So at the end of March, we packed up the car, and took the overnight ferry to Amsterdam, and we would arrive the next morning in heavy rain for a 700 mile drive to The French Alps for some skiing. We had a couple of days just the two of us, then a great week with family and friends in The 3 Valleys. Great weather, lots of snow and plenty of sunshine!

Next was a 400 mile drive from the snowy mountains to our current home town of Arenys de Mar on the Mediterranean coast of Spain. It was a spectacular drive and we arrived to find everything in order with Dream On.

We had arranged for a new rib to be delivered from the UK, and some new teak decking panels for the cockpit, and it was scheduled to arrive "any time after the 10th April". So we "set to" installing the dinghy davits that I had made over the winter (thanks to 3T, Washington Laser Profiling and KASL Precision Engineering for their help with this!) to make sure it was ready for the new rib. More on that later!

We also fitted the new hydraulic system for the bathing platform, which certainly had the power to open and close the transom door but was lacking in control, with some noisy results! A quick consultation with Phoenix Hydraulics and another €150 and it was working perfectly, only 11 months since I started that particular project!

15th April. The new Rib had not yet arrived, and we were rapidly running out of places to store things - Dream On has lots of potential vacant spaces that can be used, but not all of them are accessible, or at least they weren't. So we set about building shelves, boxes, cupboards, access beneath drawers etc and soon we had created enough storage areas to consume everything we needed on board, and still leave space for a week's provisions and for guests to store their stuff when they come aboard.

Thursday 18th April. Still the Rib had not arrived, and we would be leaving in a few days. It was now time to start chasing it, but that proved harder than expected. The supplier in the UK arranged the transport with a UK agent, who booked the pickup with a UK transport company, who transported the package as far as Spain and then handed it over to a Spanish delivery company, who couldn't find the marina (the only marina in Arenys de Mar, with around 500 boats visible from all roads that lead to the town). And so they just put it in their warehouse and didn't tell anyone. Welcome to Spain.

At some point, I said (to the UK supplier) "just tell me where in Spain it is and I'll rent a van and pick it up myself". This was a big mistake - the Spanish company now decided that the package was going to be collected, so they took it out of the delivery schedule, but didn't tell anyone where to collect it from.....?

Monday 23rd and we are leaving Dream On pretty much ready to sail, minus a Rib and teak for the cockpit, and are making the 400 mile drive to Bilbao to catch the ferry back to the UK, in a car once again completely full of things we don't need on board - so pleased we had this car!

It was a lovely journey on very empty roads, and we arrived to find Someone had booked a special room in the hotel - apparently we needed twin beds, a special access room and a cot for the baby?!? (In future, don't book hotels when drinking copious amounts of wine Beryl). Fortunately the hotel staff were sympathetic and changed us to a regular double room.

The next morning we boarded the Cap Finistere ferry for the 23 hour journey across the Bay of Biscay to Portsmouth. This notoriously wild and savage stretch of water is feared by mariners due to the fierce gales and large waves that build up over the Atlantic and smash against the western shores of Spain. This could not be further form the experience we had - sitting outside on deck enjoying the morning sun, and after a midday nap, watching scores of dolphins leaping from the water and swimming alongside the ferry in glass-like still water. We arrived in Portsmouth the following morning, for the 400 mile drive back to the North East, with a stop for lunch with Bill in Birmingham on the way.

We now have 5 days here to visit friends and family, clear the rest of our stuff from the house, sell the Range Rover, wash and store the ski gear, gather together the last of the boat purchases and maybe even get time for a hair cut? Then it's back to Dream On and the start of our cruising lifestyle