ABC Wednesday - Old

Its working days over this old tractor is gently disintegrating. If a member of the David Brown Owners Club spied this he might take it on as a renovation project. The company was an innovative builder of tractors between 1939 and 1988 and in its heyday this tractor may have looked like this-

I found this picture on an antique tractors site and its owner says it was the favourite tractor in the Netherlands "Dit is een simpele trekker en makkelijk te bedienen voor weinig geld en zo sterk als een beer!" (Simple and easy to operate for little money and strong as a bear). But elsewhere down on the farm the little heifer

is finding an old bath is ideal for cooling feet,  

An entry for ABC Wednesday - a journey from A to Z. 

ABC Wednesday - Etang Moulin Neuf

A peaceful lake near Rochfort en Terre in France.  This is the Etang du Moulin-Neuf, I did not spot any trace of the nine windmills but this 40 hectare stretch of water now attracts runners, walkers (with and without dogs) and fishermen. The wily pike and perch may even lurk beneath these water lilies.  No French leisure destination would be complete without a restaurant and that is the building in the distance. A path runs all the the way round and nature surrounds,  the only swan I saw was this one -

  but there were many birds

I think I know where this artist of nature lives because by all these little touches of art was a painted sign

advertising the walk from the lake to the village of Pluherlin which seems to have everything to keep body and soul together.

The letter of N is this week's stop on the ABC Wednesday journey of  the alphabet.

ABC Wednesday - Maritime

They had a series of posters outside the Museum of Liverpool on the theme "Made in Liverpool" , these two feature the blue and red of the two football teams and the Mania of the Beatles, a product of the local Merseybeat scene. Music is still everywhere in Liverpool which may be one of the attractions of the numerous tourists who also make their way to

the Albert Dock for its shops, restaurants, bars and museums. Six areas of the historic centre and docklands have been designated UNESCO heritage status as a "Maritime Mercantile City"

 and there were quite a few old sailing ships in the dock which is now a location for pleasure craft (the Maritime Museum is the building on the right).  The workhorses of the merchant marine are miles down the road in the working docks. Worth a mooch if you are interested in industrial history for there are vast areas of docks which are gently decaying and mind blowing to imagine when all these miles were full of ships coming and going.  One thing will be the same today as it would be then

seagulls doing battle with mussels. This is a juvenile who was not having a lot of success with its potential dinner, I think the shell might remain unopened  

The Letter M entry for this week's ABC Wednesday - A Journey from A to Z

ABC Wednesday - Lifeboat

My local lifeboat station on a calm day, all is peaceful, the little ferry boat at the end of the pier is waiting for passenger to take to Piel Island across the water. The lifeboat station is also on an island (Roa) but one that links to the mainland by a causeway. There is a popular cafe here, The Bosun's Locker, but if a stronger drink is required

then get a lift on the ferry across the water to Piel, to its ruined castle and the Ship Inn. The notice has all the information.

There has been a lifeboat station here since 1864 but many different constructions and lifeboats have been used over the years. The present boat 'Grace Dixon'  is one of the very modern Tamar class, superbly ergonomic for heavy seas, computer controlled and of course most importantly self-righting.   One of the previous lifeboats, 'Herbert Leigh' is now high and dry

outside the Dock Museum.  The present lifeboat has many more years in front her to swoop

RNLI Photo by Nicholas Leach

down into the sea from the Roa Island Station.  Take a trip on board the Grace Dixon in the short clip here:

Join the Journey from A to Z at ABC Wednesday and this week's letter L