Tales from a down-shifted family
- Making the most of modest means
You’ve got to love Ynyslas, and its pre-work windsurf opportunities, thanks to its crazy katabatic wind that we call Ivor! This time of year it can really do its thing, funnelling cold air from the mountains down through the valley and blasting the estuary with storm-force winds. This morning was a case in point. The...
Gogerddan, where I work, was officially the hottest place in the UK yesterday, reaching a maximum temperature of 20.9ºC. Not bad for March! It really was a lovely day. Even at home, where temperatures are cooled a little by the sea, we managed to hit 20.4ºC on the Borth and Ynyslas Weather Station in our...
It was a bit of a shock to the system after 30ºC waters in the Philippines, but there was a nice little wave this morning, so it had to be done. Getting into and out of several layers of neoprene was probably more taxing than the surf itself, and negotiating the lethal frozen pebbles was...
It was the first day back at work after the Christmas break — if you ignore the work I did on Friday. We had good intentions of heading into the office to catch up, both with the tasks that had built up over the break and with colleagues. We set off at 7:30 am in...
I took these sunset and snowy sunrise photos just over twelve hours apart, on the same stretch of beach here at Ynsylas. Last night’s sunset was one of those understated ones. No big colours or drama, just a steady fading of light and a calm sea. The sort of evening where nothing much seems to...
The figures are in, the numbers have been crunched and… trumpets and fanfares… ta-da! 2025 was our best year of solar energy yield yet. It was a close-run thing, and I genuinely didn’t think we’d beat the 2022 record. However, a few good solar days between Christmas and the New Year tipped the balance. Our...
We were supposed to be spending the weekend on the Isle of Man visiting Anna’s mum. A storm was brewing, and I was a little disappointed that we fly to the island these days. In the past, we used to take the boat so that we had the car with us—and I could bring my...
I think the most notable thing about the weekend was the rain on Saturday. When I got up early, the little raindrop on our home info panel that I built was already full to the brim. The Borth & Ynyslas weather station in our garden had already recorded more than 25 mm of rain. At...
Autumn has definitely arrived in West Wales. It’s been blowing a hoolie for days now, which has meant plenty of windsurfing opportunities. Just for a change, I’ve been out in a few different places. Usually, I simply walk across the road and launch opposite our house, and I’ve done that of course, but earlier in the...
It looks as though summer may be coming to an abrupt end tomorrow. The remnants of Hurricane Erin are forecast to reach our shores, bringing strong winds, rain, and some large surf. We can’t really complain though—it’s been a lovely, long, hot summer. There have been plenty of sunny days, dinners on the patio, sunsets...
Fitness / Technology / Triathlon
Fixing the Altimeter on my Garmin Forerunner 910XT
Monday, March 17th, 2014
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