left Southampton 6 weeks previously - place your bets now on the likelihood of all this actually coming together!

In the run up we now have to do a few dummy packing trials to come up with lists for Customs, replace the radiator that got bashed in Portugal some 8000 miles ago, carry out a full inspection and service of the van, redirect mail to my parents in Coventry, 'lose' credit and debit cards so they can be reissued with longer expiry dates (don't ask me - it's a crazy system), pay a year's rent in advance and sort out other financial matters - online tax returns for example, place our other vehicle with someone for safe keeping - Haggis if you are reading this it could be you.......

Sarah meanwhile will be busy helping all summer at the stables and preparing for her trek and ride in Peru in September. During that month I will be assisting with the Beacons Mountain Bike Event - any offers of assistance over the weekend of the 13th would be gratefully received http://www.breconbeast.co.uk/ has all the details

Birthday Update

Sarah celebrated her BIG 50 on Tuesday with a visit to Heatherton Tree Tops Trail. A great day out and a BIG thank you to everyone who came along and made it such a fun day.

Also thank you to everyone who joined us at Penlan last week - it was a great opportunity to catch up with people. We hope to do something similar over the last weekend in September when Sarah is back from Peru and before we go to Japan.

Just a trial run for uploading pics - this one has little to do with the NZ trip other than it contains one of the party in party mood!