JanetAnne

You'd need a lot of film if you were to follow my lot for a week. Public ridicule is not an issue though, they are used to it!

That pesky mod gets everywhere! For an excellent family boat without breaking the bank you just wont beat the Connoisseur. Old enough to be very affordable, built like tanks, laid out well (go for the extra cabin with the two bunks in tacked on the back if you can). Yes, some could do with a silencer revision and the steering ram will need an upgrade as the originals are a bit short (if it hasnt already been done of course) but apart from that its a proper bread and butter broads boat. And you can get under all the bridges...... nuff said!

Here's a bit of a report as promised. We had a superb collection of boats as you will have seen from pictures already doing the rounds with most of the broadland manufacturers represented. We had asked if those who felt able to, would open their boats up on the Saturday afternoon for anyone to have a look. Well, what fun... Whichever boat you got onto there was someone else either leaving, arriving or just passing through. Ideas were wowed at, soft furnishings discussed, cocktail cabinets compared, varnish stroked, polished engines were displayed and admired. As Jax said, everyone got to have a good rummage through each others boats... A truly fabulous afternoon which bought everyone together (most had not met before the day)! Would you believe there was one boat there that sported not only 5 permanently made up berths but also had a bathroom with full size bath as well as a full 12x12 lounge and a galley with washing machine and fridge freezer. Such opulence aboard a woodie! We also learnt a neat trick using roller blinds, a fabulous way to store bedding without the hastle of stowing it every morning and just about everyone had their own take to share on clever storage ideas. Saturday evening saw the area fill with the sounds of live groups as part of the carnival weekend and then on sunday thecarnival procession made its way through the town and onto the fields behind us. With all that going on and it was quite a filled few days. All too soon it was over, goodbyes were said and, amid much waving, the woodies set off one by one along well known rivers and back to their moorings to rest and dream of next years event. Yes, we will be back. We are most definitely invited for next year! Just waiting for the dates from Beccles and we will start to get it all organised for 2016

Including a trophy cabinet?

Well my humans are back home finally and are still buzzing from the events of the weekend. What can I say.... just WOW! What an event it turned out to be. Stunning boats and stunning people. I shall be getting the full report tomorrow and will fill you in with the details but for now here are a couple of shots of our winners. Everybody who attended got a vote to pick the boat they would most like to take home (excluding their own of course). Here are the most sought after boats by the owners of wooden boats this year.. Missouri Star took a very well deserved 1st place with Georgia second. (There was just one point between them) Two stunning boats I'm sure you will all agree and both a tribute to their owners efforts and determination in keeping a couple of us old woodies in such good condition. More news to follow soon. Or as they say.. 'watch this space'

There had to be a formula.... well done Mr Admiral Sir! She came through nicely Friday as planned. chaps

Yes it would in normal circumstances Bill but Swiftway's owner is a long haul trucker and was stuck in his cab in Weston Super Mere trying to juggle time sheets, driving hours, deliveries and a desire to attend our event when he contacted me. Had the pilot still been there we would have known instantly by phone as you say but we needed to know after he'd gone home...

Tomorrow afternoon as soon as there is an inch to spare Barry.

Unlikely, the drivers wont notice much difference! Thunderstorms may delay things though...

Swift, you are a star! Thank-you

They should be but if not the pub is open next door.... 'Thorne' toilets I'd suggest you humans stay clear of though, sounds a bit prickly to me

If only I could remember how to convert the Yarmouth figures into Potter clearances Been away just too long methinks

I've always steered clear of that section... already having a reputation I may not wish to be reminded of you see

Would anybody know what the clearance was under Potter today at low tide? Poor old Swiftway is intending to come down to the Beccles Wooden Boat event this weekend but may struggle to get through if the waters too high. She is looking for 6'2" (with her owners eyes shut obviously)!

Perfect timing chap!

I know very little about this case but it is quite usual for someone to obtain planning permission on a piece of land and then sell it on to developers. The permission always goes with it....

Afloat? No, but she is back in the area and looking for someone to restore her properly. We (Springsong and me) have close ties with one of her previous owners who has a whole evenings worth of tales from their time together back and forth to europe and the fjords many years ago. Check Wayford's website if you want a real challenge and the opportunity to face being broke for the rest of your life!

Missouri Star will be at Beccles next weekend (Sat 15th).

That I am Iain. Decent pictures are a problem Alan coz I dont look decent yet! You ought to mosey on over one day (we aint far apart... I'm just outside Buntingford)

Me, obviously! Whats not to like? I am as perfect as they come... and so modest with it! My owner does have a soft spot for this old tub from his past though. Soft being the word, most of her is very soft and she is currently awaiting his attention once I am finished. We would love to find W128 Newson Boats 'Emerald' one day. Another boat with lots of good memories attached

Is there still a list of boatyards on the board at the pilot station that the pilot will take boats through for? I seem to remember not all hire yards were on it... And, if it gets as busy as Iains piccy shows, surely they can just ask another pilot to walk round and clear the backlog? Its not far is it now and they seem to have a few on the books! To my mind all I see in that picture is poor management by the pilot service provider which is leading to potentially dangerous overcrowding of the river right in front of the bridge - the very area the boaters are paying the pilot service to keep safe!

Oops pressed the wrong button too soon... As I was saying, lack of moorings is down to lots of factors but ultimately its the income that they produce that decides their existance. Poorly run or poorly supported business will soon make the moorings obsolete and desirable for housing. Once they are lost we will not get them back again and thats why 'up north' is hard to moor in. We certainly cant ever get back to what we had but maybe we can work at keeping whats left?

You are so right Eric. There is nothing better or more worthwhile than a boat full of kids throughly enjoying themselves out on an adventure. It just seemed to me that perhaps we could all take a more positive approach to boating on our favourite waterway. Its in our own interests for the system to be as successful as it possibly can be. Moorings 'up north' can be hard to find with just 800 hire boats on the system whereas there were 2500 boats out every week back in the day and I guess 1700 of them were not mud plugging every night?

Ah yes but at 18 weeks it still meant out and about for Easter and then from Whitsun week (the end of May for you youngsters) till almost the end of September... Yes, I am sure the school holiday policy has an effect on it all but maybe we should be promoting 'kid free' Broads holidays and using it as a positive?

Back in the day the average season for a hire boat was 20 to 22 weeks. I think Hoseasons used to guarantee 18 weeks to yards within their 'fleet'. At 25 weeks (and thats a hard season for us boats, believe me) our owners would start to celebrate. Is the season now really so short? The year seems to have just as many days in it as in the old days....