Paul

The sign on the moorings said Pennygate Staithe until the BA replaced it a few years ago. Broadsnet still refer to it as Pennygate Staithe. Sadly all my historic maps are in storage with my books apart from my 1883 OS which simply marks it as Sta. It's always been Pennygate Staithe to us.

No, I mean Pennygate Staithe. Barton Turf is a village, it's staithe is called Pennygate.

or even Pennygate .......

We love visiting Norfolk, but in recent years it has been land based, or southern rivers. The "tipping point", at least as far as the Northern Rivers are concerned came for us a few years ago. Our last Northern Hire was three years ago, Contessa from Richardsons. I cannot fault the service from Richardson's or the boat. Both were admirable but it struck home to us during that holiday, to me especially, that nostalgia rather than reality had become the main reason for returning. I can list around ten favourite moorings or stopovers on the Northern Rivers and during the week afloat we looked to visit all of them. Sadly most of them were either unavailable due to long term stayers or spoilt by running engines. Our favourite wild mooring on the river ant was full on each of the four ocasions we passed by the same boat with arounf ten or a dozen fishing lines out. Stalham Staithe was embargoes by two boats which looked like liveaboards on our two attempted visits. Sutton Staithe was similar, we found mooring away from the staithe but moved off when a fight broke out on the staithe. On two attempted visits to Wroxham we were unable to find moorings at either Barnes or Faircraft, despite it being midweek and not changeover days as both yards were full of their own boats not on hire. We did find our favourite mooring at Panneygate staithe availableand settled down for a quiet night onboard only for several anglers to arrive at dusk, set up alongside us and proceed to talk in loud voices late into the night with the foulest language I'd heard in years. Not good when you have a young child on board. Likewise we got onto Neatished with only one other boat on the mooring, quiet night take two? No. about half an hour after dark another hire boat came in and moored half way down the dyke, the lady on board being most apologetic for their late arrival. They had been moored at Gay's when a pair of boats with stag crews arrived, so they moved on in search of a "quiet evening". They proceeded to destroy everyone's quiet evening by running their engine until well after 11pm and again from 06:00 the next morning. I think we'd have done better at Gay's with the stag crews. I'm not a great one for pubs nowadays, I'm more interested in a luchtime stop now than an all night session but we did end up at the excellent Acle Bridge Inn two nights, just to find a decent mooring. We'd pretty much worked out by the middle of the week that in future we would stick to the southern rivers or other waterways.

As Mr Morgan says sticking with what you have is always an option as you know her, what condition she's in etc but on the other hand there is nothing wrong with wanting something a bit newer either. Perhaps look at Dawncraft DC 30 or Bounty 30 maybe. They would offer you the extra space though may not be much more "modern" than your Hampton. The Alpha 34 is a nice boat and a mid 90's example should be well within your budget. They crop up on the marine brokers sites from time to time but don't seem to hang around long. NYA have one but it says sale agreed. https://www.nya.co.uk/boats-for-sale/alpha-34/ The Bounty / Alpha 35's are very spacious but not single level with their raised centre cockpit.

I understand "the navy" are considering joining the submarine service.

I've seen a lot of negative comment on Facebook this week about Hamilton, how it's the car that's won him his world titles and how he doesn't compare to the "greats" of Forumla 1. What utter tosh. Hamilton is one of the finest the sport has seen and IMHO Jolyon Palmer has it about right in his BBC column, you could have swapped him and Vettel's cars this year and Hamilton would still have won in a Ferrari. It's very difficult to predict what will happen from one season to the next, but whatever the developments and whichever car seems to hold the advantage Hamilton still has to be the big favourite for number 6.

is it still too warm for the rails?

Tony and Val ran 16 out of Pacific at one point, all changed over on Saturday. They used to stagger arrival times. On occasion we picked up at 11am, happy days!

No apology needed Happy. I would if I could, although actually on second thoughts perhaps not, I'd probably just buy something more exotic used! New Dacia Duster or used Merc Cabriolet .... let me think about that for 3.28 nano seconds .....

No. The precise model I wanted is quite rare with only a handful for sale in the UK, so had to be prepared to travel. The warranty is provided by the AA and should any work need doing our local MB specialist will undertake it under the warranty so not an issue. I was very choosy about which dealer to use and in the end opted for a slightly more expensive car from a dealer used to dealing in high end sports and prestige vehicles. In fact when we went to view the car the showroom included two Audi R8's, a Lamborghini Hurucan and a Porsche 911 GT2. Not (sadly) that I was shopping in quite that market. The vehicle's had a full inspection so we've done all we can. Alas when buying used you pay your money and take your chances.

but they will collect parcels from online business users free of charge when using tracked services, or for a nomial charge if using Royal Mail parcels

wasn't Clive selling this stuff some time ago?

After a week and a day on holiday it was back to normality for me today. 1st day back at school for Jamie so alarm at 7.15, run his bath, make his breakfast, press his uniform and get him to school for 8.40 Things changed a bit after that though. Home for a quick cuppa then a walk down the village. Time to drop into the garden machinery centre to talk about a possible new mower for next year then on the bus to our nearest train station, via every village in between. A journey that takes me twenty minutes in the car stretched to an hour and twenty minutes but I have seen parts of Leicestershire that, despite living here all my life I have never seen before. I had just enough time before my train was due to get a snack from the platform newsagent, err no. The platform newsagent is now a solicitors office with the refreshment needs of passengers now serviced by two vending machines. One, all but empty could supply standard coke, but no diet, that was sold out or Fanta, all at £2.60 a bottle. The other offered a choice of Kit Kat, Mars or Twix at £1.40. No thanks, my dietry needs will have to wait for the buffet car. I could kill a coffee and croissant or bacon roll. I was a bit miffed that British Railways no longer offer the "daytime first" upgrade, of which I made great use when I used to travel to London on business. For a few extra quid you could upgrade your ticket, subject to availability on trains between the peak hours. Sadly not only has it gone, but so have British Railways. I'm afraid I was not going to pay a three hundred percent premium for a half decent seat for a couple of hours journey (especially the as the connecting train had no first class anyway) . So peasant class it was, though at least the train was not busy and so I had a choice of seats "facing the engine", not that there is an engine anymore either. I noted with interest that there was not a single soul seated in first class. I can't help thinking that our supposedly beleaguered Train Operating Companies are missing a trick here. I'm sure I'm not alone in being prepared to pay a sensible supplement to upgrade. My ticket was a barcode on my mobile phone. I thouht I had been quite clever using this new technololgy but after boarding the train it struck me what might happen if the totally inadequate battery on my abysmal Samsung mobile should fail, as it tends to do after not much useage. Having been fully charged when leaving home it was, by now, down to 77%, and that just on standby. I flashed the code at the ticket collector who cast a cursory glance at it. No way could he have read it and known that it was valid on the train I was now seated on. Neither did he have a clever scanniing type gadget to read it. I asked about the buffet car and was met by a startled gaze and the response "no buffet car". Great! I would have to wait until I change trains at Birmingham. The train ran pretty much to time and arrived in New Street just a handful of minutes late. The app on my phone which held my ticket had updated the journey details with platform numbers. I would arrive to platform 6 and depart from 5b. Not far to walk then. Wrong. Some overpaid under brained dimwit has redesigned New Street Station into a series of "Lounges". Platform 6 was in one and 5b in another. You have to climb up to the main concourse, clear the ticket barriers then walk half a mile, back through the barriers and down to the platform next to the one you were on fifteen minutes earlier. To add to the delay the barcode on my phone would not open the barrier so the attendant had to come along with the key and unlock it for me. Repeat that process at the next barrier down to platform 5b. I'm sure it's no accident that the walk from one to the other takes you past the vast array of designer shops which now adorn the station. Not a buffet or takeaway kiosk to be found. There was one starbucks, with a queue out of the door. No time for that! I found my onward train to convey me to the heart of the "Black Country". On Time, the board said, and duly, ten minutes before it's scheduled deperture time the train pulled on to the platform. Again plenty of space so i chose a seat "facing" and settled down for the short wait for it to leave. And waited And waited. Finally, fifteen minutes late it pulled away. A polite voice welcomed us aboard the train in near perfect Queen's English until the list of stops came to Dudley when a sharp black country twang could be heard. I think it is impossible to prenounce Dudley without adopting a "Dudley Accent". No apology or explanation for our late departure. It would have been nice to be told "sorry but the driver needed to use the loo" or "we had to wait for a clear track ahead". My train quickly passed under the M5, a trip which by car takes half an hour done in the blink of an eye and before too much longer my station was reached. I alighted the train and using the last of my fading battery mapped my walking route along the Walsall canal to my final destination. The object of my 50 mile, four hour journey was the car dealership from who we had agreed to buy the new car I have been promising myself for years. After a false start earlier this month when having bought one the dealer called the day before it was due to be delivered that they had discovered a problem and were withdrawing it from sale, I decided I would go and collect this one. Finally, the new car is sitting on our driveway alongside the old Honda. I hope it gives the years of trouble free service that the old workhorse has and hopefully will continue to do as we plan to keep it as long as possible as a dirty jobs vehicle.

That may have something to do with it, but the size of the yard is also an issue. At best the moorings only hold eight boats, they had been operating with ten. Splitting changeover days between Friday and Saturday aleviates the problem during the season but when they are all back then they have to lift someout or seek other moorings.

And remember many of the older designs offer much better space on board. The modern trend is to "use space cleverly" which I have decided means wedge as much into each square foot as possible, plus each extra cabin adds to the sleeping capacity which allows the boatyard to increase the hire charge. Some of the new designs will sleep 8 - 10 but can seat no more then four or five to eat, and you are having to step around each other every time you move. Have a look at Pacific Princess or Dawn and compare.

I've hired 41 times from Pacific in the last 33 years. I've also hired a couple of times from Freedom. Both are excellent. Pacific would be my first choice, but only just and Freedom do have the flexibility of choosing any start and finish day which may be important to you, or may not. Just because their boats are older it doesn't mean they are not up to standard. All of Pacific's boats will have modern up to date engines with their improved economy and quieter operation. Most have had galleys replaced along with upgrades to soft furnishings, carpets, headlinings etc. And they are always presented in top condition. If you want to see what goes into preparing a hire boat or refurbishing one then seek out Freedom Boating Holidays on Facebook. Andy's always working on something or another and bless him he always shares on fb.

I think that's exactly how the thread reads dnks34, but that does not suit the agenda of some. They don't seem to realise that you can dis the authority without dis'ing the broads themselves. They should do by now, we have enough experts on the subject on this forum.

Shhhh! Don't tell everyone. Shhhh! Don't tell Dr Pacman. Perhaps the Blessed Authority employ members of staff to stand on the southern bypass and count everyone who passes the brown tourist signs. Come to think about it, I have seen an increase in people in yellow jackets by the side of the road recently.

convenient even ......

I'm sure when Dr Pikeman's cenotaph is in place the Broads will shoot up the list as visitors flock to Acle in their thousands to behold it.

Whilst the actor in the lead role will always grab the headlines for me of equal, or even greater importance is the change of writer. Steven Moffat has been replaced by Chris Chibnall for this series so it will be interesting to see where that goes. Moffat was responsible for some of the best episodes of Doctor Who, including in my opinion the best ever, "Blink", during the David Tennant era. Interestingly, the Doctor hardly appeared in that episode as Tennant was busy doing other work. Chibnall has worked on the Doctor Who franchise before with Torchwood and won acclaim on series like Broadchurch, so he should know what he's doing.

I'm afraid I have to agree.It seems most of the best new TV comes from the commercial or pay per view sector. About the only things we ever watch from "Auntie" anymore are BBC4 programmes from the I-player. As for Doctor Who I'll reserve judgement until I have seen more. I didn't like Peter Capaldi at first but actually came to quite like his portrayal though for me, nobody can ever live up to Tom Baker.

The maximum dimension to navigate without restriction is 46ft long by 12ft 6in beam. You cannot exceed 46ft length but can increase the beam with restrictions on navigation incremental to the increase in beam. Upto 14ft you can navigate most of the main rivers but not the tributaries and dykes from them, and not the rivers Ant or Chet. Above 14 foot beam then parts of the main rivers become prohibited as well.

Sadly most of the nationally available "staples" of the beer trade have been mucked about with over the last twenty years or so. We have already heard about Abbot, Speckled Hen, Boddington's and Directors is another to add to that list along with the likes of Pedigree, Bass and many more. Then to add to the confusion there are brands which you might not know where they are brewed. Take Thwaites for example, who still brew in Blackburn but Wainwright is now brewed by Marstons and Lancaster Bomber, one of my favourites, is brewed by Thwaites for their own houses but by Marstons for all other markets. I think the rise of those local brewers who have managed to avoid takeover and the ever increasing number of micro breweries is a direct result of all this chopping and changing. Real ale drinkers tend to be quite discerning and they don't alway appreciate the "improvements" to their once favourite tipple.