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Julz
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Posts posted by Julz
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Hi Dave, the thing you will notice most between canal boat handling and the broads boats is that you have more tidal effect and underwater currents to contend with. I know there are areas of the canals where tidal rivers are part of the navigation system, but the entire broads is effected by the daily rise and fall of the tides, and you have to take into this into consideration when mooring and always come into moor against the tide, even if this means truning your boat around at a convienient place to do so.
With stern on, its nothing like driving a car, theres the factor of tide, wind direction, and power onto the rudder to push the boat around into the desired position before gently going stern on. The throttle plays as much a part in this as the steering wheel does, and indeed its something that takes a few attempts to learn, and then on occasions even the most experianced boater will get it wrong, and have to go out and start again, its all part of the fun of boating!
Im sure you will be fine once you get the hang of it, just take your time and as you said before, do things very slowly, its often best (and safer) just to drift stern onto a mooring once you lined up and about 6ft of the bankside, and dis-engage throttle to avoid any hard bumps that would bounce your boat or a possibly a crew member off the back and into the water. Theres also the option of mooring alongside if everything else fails, which in the upper reaches of the southern waterways probably wont be much different to what you have been used to with your narrowboat, as long as you remember to come into moor against the tide.
Julz
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Hi Dave, and welcome to the forum
There are so many factors that can effect stern on mooring, such as current and wind direction, that its just about impossible to direct someone step by step on a forum such as this one, as every attempt will be slightly different. Some Broads boats also have bow thrusters, which can help a great deal when it comes to stern on mooring, as they help you straighten the boat up ready to go backwards smoothly and very slowly onto the quay. your Boat yard should be able to give you some tuition and hands on experiance of this, and if you have a look on U-tube no doubt there will be something useful to watch on there too.
For your first attempt, pick a wide open slot with plenty of space between other moored boats, and dont try going too far out from the bank as boats need throttle control as much as steering at the helm to effect the desired stern swing around into the open mooring slot where you wish to go stern on. Also an important crew safety tip is to NEVER jump the gap between the quay and the boat when coming into moor, and always hold onto a grab handle tightly with one hand, and rope ready in the other to step onto shore. If your in the Southern broads then theres often plenty of space outside the Wherry pub on Oulton broad to try this, as well as plenty of moorings around the yacht stations at Oulton and Beccles once you have gained more confidence, although the rise and fall of the tide at some points on the Southern rivers can make boarding a little more difficult due to the greater rise and fall of the tide compaired to the northern rivers.
For your mother in laws return home there are railway links for the trains from Reedham, Norwich, and Oulton Broad, plus a national coach link from Norwich.
Most Broads pubs welcome well behaved dogs onto their outside seating areas and some into their bars, but non that i know of allow them into their restaurants due to health and safety reasons, and the fact that they can become drooling scroungers at the sight of delicious food!
A couple of places that come highly recommended by our members are the Indian restaurant overlooking Oulton broad, above the shops, and Coldham Hall on the River Yare, theres also the Crown Carvery at Thorpe st Andrew if you want a chain type pub serving a decent value roast for under a fiver a head.
The best places to watch the speed boat races depend on whether you want to watch from onboard your boat, moor outside the Wherry pub and pay the overnight fee, or use the Yacht Station, which is nearer to the speed boating admission entrance, but can be a bit more tricky for stern on moorings for a novice, as its more popular, and mooring slots tend to be tighter together. There is a Quaymaster on duty during the day, a fee is payable, and theres toilets and facilities available at the rear of the moorings. Personally, I prefare the Wherry side, as if the weather is wet, we still get a fairly decent view of the races from the comfort and shelter of our boat. If you want the info on the speedboats and to get close up to them, then you have to pay on the admission gate just like any other sporting event
I hope you have a lovely time and the weather is kind to you,
Julz
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We spotted Serenity up at Womack week before last, they called in at the boatyard services with her then left, I showed her to Bill, as I had forgotten at the time whos salty bottom she was!
She was sure a salty and not a rivercruiser judging by her kit, and she had obviously managed somehow to get under the bridges at GT Yarmouth and Acle
Julz
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We spotted one a few years ago early one dawn at the entrance to Barton Broad, just passed How Hill, we were very lucky indeed, and probably only spotted it due to the broad being so still of boat traffic, it was sitting on the bank, and took off when we approached
We are having fun Barn Owl spotting from the place we are staying at for the next few days, they start hunting as soon as it starts to fall dusk, and we sit in the caravan with the blinds up and lights off watching them and the Bats catching insects and prey over the marshes
The rivers are fairly quiet, a handful of hireboats and a couple of private boats out on Malthouse broad today, and a small flotilla of Hunters boats that came into moor at the staithe to take shelter from a sharp storm that blew up around lunchtime, the crew looked very cold and wet indeed
We are hoping for a bit of dry weather in the morning, so that we can get the canope down on our dayboat and shoot the bridge at Wroxham for the afternoon, i love looking down into the clear waters of 'natures fishtank' around the upper reaches of the Bure, and watching the shoals of fish, and if were very lucky we may spot a kingfisher or two, or even a Jay, all part of the rich wildlife tapastry that makes The Broads so special
Julz
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Thanks for that information regarding the slates, and i will certainly pass it on amoungst the camping fraternity forums, however, the people I have seen with these slates were using them as a level base for the small camping stoves and gas bbqs, so they were not in such direct contact as a disposible BBq would be, but never the less, i will post up a general warning as the last thing I would want to see is someone being injured in this way.
I believe the practice came about after the health warnings made using the previous tried and tested method of an asbestos base for the purpose became a strict no-no
Some people who were then camping in the Welsh Slate quarry areas found it easy to pick up a suitable piece of slate whilst out walking, and hence the practice began. I have in the past bought a couple of slate kitchen pan stands from the slate quarry visitors centre at Llanberis, I wonder if they were aware of this problem, or is it only when the entire piece is exposed to ultra high tempretures for an extended length of time?
Julz
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She is looking very nice indeed Branden, you should feel very proud of yourself fo refurbishing her into being a lovely boat
I second what Jill has just said through regards safety with any heating and cooking appliances on a boat, or any other enclosed area for that matter. There have been a few gas related fatalities already this year amongst the camping fraternity, as people have tried to heat up their tent using a portable gas stove or BBq, and havent realised the danger of the carbon monoxide they can give off, even when used for cooking as they were intended.
These stoves are fine most of the time when used outdoors or under an open canopy, but never directly where they can come into contact with combustable materials, or where a strong breeze or rocking boat from passing wash could tip them over and possibly set off a grass or fibreglass fire. A lot of campers use a large slate roofing tile under their cooker to act as insultation, whilst the campers backpacker type stoves can be stood in an empty biscuit tin and packed around with pebbles or dry sand to make them more stable and secure.
I hope you have many hours of fun with her, does she have a name yet?
Julz
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There are some nice areas to explore for a small boat at the top end of Barton broad
We took a dayboat out and explored above Wayford bridge as far as navigable, the water became cristal clear, and we could see the fish swimming in and out of the weed on the bottom, nice and peaceful up there due to the low bridge keeping the larger boats out of the way, and its teaming with wildlife, including kingfishers, Jays, dragonflies and muntjack deer
Theres also a launching slipway near the bridge if ever you did decide to set yourself up with a trailer.
Julz
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Aldi also have 12/230v electric cool boxes on offer, plus a load of other outdoor activities gear available from next week, if the boxes are similar to those they sold last year, I know a few people who bought them and said how good they were both for quality and value
Julz
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Hi Wonderwoman,
It very much depends on the boat you are on, there is a fee for private boats that use the pilot service, but some of the hire yards have an arrangement with the pilot to take you through for free, BUT, due to high tides and river levels, type of boat superstructure ect, more often than not a passage cannot be gained, and the pilots word in the matter is final, it very much depends on many factors that effect river conditions at the time
The only way to explore above Potter Heigham bridge during high water levels, is normally to hire a small dayboat from one of the yards who allow their boats to cruise this part of the Navigation, not all do, as it can be very shallow in parts, and theres a risk of running aground in some areas.
Julz
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Hi Wonderwoman, indeed the pub remains closed, but the windmill and shop were open last summer during the high season, selling basic provisions, newspapers and magazines, although on the day we popped in the cafe was closed.
Julz
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Have you tried looking on the Rightmove website?
Try going onto the Rental section, put the search area to Ludham, enter a radius of 5miles, leave the rentals price section blank, and the bedrooms to 3 to 4, then you will find quite a few choices will pop up, with the most expensive ones first.
Theres never any promises given as to how long you will be able to rent a property for, other than whats first stipulated in the tenants agreement,normally for 6months or a year, but it can work both ways in the landlords and tennants favour, it allows landlords to regain their property quickly if they either need it as accomodation for a family member, or the tenent is not abiding by the rules regards payment and upkeep of the property. It also allows people to hand a property back and walk away should their circumstances change, without the penalty of having to loose the remainder of the rent should they have agreed to a long term rental period other than the minimum six months.
I agree it can be a real pain in the backside having to leave if you have found somewhere that you would like to call your 'forever' home, but from past experiances when we dabbled in the Landlord game, more people handed back their house after 6months, than applied to stay on for a second contract, with reasons given such as relationship breakdowns and sometimes because they themselves had become first time buyers, but more often than not it was because of financial reasons, and they were moving back to live with parents and relatives.
Good luck anyway, and im sorry im not local, otherwise I might have been able to help you further, we still have a few friends and relatives who let out properties up here in sunny Derbyshire!
Julz
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Have a great time guys, hope the weather stays fine for you, and you dont manage to drink the Broad dry!
Julz
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If hes on his own land or that where hes got permission to be from the private land owner then generally the police could not touch him, but having said that, if the land was part of a privately owned campsite, or one belonging to either of the main 'clubs', then he would be under the jurisdiction of the rules and regulations of that particular campsite, and most require a unit to de-hitch for overnight stays, and have set distances between units as part of their fire regulations
The site were on now is owned by one of the big clubs and has warden control, its barriered for entrance and exit, each unit is required to occupy a designated pitch even for an overnight stay, car goes to the left hand side of the caravan, awning goes to the right, 6mtrs has to be kept between our unit and next doors, theres a no drink-drive policy on site, and a first gear only, 5mph speed limit for safety's sake. They also ask that noise levels are kept to a minimum after 11pm, and they are strict on removing anyone who refuses to comply. In return, we get to stay within lush woodland, with an abundance of wildlife, and top class facilities as far as services are concerned, a spotlessly clean shower block and well maintained hardstanding pitches with EHU and digital Tv Bollard, and even better, a great bunch of people to share our hobby with, or help smooth out any problems should they arise, like someone at the service centre last week left my water valve in the 'drain' position, and we spent an hour wondering why it was taking so much more water to fill the onboard hot water tank than it did last year, Grr!
To be honest, theres no excuse for anyone to have to spend a night parked up sleeping on a public area, theres such a good network of small certified sites and locations dotted around the UK and governed by the two main clubs that its always fairly easy to find somewhere within easy reach, and there fairly cheap to use too, with the average one charging no more than a tenner a night and that mostly includes an EHU (electric hook up) it also protects you from the prats that think its good fun to bang on the caravan sides and try and scare the occupants whitless during the small hours mostly due to their own boozed up state, or inorder to commit theft from the occupants
Julz
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Thanks David thats answered Bill's question, as we had a suspicion that it may have been Whitby for the Scarbrough area
Actually, the new Marina here is a spur of the former old fishing harbour, the deep water channels are still there for the couple of trawlers that still use the port, but with the fishing industry in decline, the authorities spent a considerable amount of money over the past 5yrs upgrading the moorings for private leisure craft, including the instilation of pontoons and improved lighting bollards with shore power and fresh water facilities. The mouth of this harbour never dries, except for maybe a couple of times a year at exceptional low water heights, unlike Bridlington which dries altogether at every low tide.
not many private salties leaving harbour today, its too bliddy cold and rough, although one of the trawlers has put to sea this afternoon at high water, and the inshore lifeboat was out on manouvers in the bay testing out their RIB Julz
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Talking about tides, a question for you salty bottoms please
Today I have bought myself a copy of the East Coast long term tide tables for 2012, and at the side of each entry for 'high water' it gives an expected tide height, todays at Scarbrough was 5.5 mtr, but exactly where/how do they get these measurements from?
I remember reading something about the Broads tides being measured at Gorleston, but i have yet to see any kind of markers for tide measurement, and the harbour depth markers on the entrance to the new marina at Scarbrough are no where near 5.5 mtr deep, even at high water.
Julz
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I don't drink and drive on my ship but when parked up have often been know to take a libation
If this came into force surely it would be for boats under-way?
If not I will be the first ask for Caravanner's to be covered by the same
Indeed Perry, the same drink driving laws apply to a caravanner whos van is attached to a towcar to which he is incharge whilst on the public highway, no matter if hes in the driving seat or not, even if hes asleep in the caravan in a lay-by, the police require him to be in a sober enough state to move on if requested to do so, and in England and Wales being as so called 'Wild Camping' in lay-bys and waste land is illegal, then this can happen more frequently than you imagine, with a high proportion of culprits being Motorhome owners. Scotland has slightly different laws on the subject, and overnight stays are allowed in designated lay-bys and rest areas, but with restrictions as to the use of naked flame, and the banning of dumping of litter, emptying of toilet cassettes, or the release of grey water waste whilst parked up in these areas.
There have been several cases of motorhome owners having their veichle seized by police whilst parked up at the roadside for non compliance to the drink driving laws, or other offences under the road traffic act such as expired tax and insurance.
It doesnt matter a toss that its being used as someones tempory home at the time, if they break the law then they pay the price just like any other motorist would do, and most would find themselves with a hefty bill to pay for a hotel for the night plus transport and retrieval costs which no insurace policy, however good, would cover them for.
Julz
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If its on private land, and with the permission of the landowner, you are allowed to just about drive anything, and without any age restrictions either!
My nephew learned to drive when he was at junior school, in an old banger of a Peugeot 106. Whilst other kids where learning to ride their ponies and do show jumping, he was learning to reverse his car around bollards on his Grandads farm!
He passed his driving test a few days after his 17th birthday, and went on to become an HGV driver at turning 21
Julz
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You can tow a trailer if you passed your test after 1997 without taking the extra Test, but the restrictions in weight are more severe, and it would restrict you greatly to something like a small luggage trailer that was Unbraked, or the lightest 'Freedom' type microlight caravan, Braked.
The Caravan Club do run regular tow training days for beginners and those preparing ready to upgrade their licence to tow heavier trailers, if they took their test post 1997. Either way, the upgrade test is no where near a full original driving test, but does cover other safety issues such as load distribution, correct lighting, the need for extention mirrors to enable clear vision both sides, and reversing skills.
Im one of the lucky ones who passed my test back in the 70's, and i have been towing for over 30yrs, including farm machinery on my Dads small holding, with a bit of extreme off-roading thrown in for good measure lol, so i managed to escape the extra towing test you young ones need to tow a big one!
Julz
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Thanks for that guys
I maywell take a ride down there next month when I visit Broadlands, I need a new tow hitch cover, but you never know what I might come back with!
Julz
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Hi Jonny, well the only boat i know of with a hydrolic wheelchair lift is operated out of Kingcruisers? yard at Horning, ajacent to The Ferry pub, they also do 'disabled' adapted chalets as well. Im not sure, but believe that the boat is only suitable as picnic type day boat.
The second problem is that a lot of the rear doors and corridors on hireboats are far too narrow to allow wheelchair use without the user first being taken out, and the chair folded, not so easy to do with an electric wheelchair. Then once on board, you would need shorepower to charge the chair up, as they do take quite a hefty drain of power over a few hours each day, which would be outside the capabilities of most inverters. The only way that i can see this may work is if the lady could be taught to use a 'boot scooter' as these dismantle into several fairly lightweight parts, and can be re-assembled in less than 5 mins, yet are small enough when folded to fit into the average car boot, hence the name lol. These can often be hired for the week from mobility shops, and can sometimes be bought quite cheaply secondhand from the families of those who have sadly passed away.
TBH i think the viability of the idea of a boating holiday for this lady would depend on how far her MS has advanced symptom wise, and if shes able to stand and transfer from her wheelchair to a normal seat, and maybe take a few steps to board the boat with support.
If shes so advanced with this illness that she requires a hoist to manouver her from chair to bed, or cannot stand up even with support, then i think it would be unfair for all concerned, and probably an embarassing experiance for her in reality, as she would also need help with toileting, washing and dressing, prefareably by a female carer, and therefore she may feel more comfortable planning a future trip to the specialist units mentioned above with use of the powered lift dayboat.
The only other thing i can think of would be to contact the Nancy Oldfield Trust and see if they can offer a suitable boat with fitted hoist, even if only for a few hours trip out on the broads, and staying land based in between, which they may also be able to help with.
When are you next down on the broads Jonny? we may pop in and take a peek at 'Lady L' next month
Julz
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Are you planning to become a main dealership, or is it just going to be a few 'preloved' caravans for sale?
We would love to find a reliable Coachman Caravan dealership, prefareably in an area where we are regular visitors, as we may be tempted to upgrade sometime during the next couple of years, and love the build quality of this brand of caravans having owned one from new in the past
Julz
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Aw thats a shame, but i know where your coming from with that one, as we gave up our last caravan when our girls became teenagers, and a house move ment that we could no longer keep the caravan at home due to restrictive covenants on the property, and storge yards were so expensive, given that we only had our annual holidays from work to use it
We still love ours that we bought when Bill retired, and average 8-10 weeks away per season, with our favourite sites being a hand full of CLs and CC sites around Norfolk, Suffolk, Yorkshire and Snowdonia
Julz
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I dont think its quite as simple as that, when towing you have to consider all sorts of weight restrictions, and before anyone could offer, you would need to know the weight of the boat, which then has to be added to the weight of the trailer, and that total sum cannot be more than 85% of the weight of the tow veichle, and will also have a noseweight restriction depending on the towcar manufacturers recomendations.
Theres also the insurance to consider, both for any potential damage to the boat in transit, and for general car insurance/trailer insurance, as most policies dont cover a veichle towing for gain, and to insure one for such, plus fuel, would cost a lot more than £30
Im sorry if this sounds a bit negative, but to be quite honest I think it would either be a case of hireing a trailer and towing it yourself with your own towcar, or asking a boatyard to do the job for you, maybe as part of the purchase deal?
Julz
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Thats good news then Brian, I hope they get their permission, with the handfull of CLs and CSs around and the CCs Broadlands site we could do with a good dealership and accesory shop local when we come down to stay
Have you still got your caravan?
Julz
Popping my Broads Cherry
in New Members Say Hi !
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Hi Dave, no hard and fast rule regards mooring ropes, only to say keep an eye on them, keep them safely onboard and away from the propeler to avoid any expensive tangling, use the appropiate knots, and adjust as required as the tide rises and falls.
This can be most noticeable the nearer you get to Gt Yarmouth, where the rise and fall of the tide can be several feet. The outlet to the sea at Lowestoft is somewhat protected from such drastic differences by Mutford Lock, but can still rise/fall around a metre in places, and around the Yacht station at certain states of the tide. Im unsure what your airdraft is on your hireboat, but you may face some restrictions at Reedham, Somerleyton, and St Olaves bridges, as well as the Vauxhall bridge at Gt Yarmouth, although that might be a bit out of your range if your planning to tour the Southern broads and as a novice, as its one part of the Broads where the rise and fall is at its greatest (needing ladder access at times) and the current is at its strongest.
The hire yards do indeed give give advice on speeding and the consequences of not heeding to that advice, but unfortunately some people just dont listen, and in the case of the worst offenders, the boatyard is within its rights to reclaim the boat from its hirer early following an inceident, and without any refund of monies or compensation for doing so. Theres also a hefty fine which can be enforced by the authorities, and rangers and police do patrol the broads and use speed monitoring equipment where they suspect the restrictions are not being adhered to.
Most of the time though the rangers are a happy bunch, and often a good source of local knowledge, help and advice, and are always happy to chat and share a joke and a cuppa!
Im sure you will be fine, just remember to wear your life jackets when out on deck, and take your time and enjoy the beautiful scenery, take some basic provisions onboard as river side shops are few and far between on the southern rivers, and the best shopping areas are Norwich, Beccles and Lowestoft, but they still do entail a fair walk from the riverbank espacially if carrying heavy shopping. Loddon is a nice little village, but the approch down the Chet can be quite narrow and winding in places and stern on places at the staithe cannot be garaunteed, as they are popular with private boaters who use the shore power points.
Julz