Ready to Roll

Drive to Aberdeen

All packed and ready to roll. Time to leave Helsby, Cheshire behind and head off to Aberdeen and the ferry to Shetland. We think that the leaking fuel from the front of the Landrover has been fixed, but there is some doubt about the 17 miles/gallon problems.

Fixing fuel tank problems, Charnock Richard Services, M6

Stop at Charnock Richard services on the M6 to fill up with diesel, and it pours out onto the follow. A quick investigation shows there is no gasket on the top of the fuel tank, so we fashion one from an old chocolate wrapper and carry on. Quick stop at Sterling to find oil is pouring out of the oil filter. The engine temp has been on max for the entire journey so far, but we manage to convince ourselves that it is a problem with the gauge, not the engine.

Get to Aberdeen at midnight, with 14 hours spare to catch the ferry to Lerwick. Camp on a footy pitch to the north of the city centre. Woken in the morning by a lunatic smashing set concrete out of his lorry with a sledge hammer. Had to wait till 14:00 before we could put the Landrover on the ferry, so spent a bit of time in the fun fair, and bought a small hand held computer game to occupy us in the weeks ahead.

Ferry left Aberdeen on time at 18:00, and we watched The Memphis Belle before retiring to sleep on the hard metal floor of the ferry. Usual problems with the floor vibrating.

Camping in Aberdeen, hoping for better later