JennyMorgan

I would have voted for that had it been on the calendar page!

The tent is needed, make no mistake of that, there has to be a repository for visions, unread customer complaints. teddies ejected from prams. redundant brushes and dustpans, staff uniforms without NP branding and similarly unbranded thus redundant notice boards. .

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/earth/environment/11471281/Feed-the-ducks-with-frozen-peas-not-bread-says-Canal-and-River-Trust.html. Be alright if we had any ducks on Oulton Broad to feed. Plenty of geese and sea-gulls but few if any ducks, moorhens or coots

Paul, the harbour-master at Oulton Broad and Beccles is something of a rockabilly fan, if he's on duty then a quick blast on the double base might enlist a free mooring!

Does that mean that you were a Mod then, tab collars, tiger tails and all the gear? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THD49kiCJXM

Now I see why so many policemen wear helmets! Stuart, should you take up playing your bass in orchestras or bands then you will realise that the big, box like Volvo estates are made for the job. The alternative is an electric bass which is probably a good choice for R&R. Thankfully, car wise, my lot stuck to violins. One of my four daughters plays electric violin, in a rock band with Ed Graham, the ex drummer of The Darkness, and if her electric violin is anything to go by then an electric double bass could be quite a creative tool. A real advantage is that you can listen via ear-phones so won't disturb the neighbours or the wildlife. Plug into a bank of amps then it's a rather different effect.

Having worked at a big marina, Chichester, I can well believe recent claims that there is rarely less than 40% of the boats at Brooms being for sale at any one time. I would guess the same can be said of big boats at other marinas too, an alarming thought! Problem is that apparently there is something of a glut of similar big boats up for sale across the country. People can often afford to buy a boat, seemingly not so many can afford to run them.

Thanks, Fred, I too had heard that JP had been in what I guess must have been low key talks with local councils and to be fair that needs recognition. That said, I rather suspect that low key is not what many of us on the various forums are expecting. JP has shown himself perfectly capable of taking the lead, even when it's not required, but now a lead is needed, even demanded. JP has shown that he can tackle small fish, like individual houseboat owners and run-down mooring basin owners, but now is surely the time to up the anti. What a feather it could be in his hat, call on his fellow members of the national parks family and present a united front to the relevant government departments. If there was the will then it could be done.

Or any noise? I don't expect the BA to take on the responsibility but I do expect them to take the lead, after all, they are the Broads Authority, it's happening on their turf, in their manor, within their empire,

Something about Stuart's picture reminds me of Captain Birdseye so using his double base as a paddle-board, complete with bowsprit, would seem quite apt.

I haven't noticed the BA taking any lead or initiative on this issue. Surely it was not beyond the wit of any man for the BA to lobby their master, DEFRA, or to call for round the table talks both with relevant councils and the holiday industry. In the interests of both conservation and us mere humans I would have quite reasonably expected the BA, under Dr Packman, to take the lead. It does appear that they/he has just sat back and let it happen, hardly a wise move by a man determined to market the Broads as a NP. Not directly the BA's fault, agreed, but have they lobbied central government?

It's never concerned me but I understand that 11' is not unheard of whilst 10'6" is a more likely norm. I'm sure that someone knows far better than I do but having 10'ish headroom, I reckon, is not definite enough. Being near to the limit as you are I suggest that you resort to an accurate tape measure. The tide through Yarmouth is also governed by rainfall inland and the wind at sea so predictions can not always be relied upon. Personally I'd drive to Gt Yarmouth the evening before & check the height gauges before committing myself. Sorry that I can't be more help.

I can understand killing to eat but not those poor, defenceless clays, just so unpalatable!

Chris, I know that you are not asking for sympathy but please accept it. It can be very hard when one's long time companion and best friend becomes seriously ill.

I'm quite certain that the Dutch would make a darn good job of managing the Broads. Things could only get better!

Theoretically JP is directly accountable to the members of the Broads Authority. The Authority itself is accountable to the stakeholders, or so the story goes. Whilst it is easy to see JP as the boss there are those that tell me that he fiddles the tune that others call. Apparently the RSPB has its own lobbyists in Parliament, as it's been suggested to me.

Regarding the sacrifices made by the wounded, how right Vaughan is. An uncle of mine was a p.o.w. in Japan and within the blast area of one of the atomic bombs, an occurrence over which he had no control. Although he lived until nearly eighty he suffered fallout related illness all his life including sterility. A grateful government? No. Thank goodness for the Legion.

I wish that we did, then we'd know what to expect or what to object to.

You don't have to take his place though. Yes, in a funny sort of way I also miss him and his argumentative ways!

All very interesting, still doesn't excuse or explain the cherry picking of 'helpful to the cause' directives whilst ignoring the unhelpful ones. Like has been said there appears to be widespread and laughable avoidance of EU laws & directives in mainland Europe and the Balearics, in my experience, but here on the Broads they appear to be avidly and gleefully adhered to, at least when it suits the unpublished agenda.

Designed to inform rather than entertain, well worth reading: http://www.thebroadsblog.co.uk/2016/11/navigation-committee-report-27-oct-2016_2.html

Pork scratchings & a pint of Broadside, bliss! There are times when I would like to double like a posting, such as the above.

Perhaps it needs to be the vision of the Broads Authority members, not the CEO. We need to ask ourselves who is the servant of who? Is the CEO the tool of the Authority, or the Authority the tool of the CEO. Who actually calls the tune?

Dnks, The committee that is the Broads Authority, normally referred to as 'the members', actually decides JP's remuneration. As I understand it it is the result of a consultation between the CEO & the Chairlady of the Authority. Targets are also set and salaries reflect on how those targets are met. Personally I think that the CEO & the Chairlady are too close but there we go, that's the system.

Dnks, by workshop do you mean the tent or the building that is being renovated? I know nothing about the buildings, other than that the newest one has proven a bit small as a workshop and tall as a structure. The tent, incidentally, cost less than four thousand, including delivery, not bad if you ask me, and it was used when the Ra was refurbished. Presumably the RA was too big for the workshop. Now the tent is being used for storage, so I understand. The rivers team and their management do a fine job, in my view, so I doubt that they would have asked for it unless they could make good use of it. I do wonder why, when the workshop was built, that the size of Ra & the then prospective SOB were not taken into account though.