Another morning of wall to wall blue sky. After breakfast and a quick internet bout to sort out emails Breezy headed off down the valley to make a couple of phone calls while I potted some plants then got up on the roof before the slates got too hot to touch.

The torrential downpour and thunder storm revealed a couple of imperfections in the waterproofness of the roof. I have got the stage where I hate getting up there as trying to establish where the water is getting in is a bit like trying to pin the tail on a donkey. This time however I was rather pleased with myself. Having identified the leaky area I touched a small slate near the ridge and a load of water gushed out. After a bit of fettling and a quantity of mastic I am fairly confident that the problem is fixed.

The second leak, though not as spectacular was also fairly easy to fix.

Breezy got back having bumped into half the village for chats and sowed the parsley seeds we had been soaking. She had run into Fernandez who is repairing the piste between us and the village after there was a land slide while we were in Cuba. This involves blasting the rock face and also building a massive retaining wall between the piste and the river. Apparently there is a good chance the piste will close for a few days next month while the work is carried out.

A salad lunch after wrestling with insulation inside and in the afternoon we set about making the first of 3 frames for the Velux windows we fitted last year.

Beers down at the Auberge where we caught up with Rene and Anouk’s news. Clive turned up and so we have an invite to supper on Monday. Jean Claude (our neighbour) and the Mayor showed up as well.

Fantastic dinner of Barbecued marinated duck breast, spicy noodles and fresh broccoli out of the garden.

Before the sun hit the terrace we decided to weed the 2 flower beds there so we can get some plants in come Monday. Quick job and looks better already.

We had a big sort out of bags upstairs in the hope of finding the missing wallet with no luck so have cancelled UK cards and still need to cancel French cards a right old pain.

More glorious sunshine and hot very quickly.

A bit more strimming for me to do while Al tackled servicing the muck truck. 2 flat tyres need to get sorted on our trip to St Girons as things without the muck truck would be so much harder.

Bonkers weather going from 30 odd degrees one minute, 30 minutes later the most enormous hailstorm with huge hailstones pouring down. Outdoor showering in these conditions aint much fun!!!! But we were soaked by the time we had got from the main barn to the outbuilding so persevered with the shower.

Bangers and mash for supper with some more broccoli from the garden which is really yummy.

Relaxed with a film and watching the electrical storm going on outside which lasted for a good few hours, river rose rapidly and went a very brown colour.

Feel like we are almost sorted and ready to get going with this years projects.

Had a lie in still a bit jaded from our trip back from Cuba and woke at 930am, sun was shining and great to see the mountains first thing too. A leisurely breakfast under the parasol as it was really hot already before continuing on the getting sorted progress. Not quite as simple as most places to open up after a bit of time away….

Al set to sorting out the toilet which at the end of our last trip was not working properly and consequently stank, anyway without too much detail the problem is solved and working like a dream with no horrible smells, much better.

I tackled strimming the back terrace and up the the back terrace which was hot work, but gradually made good progress.

We are really pleased that we managed to plant some veggies on our one day trip here in May as we have had fresh rhubarb and broccoli from it already. Red cabbages, caulis, redcurrants and courgettes all looking OK too. So we are aiming to get some more things planted soon so we can have lots of goodies from the garden this summer.

We weeded the veggies patch and got some spinach, roquet and lettuce in plus some chives and parsley for the herb part of the garden.

All the garden furniture is now out and about on the various terraces which is fab and also means we have more space downstairs in all the chaos.

Had a lovely roast chuck, broccoli from the garden and marmite roasties for dinner perfecto.

An early start in Bonsal, Derbyshire in order to drop off a car in Wirksworth and then get to East Midlands Airport for 6am. Ken is a star and gave us a lift. Made the flight by the skin of our teeth to get to Carcasonne where we had left the van in the driveway of some friends.

Having collected the van in glorious sunshine we trundled our way through the French countryside to reach the barn. Stopped to stock up on food, fill up a gerry can with petrol and fill up water containers for drinking water.

The grass was waist deep at the barn so we picked up some food bags and waded our way up the hill to open everything up and start getting organised.

Breezy emptied out the outhouse where we live and brushed down the walls. It was quite damp from the winter so a good airing was needed. I set about reconnecting the batteries and getting the fridge going then picked up the strimmer to make some pathways for getting about.

Much easier getting sorted when the sun is shining hoorah. Had a simple fish dinner for supper with some cous cous and then to bed.

It was still raining but not too heavily. Always takes a lot longer to pack up than we think.

Solar panels, satellite dish and outdoor furniture all needs to be put inside the barn so that nobody walks off with it. Sky lights and windows needed covering up, outhouse needed cleaning, bags needed packing etc etc etc.

Anyway, we got everything done that we needed to and then had time to cook a good pasta supper with a game of cards too before an early night.

Long day ahead of us tomorrow with 800km to get us back to Chamonix. Staying with Sauze and Patrick for the night and they have Keith and Lyn up for supper too so will be fun.

So Summer/Autumn 2011 in the Pyrenees has come to an end. Lots done, many friends and family to stay, some good explores, plenty of rain in July, non stop sun in the autumn and new plans for next year already starting. We should be back down in this neck of the woods some time in May or June so next progress reports will start again then.

Until then it is UK for 6 weeks then back to Chamonix for Ski Breezy and the winter season, hoping for lots of white fluffy stuff this year.

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Woke up this morning to that tinkling sound that water makes when it runs down a zinc downpipe. This could only mean one thing; that there is no need to get out of bed early.

Indeed it had rained through the night, filled the water butts up once again, and is due to rain all day today as well. A lie in. A bit more time on the internet sorting out Chalet stuff for Chamonix and emails. Then off down the valley in the van.

Had a rendezvous in the car park at Carrefour at 11.45 for lunch. Our neighbour Jean Claude and a couple from Salau invited us to join them at the cookery school in St Girons. As part of the youngsters education they open a restaurant at lunch time and a couple of evenings. Set menu of fantastic food, served by people too young to join the police, overseen by a teacher. Very interesting and great to be immersed in French.

Back at the barn in the afternoon Breezy and I discussed plans for next year. What size window to buy? What kitchen layout? What to look for in skips? Then we had a nap before heading back down the valley for dinner with Clive and Giselle.

More food and company. Booked Clive to help us create a hole for a window in June 2012.

Bed.

After the usual morning start with internet bashing for the chalet in Chamonix we had a fruit breakfast with yogurt in order to deplete the fridge.

Then straight on with mixing concrete to use up the cement leftover from laying the floor last year. It is already beyond its best but will do fine for building up the walls of the last little outbuilding. Also leftover was a bit of oak and a big piece of douglas fir so before lunch they went into the wall as lintels for the doorway. We did actually raise the level of the door which is now the only one I can walk through without ducking. Breezy, needless to say, does not suffer from the same issue.

Lunch was again using up leftovers of cheese and pate in sandwiches in the sun.

We began the afternoon sorting out odd jobs ready to shut down the barn before we leave on Sunday. Breezy went down to the van and cleared and swept it out. Checking oil and water levels. I took the wheels off the trailer (it won’t fit through the door of the barn with them on) and then cleared stuff away inside to make space to stash it. Between us we manhandled it into the barn and then sorted out kit in trunks destined to stay, go to Chamonix or the UK.

With the last couple of hours of the afternoon we set about the walls again. By 5.30 we only have 3 sacks of cement left. We have managed to stabilise the walls to a stage where they are no longer going to fall down. Year on year to date they have slowly tumbled and the structure was unstable to say the least. Now however we can start to imagine it with a roof and being a useful space.

Now showered, Breezy is making a banana yogurt cake (to use up leftovers) which we will take to Clive and Giselle’s kid when we go for dinner tomorrow. Smoked duck, boulanger potatoes with leak & courgette for supps tonight; just to use up leftovers.

Now raining. Not seen that for quite a while.

Another glorious day and after Ski Breezy bookings to deal with we set to with finishing off the 3rd wood shed at the back of the barn. We made short work of it and it was all chopped, covered and any small pieces put down in the lower wood shed for use when we get back.

Although the window was in and the shutters were on, we still need to get anti theft devices on so we spent an hour or so sorting out bars and locks and all pretty secure now we hope.

A little bit of a tidy up before a quick lunch in the sun. We could no longer delay the dreaded walls and cement but we were in the sun so it was quite nice work. More alarmingly was the amount of baby adders about hiding under all the stones. So we were being very careful when picking up rocks. Half way through Henri arrived to see progress. All good news from him, he seemed happy and also has given the thumbs up for the 2 windows to go in….hoorah. That will be next year though!! Finished off a bit more cementing and then hot showers and down to Salau.

Olivier came to take the donkeys away so it will seem quiet without them but it also meant we could take down the rope surrounding the barns.

Rubbish to dump, recycling galore and Al needed to see Clive with gutter dimensions and I needed to print off booking forms from the auberge. We had a quick drink there before trundling back to the barn, fire on and a game of scrabble before supps.