Well, this is like cheating because although I am back in Dubai and have been so for a week, I am going to put up just a few more photos of things that stand out in my mind from our trip home.

This fish ladder is in fact the only one I have ever actually seen in person. It is located about 15 KMS from the cottage on the Mersey River, about 10 KMS from its mouth in Liverpool. The river is great for trout and I think some salmon make their way up the river as well.

Our neighbour David took us out in his boat and while out on the sea we had a go at raking some moss off the rocks. This is the head of the rake with some moss collected in the tines. Pulling the moss of the rocks with the 14 foot-long rake in the open water is not the easiest thing to do, especially when the boat is rocking and drifting around very close to large rocks and the shoreline. This gives you an idea of what he does to collect this stuff.

A surprising sight on several islands were the dead trees. Upon closer inspection (and an explanation from David), we discovered that the cormorants nest in the trees and then, lacking proper toilet facilities, they do their business where they sit, which then kills the poor trees. Thus, you end up with the rather strange and desolate sight of hundreds of birds sitting in dead trees. You can see a video of a cormorant trying to take off.

They are not very graceful.

Finally, one of the nicest pleasures of the summer was to sit by the fire after dark and sip on a beverage and stare for several hours into the flames.