bgw

With great thanks to those that have helped, I have completed my chart. Looking forward to using it in August :-)

Is there any free or public mooring near Thurne Mill or the Lion Pub? Quite happy to pay a small fee if required.

EDIT I think I found it lurking off the South West corner of Rockland Broad - Is this correct?

I have another mooring query for those that know the Rockland Broad area. The BA moorings list refers to Rockland St Mary - but their map is not clear on the location, and the aerial imagery is not clear either. Could someone identify the moorings please?

Thanks Helen, that is a great help.

I have another couple of questions if someone has some time to spare.... Belaugh Staithe is said to have two moorings - but it is unclear to me where they actually are - could it be indicated on the attached image? Also, there is one site that lists a mooring at Barton Turf, whilst another says that it is now closed. Does anyone know if the mooring will be open for the 2023 season, and if so, is the yellow highlighted area correct?

Many thanks Grendel & Regulo.

That's brilliant Ray - many thanks!

Many thanks Ray. Sorry to be a pest, but would you know if this is the correct area of the free moorings?

Here are a couple of examples that I could do with help on. Using online references for Sutton Staithe I think I have correctly identified the mooring area and the fact that water is available. I also found a reference to "Sutton Dyke" in one place but not in another - the position is shown in my example - so the question would be does Sutton Dyke exist as a free mooring and do I have the correct position. Second example regarding Stalham Staithe - Looking at the satellite imagery there are many areas where boats are moored - I am unsure exactly where the free moorings are located. As an inexperienced user it would be nice to know exactly where I am supposed to head to.

You need a license for Memory Map to use third party maps - I have one for the PC and for the tablet. On the tablet I just selected the file and it knew to open it with Memory Map. I have also just tried MM V6.4 on my PC and it loads in that fine.

Hi Marshman, I agree that depths are not required for this chart - and I say as much in my first post. For me, as a relative "newbie" to the area, it is about positional awareness, locations of moorings and water etc I am also interested in bridge locations and heights. That is what I am trying to acheive. I think the chart would be more of use to newcomers rather that people that have spent many years on the broads. Having said that, it could still be of interest to people who want an unclttered and boat specific view of the area when using their boats if the the right information is on it. At the end of the day I am not selling anything, I am offering it for free for anyone that is interested and that will help with feedback in making it better.

Version 2.9 on Android. Not tried it yet on the pc.

Many thanks. I actually have memory map installed so I didn't need the apk. The map works great.

Hi Grendel & Smoggy, Many thanks for your help. I will take a look at both.

Thanks for the info guys, I might check out the OS maps if they can be downloaded onto my tablet. Can you tell me if the boating information (facilities etc) is good or are they more for land based interest?

Just for clarification, although this is an offline chart, you can still use it to see where you are and follow your movement on the chart if your device has an integrated or connected GPS source (most android phones and tablets have gps built in). Being offline just means that once it is installed there is no need for an internet connection to use it.

I am returning to the Norfolk broads for a holiday in August after some 20 years or so. I live in Ireland where I create the charts for the Inland Waterways of Ireland that can be used in OpenCPN (laptop or Android) or Locus (android tablet/phone). There are also a couple of apps on IOS that can disply them. https://www.iwai.ie/charts/ Just for fun I thought I would create a chart of the Norfolk Broads for my holiday (minus the depth data) and I would appreciate some help from people in that area that could try out the chart and help with information that would be useful to add or correct it. Anyone interested in helping me can send me their email address and I will send back a link to download the chart (currently around 64MB) best regards, Brian.

The anchor is absolutely required to hold the boat. The weight of the anchor chain does not hold the boat - the weight of the chain (if you have sufficient scope out) ensures that the anchor is pulled into the sea bed rather than upwards so that it can dig in. Rope is lighter than chain and that is why it requires a greater scope to achieve the same effect. I would be very surprised if a boat could be held in place simply by a length of chain on the sea bed unless it was so heavy/long that you would not be able to store it aboard. Chain will sink quite happily without an anchor. When I anchor, after letting out the correct scope, I always reverse the boat and the chain will pull back until the anchor digs in.

I thought I would just revisit the stretch below Lough Derg to Limerick before continuing up the Shannon as I missed an interesting fact. From the following chart sample you can see that you do not actually navigate down the Shannon to get to Limerick – You use the waterway that was created for the power station – Namely the Headrace and Tailrace. The headrace must be one of the most boring sections of the system over here – man made, concrete lined with no visibility over much of the landscape. The Tailrace is, however, a much nicer stretch. We now enter the River Shannon at Portumna and make our way to Athlone. The lower Shannon is rather bland in places as it is a remarkably flat area. There is only one lock about a third of the way up with a second at Athlone. It does go through a few interesting towns along the way though... Victoria Lock on a busy day... Banagher is a popular hire boat location and although the town is a little quiet these days there are a good range of shops for provisions. A little further north you will come across the entrance to the Grand Canal – which you can navigate to Dublin via if your vessel is suitable for the route. With shallow areas and low bridges it is not suited to my boat but I can get through the first couple of locks to Shannon Harbour. Just before Shannon Bridge there is the entrance to the River Suck that will take you to Ballinasloe. This river is quite a pretty diversion to a good sized town. It goes under a railway bridge that was raised by a few feet to make the river navigable to a bigger range of boats. Back to the Shannon and next is Shannon Bridge. A small quiet town but a nice stop over that makes a nice alternative to Banagher if you want to stop over at different locations going north and south along the river. Another popular place to stop is Clonmacnoise. Here you need to be self sufficient as there are no facilities but there is “An Early Christian site founded by St. Ciarán in the mid-6th century on the eastern bank of the River Shannon. The site includes the ruins of a cathedral, seven churches (10th -13th century), two round towers, three high crosses and the largest collection of Early Christian grave slabs in Western Europe. The original high crosses and a selection of grave slabs are on display in the visitor centre.” – see (http://www.heritageireland.ie/en/midlandseastcoast/clonmacnoise/) A little further north and we are in Athlone. This is the one and only place I pay for an overnight mooring because it has a gated marina with good access to the shops and attractions. There are also free bank side moorings in places but I prefer the security and slightly more quiet location of the council run marina in a big town/city.

I'm with Alan, One of the draws for me moving to Ireland was their distinct "disregard" for red tape and over the top political correctness. I'm all for people treating each other with respect and kindness but I sometimes wonder if legislation goes too far. It's a shame that people are restricted by laws that are put in place to try and protect others from people that probably ignore the laws anyway! I choose to watch Jeremy Clarkson because I find him humorous and straight talking. When he occasionally says or does something that I disagree with then I just switch him off. Brian.

OK - now for part 2 - Lough Derg Lough Derg is the second biggest lake in Ireland with maximum dimensions of 38.6km in length by 12.9km wide (24 by 8 miles). The maximum depth is around 39m (130 feet). It is big enough that you have to keep an eye on weather conditions and wind direction - particularly in small boats or those less able to deal with large waves. A friend captured this of me in a force 8 - in an area that was somewhat sheltered! I normally draw the line at a force 6 unless I am out and need to get home. Fortunately we get some good days too My home berth is in Killaloe at the southern end of the lake - just a few minutes from home. There are no speed limits except for areas around harbours, bridges and very narrow stretches of rivers so it gives you the chance to blow out the cobwebs if there are no other boats around. - You do need to keep a keen eye open for fishermen in open boats. The castle in the background is on an island so only accessible by boat, but fully restored and open to the public by appointment. Most harbours are well appointed with floating pontoons, water and power. Dromaan is one of the quieter harbours - with only water available and no pubs in close proximity so you need to be self sufficient - However it is a useful bolt hole in bad weather as it is always protected - unlike some harbours. Looking out of the harbour you can see the man made breakwater that makes the harbour so safe - originally it was like a funnel that made it very dangerous in a south easterly wind. There are a few river sections and plenty of places to drop your anchor if you prefer an isolated time - but mostly off the marked navigation so you need to be sure where you are going. This is the entrance to one of the larger rivers (Scarriff River) that is on the marked navigation. Navigation is not for the faint hearted - there are many dangers on Lough Derg and few navigation markers - You need to study the maps and keep note of where you are until you are familiar with the lake. One notorious area is "Middle Ground" - complicated by the fact that the lake goes upstream in both East and West directions from the centre (see red arrows). Note that at the bottom only the narrow channel to the left of Scilly Island is marked but you can navigate perfectly safely with more space to the right of the island where the blue arrow is but there are no navigation markers that side. The green arrow indicates an issue for people unfamiliar with the lake - when travelling from the West you are initially travelling downstream, but in the middle you switch to going upstream and the navigation marks swap sides! Not sure I attached the pictures properly so apologies if they can not be seen at full size. regards, Brian.

Hi w-album - I would love to see the images you have from 1965 - good or bad they would be very interesting - and I would endeavour to see if I can show you updated images of the same areas.

Close Iain, but no banana The Arran Islands (Inis Mor, Inis Meain and Inis Oirr) are off the coast of Galway - Arranmore Island is in Donegal. http://www.visitaranislands.com/

Hi Geoff & Wendy, There are strong currents on the river sections in times after heavy and prolonged rainfall (contrary to popular belief it doesn't always rain here) but the Loughs are so vast that a slight breeze will have more impact if you are drifting than the flow. In the Video of the trip to limerick we started with a single turbine running but they had switched on a second by the time we got into limerick so the flow was picking up - and you can see why navigating the narrow or angled bridges become difficult - much as you can experience on a dropping tide in Norfolk. Brian