In the doghouse

The watercolour sketch above is of part of the Cleddau Bridge over Neyland Marina in Pembrokeshire.

This morning when we were out for our early morning walk Jac put up a couple of ducks. My guess is they have a nest nearby so I will endeavour to avoid the area for a while. “Jac” our cocker spaniel loves nature although he is a working breed and it is in him to flush out birds.  We have taken him for long  walks from the time he was a puppy. Anyway for some reason it made me recall an incident that occurred when he was a puppy. 

We used to moor our boat in the marina in Neyland near to this spot when Alex was working as an engineer in Dale Sailing. The place we moored was in the upper basin, which although being cheaper was restricted because you could only get in or out an hour or so either side of high water.
It did have the advantage of a lovely walk along the old Railway built by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Neyland became the terminus for the Great Western Railway in 1856. The railway fell into disuse after Beeching I believe. Anyway there is now a lovely long walk through nature reserves along the path of the old railway although you have to dodge cyclists.

One day we took Jac along the trail by Neyland and met a young couple pushing a pram. The pram contained a baby and unbeknown to us a picnic wrapped up under the pram. We stopped briefly to chat to the couple, and then I suddenly noticed “Jac” disappearing with a package in his mouth. I called him but being a young pup he took no notice and proceeded to unwrap and eat sandwiches at a distance. I finally caught him and handed the whole sorry mess back to the couple who were none to pleased. We then disappeared with as much grace and speed as we could, muttering apologies for our wayward dog!