Cheesey

I used to buy local when the fridges were rubbish but as things have improved i buy at supermarkets. The age old problem of stopping somewhere near a shop can't be guaranteed and a few times we have to fall back on tinned stuff.

Well I did write them down on the comments page at the end of holiday. Also I'm not an engineer, I'm the customer. I call it quality control. It takes minutes to flip switches and check operation. We use a check sheet at our work for each vehicle that goes out. But once again, not my problem. I watched a team work over a craft I returned at the end of a holiday earlier this year and asked me if there was any problems. Seemed to work for them.

Never mentioned boat yard as this is not a review. As these problems where minor irritants I felt it would hold up the holiday too much. Years ago we lost an inverter and replacing that cost us a day. Sorry about the spelling of place names as I am trying to pull them out of the air as I have no internet access when I write.

Day Three Got to love Beccles, but most especially the Cod Palace, (I think it's called) two thumbs, way up. Up and about early and enjoy a foggy sun rise to join a slow shuffle with other boaters toward the toilet block. Also join in moans of dismay as the block is still locked at eight in the morning. Back on boat, breakfast cooking (Egg and bacon sandwich. The galley department flat out) and gently cruising the upper reaches of the Waveney. Nothing to see but somehow cosy and friendly. Under swing bridges safe in the knowledge that I can fit under them – unlike my fellow hirer behind me who forgot about his screens. And on to the best magical trick the broads has to offer. The New Cut. A length of river that the end seems never to get any closer and then suddenly- bam – it's there. Love watching the strength of current around the swing bridge and not really caring because this small vessel has one hell of an engine. Used to like mooring at Reedham but what local shops and pubs they have has long since lost their charm. It's just not worth the aggro trying to squeeze in. But now I'm onto waters last explored a decade ago. The Chet can wait until April and I marvel at the chain ferry while all the time convinced that the chains are going to be caught in my propeller. I know I'm sad but the temple that is Chantley Sugar factory fascinates me and it calls like a lighthouse and I decide to stop there for the day. Small Rant Number One. Every one needs help sometimes, yes, even me. I don't rush to help people moor up or shout mooring instructions because sometimes this causes embarrassment or I don’t know what the helmsman intends to do. This was the latter. The tide was behind me as well as the wind. The boat was equipped with a centre cleat at the bow which was manned by my female crew. The plan was to kiss the bank with the bow, she steps off and wraps a turn or two around mooring post and the stern will gently come around with no fuss. I do it a lot with my rag and stick. Not a good idea for Mr hire helpful. He runs up shouting and waving his arms. Grabbing the mooring rope from the wife and shouting at me I've got to moor into the current and really messing every thing up by pushing the boat away from the bank. Now everyone is looking at me while Mr Hire Helpful goes on to lecture about mooring styles after I spend another five minutes re-mooring to his standards. Broads Observations. Chantley has a really nice staithe and even the factory seems to add to the peace. A good circular walk. Day Four. Up early to watch the fog burn off from the river while eating a breakfast that will make my arteries climb from my body. I have to admit that this boat is really something in the power department. Two meals and a night of TV and the batteries are only down to 90 percent. No gas all 240v. We noticed more boats coming from Norwich direction than going too so a little part of me is worried about the mooring situation as I know moorings on the southern waters are more spaced out than on the northern rivers. Passing Brundle, I eye up Brooms boatyard and spend my future lottery winnings on a few boats. I must admit that this bit of the upper Yare has got to be the most beautiful of the broads. Brammerton is fairly full, mostly with anglers but I've made my mind up it's Norwich yacht station or bust. Well, the pubs changed a bit and it feels very classy but less welcoming to me in my dress down boating cloths. I tip a nod to the sewer outflow as a mental note that I'm on the outskirts of life. Watch a rower glide through the black water of the outfall makes me wonder. Now rowers are using me as a pace maker and it's rather fun and I’m a bit envious of their fitness. Passing Freedom Boatyard, I hope to see them next year still open. Now big changes. Old decaying boats have lessened and new waterside homes arise and I make a note to explore Commissioners Cut next year. Finally we make Norwich Yacht Station for a flying visit. We wont stay overnight after a very noisy night last time and other horror stories. Re-stoked, re-watered and re-shopped, I decide to head back for some mad reason, to Chantley. This turned into a race with sunset which I won with an hour to spare. More to follow.

London Rascal you have nailed it. There is more of the story to come as fast as I can type but you have it right. Sitting back and believing all will always be well is a great British illness and may explain why I'm seeing a slow decline on the broads in general. If you don't keep moving they will paint over you as my dad used to say. I was so gutted that I stopped off on the way home at Brooms and booked a week in April so this Boatyard has lost that week and I'm going to book another at the end of year.

Oh hi, take a seat and we will start. Firstly, a little about us. We visit the Broads up to three times a year and we are an equal opportunities hirer. We own a boat so we know the boats sneaky habits of things dropping off at funny moments. We wont name the boatyard as this is not a revue, just observations. This time we decided to hire from this companies “Elite Fleet” and spoil ourselves. Day 1 So we arrive an hour early and pull up to the quay side fully aware that the yard states that the pick up time is two o’clock but most of our other hirers let us start a little early or at least unload our luggage. This time no dice as the lady behind the jump informs us the boat is not ready yet – this is odd because we are parked in front of it and no one has been on it and we can clearly see bedding etc laid out. A small operational lie I guess. Nor was it stated anywhere that they take your car away somewhere so that’s why I left the five litres of wine in the boot. But hey, latter inspection of the brochure says you get preferential parking. Anyway, we receive our goody bag of groceries and a nice bottle of carver due to us hiring an “Elite Fleet” boat and after a quick show and tell, we are off. For once the tides are working for us to cross to the southern rivers the next day so we decided to make for Acle to overnight. Irritating Problem Number One: We have on-board a depth finder ( most of the broads are not as shallow as you would think) with built in fish finder and a MPH gauge that just isn't working. No where is that rough and ready way of calculating speed by RPM written down so I use experience and keep the revs just under 2000. But this leads to.... Irritating Problem Number Two: The throttle wont stay at 2100 rpm. It keeps wanting to slide down to 1500. A bit of card in the gap cures this. So the wife unpacks, likes the separate shower and toilet ( no more wet feet ), the bed is good and hard and she likes the drawers and general space. Doesn’t like the small wardrobe. The fully electric kitchen is great and I do like the holding tank and water tank gauges. The whole boat is 240v and has a total of 3 alternators and shore power to keep those batteries topped up. We make Acle and moor up with ease thanks to the effective bow thruster. Irritating Problem Number Three: “I don't like that smell back there love” I go back and have a whiff and I recognise the smell as I work with things that use Hydraulic fluid. Smelling hot fluid I open the engine hatch and can see that the Hydraulic reservoir is well over filled and leaking down into the bilges. I just propped open the door a little to vent the smell and all was fine. This was a thing I did for the first two days. Broads Observations: Pleased to see how fast the regrowth on the newly modelled banks has grown. Sad to see “Private: No Mooring” has grown. Day Two. Up early to catch the tide and ran into... Irritating Problem Number Four: This boat comes with a screen demister. Well, this one don’t work. No great gust of hot air when button pushed. Nada. Nothing. We push on past a packed Stracey Mill and into the boring bits on the approach to GreatYarmouth. Keeping my eye on the depth gauge, I was pleased to note that the depth was really never less than five feet but it really shelved up against the grass bank. Always love going past the yacht station and I let the incoming tide push us up toward Beccles. Worried that Beccles maybe packed, the misses phones the station up and is told there is plenty of space and no need to book. So we turn up and for once my stern on mooring is spot on. There is only about ten spaces spare and no harbour master but a sign says he would be back at 4.30, so we watch a succession of boats turn up, fill with water, do a bit of shopping and leave without paying. Interestingly, two places was reserved and no boats showed. By the night there was only two spaces left. Still it was a hot day and this started... Irritating Problem Number Five. My arms bulged, Muscles ripped and would the slid open roof slide? Just. On closer inspection the roof had taken a massive hit just above the door. The glass fibre had split, the inner headlining had come lose and the front section had buckled making the roof section hard to slide. Well at least we could sit and watch the sunset but this takes us onto.... Irritating Problem Number Six.. Sadly the helm seat and the saloon seating has worn nearly flat. The saloon seating turns into a double bed and the seat back was busted to by some ham fisted boater. All this pales into nothing because at 10:30 pm the carbon monoxide alarm goes off. Up I get and vent the boat completely. Reset the alarm by waving it in the outside air, place it inside again and off it goes. Open roof, doors and the alarm resets. As far as I could hear, no one had any heating on but who knows? I was asleep. Could have been Hydrogen gas from the batteries but again, who knows. Broads Observations: Loving the southern broads. More to follow.

.....from my family. Why? Because I'm in the process of buying a sailing yacht and yet still hiring on the Broads this year and the next. I get, " why, you've got a boat!" And I reply, "Yes and you have a bed but you still pay out and sleep in another one somewhere else." I don't get invited to many BBQ's with humour like that. Still, I'm going to be one of those strange creatures that is part privateer and part hirer. A bit like a liberal voter.

Just to stir things up a bit but that conker story was in fact, just that. The truth was that the mess left behind needed extra work to tidy away so the school did not want to pay overtime so they banned it claiming H and S regs. Organised events however do need a level of protection. Back to topic, I think you got to admit to yourself that death creeps up to you in many forms and the death of that couple was a bit of a odd one and when you look at the chances of that happening.... Buy and fit an alarm why not? but don't leave common sense at home by trusting it all the time.

Could it also be that they thought they had to keep clear of the main channel looking at where they ran aground?

When I first visited the broads jumping from pub to pub was pretty much how my family did it. But the rise of technology, on board storage and I must say, a lack of mooring has started us cruising and surviving. We pack a lot of food now safe in the knowledge that the fridge will do its job. I know this sounds tight but a good meal plus drinks and you could drop a ton or more a night. Thats why the rage at Wroxham. It really only leaves Stalham as a main shopping point. Lathams is alright but it has its limit.

All the lost moorings in closed hire yards which generally, was near where you want to be.

Yes, I noticed an enormous difference after a 10 year break. Its a bit like Blackpool. You loose the families and become a party destination as the cost shared make it a cheap weekend. As to the speed issue, I maintain the diminishing mooring situation is feeding that background panic that your not going to get a mooring anywhere near where you want. Old ground I know but take a look at Wroxham. The so called capital of the broads is a nightmare to moor. This I know as a fact because we met a first time couple in May who was so disappointed that Horning and Wroxham was effectively wiped off the map for them and instead cruised around their home yard of stalham to resupply. They wont be coming back. I strongly believe that access is getting harder and less new comer friendly.

Hi all, I've noticed the nice shiny flood banks being rebuilt but would it be possible to create more wild moorings out of these? Often these front large dykes that would stop people wandering all over and just may relive the steadily disappearing moorings issue.

A lot of people use their cooker as a space heater and I know its speculation, but I've seen a lot people do this not realizing that the cooker without a lot of ventilation is a killer. Some hirers I've talked too prefer doing this as it's cheaper than using diesel.

May I humbly suggest The Cod Palace (I think) Beccles near the YS?

Sort of first and last stop for us. Due to late tides this year, I was surprised to see many running for Acle in rapidly dying light as I watched in near deserted silence. Kind have got the feeling many wont pay for overnight mooring and that may doom new owner.

Hi all The smallgate one, and if my arteries fur up a little it was worth it. Schoolboy error today. Tide tables studied and I thought I could leave any morning over the weekend but I never figured the sunrise time. So a cruise to reedham, a bit dead but more in holiday report later, then a push against the tide back over. Engine right up and pushed out of the way by a privateer but that can wait. Straceys mill now and a wonderful sunset again. Yours Cheesey and co

Hi all. Got to say it. You can stick wroxham. It's all about Beccles. What a place. Has space to moor and plenty of ways to spend your hard earned. And a great fish and chip shop. Last time I went to wroxham it was a major pain. And I'm on Broadway 4. Yours Cheesey

Most spectacular sunset at Burgh castle. The broads at its best.

Hi all, Well tomorrow , Cheese and the cheese-lets are going for a fortnight on Richardson's Broadsman evenly divided up between the north and south. A big thank you to the London Rascal for re-lighting the Broads fire again and his You Tube output that has done more than anything for tourism than any official effort. And to you fellow forum members, those who have entertained and informed, your efforts are highly welcomed. I consider this fair warning for any mooring blunders, reversing bloopers and general "what the hell" moments. Yours Cheesey

Yet, if it must rain. Best be on a boat!

Hmm, hard one this. Traditional usually means 1) How we always done it. 2) Old fanshioned 3) Can't afford to update so we will dig in. I'm guessing this conversation was the same when the steam engine was first placed aboard. I remember the hire catalogues of ten or more years ago when they had pages of sailing boats ready to be hired. Didn't see one now. Boating holidays to a certain degree are not the cheap option and to put up with last centuries technology just because that was the way, wont sell as many holidays as you would think. Personally, I've got a foot in both camps. I will be looking for shares in a boat on the broads so I wont mind about the latest farckles, but when I spend big dosh on a hire, I want some tech. I'm running away now.

All those rubbish windmills. So last century.

Mr Broadscot, You are what makes this forum what it is. Thank you. And I never noticed the section about hire boats.

Thanks, more to do with a baby bottle warmer but the girls will be happy. Alas, my hair has receded as my waistline proceed.