Hockham Admiral

I thought you'd been quiet recently, Paul!

What a fascinating article, Stowager and I entirely agree with your thoughts. We had a Fairline Holiday 23 as our first boat. She had the 175 bhp 6-cylinder Volvo petrol engine and outdrive. Using 5 gallon steel jerry-cans to refuel we took her from Dartmouth where we bought her, back to Brundall, via the Channel Isles. And yes, we planed her a lot of the way!

Mark, hi. That Beaves Marine 22 is a cracking little boat, isn't it? Its airheight at 6ft would be ideal for Branden.

Actually it did always start and go.... But its noise and thirst were another thing!

You're talking about my favourite British Seagull, Mark!

Inboards are more difficult for the scrotes to nick, Branden!

I guess you used the hot air heating as well? (We certainly did in May). If so that is really good going because I'd hazard a guess that lots of peeps would be well over the 100L mark!

Welcome aboard from us, James and congrats on your new aquasition!

And what you'd get if you pushed her up to 9-10kts would probably break the bank!

In fact ours does have that power, Minor. In the shape of a Beta 1500cc driving a 10 KW (42 amp at 240V) genny. And the electrical shore power hook up is all rated at 32A..... My point is I'd rather use a hook up for that cuppa and like Alan says, they keep the batteries charged up. (And the dish-washer was straight onto the scrap-heap to be replaced by a drinks cupboard for all that wine and gin)

When we bought her she even had a bloody dishwasher in her, John.....

John, read my lips! 'Don't have gas' ..

Over to Jonzo!

Welcome aboard from us and hope to see you, too, on here!

I have to be careful what I say but I must point out that some boats (and notably Barnes Brinkcraft ex-hire boats like ours) don't have gas... which means if you want a late night or early morning cuppa you either have to be plugged in or run your generator. The second option will not be favoured by many. (Even though BB designed an underwater exhaust system which is relatively quiet). You often hear boats running their propulsion engines to heat water late at night and early in the mornings, to the detriment of your sleep! By "Gin Palace" I take that to mean a very large 'pointy', high speed boat which usually sits in its yard, occasionally ventures out down the river and back and never goes to sea? What I am trying to say is that we're not all "Gin Palace" owners and we own neither PlayStations nor hairdryers....

Quite right, Robin. That curve is at the flywheel and doesn't take any account of friction/propeller losses or any of the other factors you mention. But all those are constant and you could probably just double the figures I showed to get a more appropriate consumption. It certainly does give an idea of what it costs to "put the throttle to the firewall", as we used to say in propeller-driven aeroplane days.

If as many peeps as possible support this we may get something done.... Well spotted, Andy and thanks for bringing up the topic!

By Golly, she does look nice, Dan!

I was really aiming this at newbies to the Broads and new hirers in particular. With diesel at around £1.30/L it seems like just common sense to keep that usage down as far as possible. I do understand that with limited time one sometimes has little option. But to see the flotillas "heading for home" on a Saturday morning at wave-generating speeds does little for the pocket!

Ppk, Hi and welcome aboard the forum from us. I entirely agree with Alan above and would also recommend Ranworth Broad and Womach Water/Staithe.

I thought it might be appropriate to write about how I plan a holiday, or indeed just a trip from Brundall to Beccles or Oulton Broad. My first task is to check the tide tables (http://www.norfolk-broads.org/tides/tide_report.asp?StartDate=18/06/2013 14:12:06). I then plan to go through Reedham (on the South Broads) at slack water, about an hour after low water, whichever way I am going. I then get pushed up the Yare or the Waveney, either way. Going Norrh or returning South I aim for slack water at Great Yarmouth Yacht Station, about 1.30 after low water. This also gives me a good push up the Yare or Waveney and if I'm going North I may well stay at the yacht Station for an hour or so in order to get the full benefit of the flood up the Bure. It's not rockert science and doesn't take long to work out! But "Why bother?" I hear.... Fuel Consumption is the answer. Let's look at the Fuel Consumption graph for our Nanni 50bhp diesel... a common Broads Cruiser engine. If I select 1400 rpm then my FC is just on 1 L/hr and this will give me just short of 6mph with a +1.5 mph tide behind me. If I go head to tide and want to maintain the same speed then I'll need between 1700 and 1800 rpm. That will up my FC to either 2 or 2.4 L/hr. If I was daft and went along with the throttle to the wall, as some do, them I'm up to 5 L/hr..... I rest my case!

Hi UB2 and welcome aboard with your first post (although you've been a member for some time!).

Yes, we have, Alan. We're also away otherwise I had every intention of asking questions!

At last the weather's looking good for you, Brian... gentle WSW'ly breeze and temp up to 18degs.... Have a Great Father's Day!

You'll see I've hacked it in other posts, Lori. Many thanks!