JennyMorgan

The course was pass that buoy to starboard, bare away and head off for the top end of the Broad, round the buoy up there and then beat back down the Broad. Not like racing at Horning, plenty of room. Other than the start line there were no buoys in the North Bay, just before the exit to the Broad, hopefully the hire boat worked his/her way over to the right and via that bay. There was a rescue boat just round the corner, just in case !

Why wasn't the dog on a lead, especially as both owner and animal were in a public park?

We were moored at the yacht club at Oulton Broad today when what I assumed was a black labrador swam past in hot pursuit of three swans. No probs, I thought, it's what labs do but for swan's sake keep the blessed pooch on a lead. I started to get concerned when the dog was sixty or seventy yards out into the Broad and clearly in no mood to turn round. Enter the distraught owner, calling out to her diminishing pet who took not a blind bit of notice of her entreaties. Don't worry, says me, 'labs can swim'. 'He's not a lab, he's a greyhound and he's never swum before'. Oh dear, thinks me, as my daughter ambled off to ask for help from the club rescue crew who, regretfully, were involved in other tasks. Enter a true hero who set off in hot pursuit aboard his single handed, extreme racing dinghy. By now the swans were at least one hundred and ten yards from the nearest bank and Fido at least one hundred but by now beginning to lag behind. A few yards later the dinghy rounds up to the dog and the helmsman capsizes so he can pull the by now exhausted greyhound into the cockpit before righting his boat and sailing for the shore, the dog laying, absolutely played out, on the floor. Our hero comes alongside the floating jetty where we were moored. The dog absolutely refused to cooperate when it came to being lifted ashore from the sailing boat so, once again, the dinghy was capsized and the dog was dragged to the side of the jetty and hauled ashore. Still alive but totally traumatised, his grateful owner picked him up for the obviously much needed cuddle. Our hero set off again, by now a little late for the start of his race. Had the casualty been a human then I have no doubt that he'd be called a hero. Moral of the story, don't let your four legged friend chase wildlife.

I see one bermudan rigged boat has a few tucks in her main. Some of the gaffers have integral topsails so the main is reefed along the foot thus the 'topsail' is just lower than it normally is. Provided the hire boat held its course & didn't panic then I don't think that there was a problem.

http://www.thebroadsblog.co.uk/2017/08/vice-chairman-admits-to-changing-rules.html

The very apt leather cowboy hat I presume?

Thumbs up to the Authority.

Re calibrating There is a measured quarter mile between Aldeby & Beccles for example. Such things were once common on the Broads, maybe we should remind the Broads Authority of their usefulness. On the other hand a handheld GPS is cheap enough on E-Bay.

In years gone by it was not uncommon for smaller cruisers to have tiller steering where it was possible to see over the cabin top. Twofold reasons, one being in case your wheel steering packed up and secondly many of us prefer tiller steering.

Far worse are the ones who insist on overtaking on the right even if there is only a ten foot gap on my right and it means them ducking under my boom whilst there is forty foot of open water on my left! I have even had a GP barge past on my right and in doing so has had to push hard against the reed bed despite which I could have put my hand out and touched the dazzling acre of gel coat as it roared past.

Twenty pints in two days, no wonder that you were a bit rough! Isn't four quid a pint about normal then?

I am quite sure that many people avoid a pub that allows dogs, just as others seek out such pubs. Regretfully not all dogs are as well trained as Macie. Oulton Broad used to have a wonderful choice of eateries and watering holes, suddenly the bubbles appears to be bursting. Sunday we started up at the Red Herring, place was devoid of customers, the menu was akin to a pretentious Michelin guide. Nearby restaurants were all heaving so we weren't alone in not fancying a meal there. Next the Copper Smoke House, closed at six o'clock! The Boulevard, a good clean up wouldn't go amiss. There is a cafe in the Everitt Park, acceptable, not really a restaurant environment but we have had good meals there in the past. We settled on the Wherry, good to excellent food, reasonable prices but fine dining it is not! Wolf Inn, haven't tried it yet. Commodore, excellent and stylish but not very comfortable, our first choice when we have friends though. The Lady of the Lake, neither of us like it so we didn't bother. The cook used to be at the Waveney when its hygiene rating was at the wrong end of the scale but I do know locals that rate it highly & prefer it to the Wherry. Tonight we went to the Magic Wok Chinese takeaway. I don't suppose either my wife nor I eat more than 25% of our meals, truly awful. Just a mess of stodgy rice a few bits of meat ladled into a cardboard box. Tomorrow I think that I'll do the cooking!

Two interesting comments following the EDP article: James Knight • 5 hours ago Peter Dixon and Jacquie Burgess both actively canvassed other members of the Authority to block any attempt to reinstate Cllr Hempsall on the planning committee, in breach of the Authority's standing orders and code of conduct. Peter Dixon has also admitted that he authorised the altering of the wording of the Duty to Cooperate in direct response to Vic Thomson's proposal that the Authority should comply with its own rules. Peter Dixon has also said that if Cllr Hempsall agrees not to criticise the Authority for 6 months then he might re-consider her for membership of the planning committee Squatter • 8 hours ago It is worse than a shambles. The presence of each district council member at least gives a modicum of elected, democratic, responsibility and local knowledge. This change is blatantly anti democratic, draconian and possibly unlawful. The CEO now has the power to pick and choose which councillors he will accept (the pliable ones) and which he will ignore (those who think for themselves). This is a step too far! Mr. Thomson must win his case

Absolute err-hem shambles!

Answer, when it's not being ridden by the mother-in-law or a certain, deceased prime minister!

Simple answer to that one, rebrand your Ocean as a Broom Ocean, it goes on all the time!

One more from today:

The Waveney at Oulton Broad closed tonight, apparently no longer able to continuing trading. It was suggested to me by a customer that folk that went in there to eat were annoyed by drinkers enjoying themselves, an interesting theory. £2.00 a pint this evening! My wife and I only found this out when we went in for a meal, which they weren't doing so we went over to the Smoke House only to find that they stopped doing meals at 6.00 0'clock, amazing, the village was teeming with people it being Oulton Week! So back to the Wherry which was absolutely heaving despite which the food was, as always, excellent! Anyway, very sad to see that the Waveney is closing, I really thought that they had turned the place around.

It's not generally boats on the plane that create problems, more likely planing hulls just off the plane.

I feel a bit sorry for the BA on this one, it will be a case of they will be buggered if they do or whether they don't. Undoubtedly the additional notice is unofficial, designed to 'scare' would be speeders, doesn't have planning consent or official sanction and therefore the BA is duty bound to demand its removal. However if they do they will be accused of not supporting their own speed limit. Such do it yourself signs have been around for as long as I can remember and let's be honest, speeding and wash has always been and remains a very real problem. Whoever this well meaning but possibly small minded and sad individual is I neither know nor care, he has bought a property where wash and speeding is a problem and probably has been for generations. Perhaps an unwise purchase. Heaven forbid that speed cameras become a feature of the Broads. Speeding is a problem and quite honestly is one that has not been tackled effectively by either the Authority nor the boat owners. Short of 24 hour surveillance and threats to cut off the offender's favourite playthings I really don't see the answer.

It would be good if similar portage points were provided for the Muck Fleet and up to the Trinity Broads, a journey that Jamie Campbell & I have completed.

Not unreasonable at all, just a question of who should pay since it is above the head of the navigation.

Just for the record I have frequently paddled from Beccles to Bungay, a delightful journey. Portage has been simple, lift our canoe out of the water on one side of the Ellingham road and relaunch it on the other, hardly a need for the proposed facility but it would be nice. I just question the Authority's involvement and the funding, not the portage itself.

The navigation above Geldeston and up to Bungay is still owned by the defunct canal company, via an Act of Parliament. and never was a public navigation although undoubtedly the public used it. It became navigable as such after the locks & weirs were built, its flow is one way, it is not a tidal waterway with the associated rights of such.