The last of the summer fine

This last weekend was altogether perfect. What beautiful weather we had. It was almost as if summer was presenting us with one last blaze of glory before the autumn set in.

On Friday, we drove down to Zeeland from Rotterdam after some intense work preparing Vereeniging for her move (more on that later). The afternoon was stunning and we stopped for coffee at a filling station we don't normally use. As we got back in the car, I pointed to a road leading away from the forecourt and said to Koos, "I've always wondered where that road goes." Well, that was enough for Koos, so off we went on a detour and found two absolute treasures: the villages of Kortgene and Kats. 

The Netherlands is mostly known for its beautiful cities, and I tend to think of drop-dead cute villages as being England's preserve, but these two would rival any English village, I think. I'm sorry to say I didn't take a single photo of them, but they took charming to a new level. This link is for a website about Kats, but even the photos here don't do justice to how very lovely it was. Even better, both villages are on the waterside and host sizeable marinas, although the boats moored up were pretty much all sailboats and not a barge in sight. Not surprising, really. This was Zeeland, after all – the place where sailors flock to hone their tacking skills.

What did catch my photographic eye, though, was a somewhat decrepit shipyard where we saw these clearly disused and discarded lifeboats, seemingly put out to grass. Well, I totally fell for this cute little ET number and was captivated by its tiny rudder and propellor. Luckily the business was closed or I might have been tempted to go and ask if it was for sale. I don't think Koos would have stopped me either.

The rest of the yard was intriguing as well, full as it was of rusting old nissan-type huts, cranes and fuel drums. I love places like this. The colours, textures and general decrepitude really appeal to me.

On Saturday, the day started cloudy but gradually improved beyond all expectations. We'd already decided to go for a spin (or spuddle as we call it) and were delighted when the sun decided to accompany us the whole afternoon. It was a glorious few hours and we headed up a quiet sidearm of the Gent-Terneuzen canal just past Sluiskil. The perfect place to stop and brew a cuppa before heading back again. A fine day indeed.

The back deck has finally been painted

Love being passed by the big boys

Approaching a large harbour area

Ships and cranes and silos and things. Wonderful!

Not a mountain, but a mound of not-sure-what

A peaceful place to moor up and have coffee

Koos in contemplation

Close encounters of the shippy kind

Heading back out to the main canal

It's almost human, isn't it?

A real, live working shipyard and drydock. That's a monster in 
the second dock

Koos in his happy place

Sadly, the weather broke yesterday afternoon. We had a heavy downpour and since then it's been cloudy, wet and windy, although it did cheer up a bit this afternoon. Keep your fingers crossed for the coming weekend. It's supposed to be the big move date (as I mentioned earlier)...watch this space!

Have a good week allemaal and I'll see what news I can come up with next time.