Niggles...these are just niggles

Ok, so challenges come, and when they do...well, we overcome them...at some point...but well, some of these I did not even consider, and come from a variety of sources.

Lots of deep breathing and remembering that firstly, I can overcome these challenges, and secondly, people are very willing to help. Especially when they see someone else with a motorhome.

Maude, after picking her up in Perth and successfully driving down to Edinburgh, decided to develop a few teething problems. Common I was informed. In fact, 1 in every 4 motorhomes has them. Even brand new ones. Maude, of course, is 13 years old, so not a spring chicken, and so I was expecting some things - a few character traits!

Firstly, on the drive down, the watercap must not have been securely locked, so the vibration may have meant it slowly turned itself around and flew off...let's hope no one was hit be it on the M9! Got that solved, only to encounter the early stages of having an old battery. Thought at first I was flooding the cab engine on starting, but it was, it turned out just low power. By the time I got to the Lake District, and Dovedale Valley, I awoke in the morning to find she would be as flat as a camping-stove pancake!

View towards Dove Crag, Hart Crag and Fairfield Peak

I awoke the morning of my first sleep-over in Maude fully rested and able to look at one of my first views...the cracking Dovedale Valley!

My bedroom window, on my first morning at Sykeside, Dovedale Valley

First Breakfast! Omelette on the stove..

Having begun to explore filling the water tank, switching the gas on, cooking breakfast, and just generally getting used to my new home I did some painting (I will post some examples soon) and was ready for the next step. Turn on the engine...nothing! Cue help from fellow campers. They were not surprised, as this was quite a common thing apparently. The security chap in Sykeside Camping site, who was quite bald, laughingly said he was surprised by my apparent calmness, as he felt he would be tearing his hair out had he any left! However, for some reason I felt quite calm (having had my panic attack earlier after temporarily losing my keys!) Now was the time to take people's advice and go with the flow of working out Maude's niggles, and trusting in the help of strangers! Very important.

Several jump-starts later, during the final treck down and locating a suitable garage, where the battery would be replaced, the niggle was nicely ironed out, and I was ready for my first stint at volunteering at the Manjushri Kadampa Buddhist Meditation Centre, during its Summer Festival. This would become a challenging step for me, as I began to experience collaborative working on art objects in their studio. More on that in later posts, but suffice to say that I was immediately met by the most warm-hearted and friendly people I have ever met, including Charlie and Karen, who would become my friends during my stay here over the next 3 weeks.
 

Karen and Charlie, on one of our evening strolls along the beach

Karen and Charlie are great people who I am incredibly grateful to have met during this first significant step on the journey, and who have increased my faith and trust in people in our world, and this would help me to  open myself to more people later on.

Sunset along Morecombe Bay near Bardsea Cumbria