I am not a number....

It was a day for getting wet, though this conservation coo on the Helm didn't seem too concerned.  And why should she be, she is the nearest thing to a free cow there is in this country.  With the rest of the motley crew, she has the run of the pasture on the south side of the Helm.

Later in the afternoon, we had a Gusmeet organised with MarieFraser from the deep south of England, who with Auntie Anne was revisiting Arnside for the first time in 45 years, stopping for the night en route to Scotland.

Let's face it, we were not provided with one of those famous Arnside sunsets.  Quite the contrary.  It was mizzley drizzly, and darkness was already falling at 5 pm, visibility into the murk was somewhat limited.  Not the best conditions for photography.

But Marie was irrepressible, she had already packed more into a day than some people do in a week.  She and Auntie Anne had left home at 5 am and were in Arnside by 1100 am and then embarked on an expedition to Kendal and Windermere.  And she clearly wasn't going to be denied a walk in the rain with Gus along the estuary, despite having to squidge through the mud from the high tides in her brand new trainers.

After our walk, there was a short interval to get ready for the evening.  A meal and quiz night at the pub where Wifie joined Gus and me, and Auntie Anne joined Marie.  Gus and Auntie Anne got on famously.  And Auntie Anne turns out to be Marie's kid sister!  Then multidisciplinaryTeam Gus won the quiz.

What an evening, I'm still smiling about it.  Marie and Anne were great fun, as well as being lovely people - and how couldn't they be, as good northern lasses (even if they are exiled in the south).

Anyway, if you follow the link above, there's a bonus Gus blip (apologies, you probably won't be able to see Gus: I didn't know Marie had protected her journal - I shall endeavour to do a Gus blip soon).