SwanR

A good read, thank you Simon for sharing the link. "Following quality control action points taken ..." I wonder if that includes taking note of all feedback from their hirers and working on any issues that have been reported. I'm sure there must be many minor things that can't be fitted into a turnaround day and are considered through the closed season. And of course they have their self catering properties as well. A busy time then.

I was taking a look around online a few days ago comparing prices for later in the year on the off chance that we want to get away. The conclusion that I came to was that it's hard to beat Richardson's if price is your main criteria. If I could afford it then I would be straight back to Ferry Marina as I like their boats and their customer service but I would like to try one of their newer boats so may have to save a bit harder for that. Howard speaks very highly of Bridgecraft - they don't have a boat with the sleeping arrangements that we want but if they did I would definitely be giving them a try.

There was a private craft next to us on one of the nights when we moored at Ferry Marina as well. It might technically be a boatyard but when you're able to get onto the moorings on the river frontage it's a great place to be.

Agree with you Hylander. The yard staff couldn't have been clearer and were very polite to the other hirers, even helping them moor up and going out of their way to be accommodating. As far as I know you don't have to pay anything either if you hook up to their electric. Great yard and my first choice to go back to at some point.

I believe that the Pru and Tim canal journey on the Broads is also repeated next Saturday evening at 7pm on Channel 4 if anyone missed it first time round or would like another look.

Happy Birthday Grace. Sounds like it was a lovely family time. Hope it is a birthday weekend and you can put your feet up today and let everyone take care of you.

When we hired from them last year Ferry Marina were very accommodating to boats from other yards. They allowed them to moor overnight but asked them to be away by 8am ready for their own boats to return. Needless to say, two out of three of the boats we saw there, didn't do as asked and were still moored gone 8 o'clock when Ferry's own boats were looking for somewhere to go. They allow you to hook up to their electric overnight but did remove the water hose.

Yes there are opening windows and sliding roofs to be used when the weather allows. But think about the logistics here. When you're at the helm on the left you can't do other than look over your shoulder. So you can see all round the front area but you can't see down the outside of the back half of the right hand side of the boat. The walls and doors between you and the bathroom and the rear cabin form a blind spot for whoever is at the helm. Boats coming down the middle of the river to overtake you are where you expect them to be and you can see them fine. But there's little chance of you seeing a small sailing boat that risks coming fast up the inside by the bank with no warning. I don't know how else to explain it really.

That is true but all they do is attract a lot of negative comments when they advertise a service as a great product but customers are facing a lot of service disruption. A little counter productive I would have thought.

I was amazed when I came home from work one day and saw how much this thread had grown - clearly an issue that has sparked much debate. Robin's post is very useful in putting some context on this. And if it all started with a promotional video that sneaked into our timelines on Facebook, as these sponsored adverts often do, then that is part of a growing trend that doesn't always work how the company intended. I am a little surprised that people can comment on such posts on Facebook, which are adverts. But that's how it is. Greater Anglia are forever shooting themselves in the foot by posting about offers and value for trains into London ... when the truth is that we have so much engineering work and rail replacement at weekends that it's a joke ... and that's what the comments mostly say!

I understand what you're saying and we are always careful - whichever one of us isn't at the helm helps to keep a lookout for the other, especially as to what may be behind us in a forward steer boat. But you don't have all round visibility from the helm, it's simply not possible, and there are a lot of bends on the Chet. With a very long blind spot to starboard it's a bit like a cyclist coming up the inside of a lorry - a sailing boat doesn't make any noise and if they're not tacking but coming from behind you in a straight line then you're not going to hear them either!

I had a very near miss on the Chet two or three years ago. There I was at the helm of a forward steer cruiser probably about halfway down towards Loddon when a sailie decided to overtake me on my starboard side. He came whizzing up the inside of my boat, totally out of my line of sight, and given how many bends there are I had no idea he was there. Hubby called out a warning which was the only thing that saved me from moving over towards the bank and colliding with him. I was not impressed ... and it's behaviour like that which can give a whole group of people a bad name. In my view it was completely reckless as he wasn't hanging around - I had good visibility down the port side of the boat, around the front and alongside the helm to starboard ... but not further back down the starboard side so no way of knowing he was there.

Welcome along ... when my children were small we could take them out of school for up to two weeks each year if you got written permission, which was not a problem. The current rules must be making it hard for parents to afford holidays now. Took our children on a hire boat when they were about 8 or 9. I think they enjoyed it but they don't show any signs of wanting to join us again now that we have rediscovered the Broads over the last few years. Maybe one day ...!

Many thanks for your write-up Robin and all the wonderful photos. I look forward to continuing to follow your adventures this year ... whichever boat they are on! Happy New Year to yourself and Shiela.

Very interesting video. Thanks for sharing it. Great assortment of boats. I think you're right about Easter - looked like an Easter egg on the breakfast table and also the bishop preaching at Ranworth? Lovely way to start the day.

I will refrain from posting any Christmas emoticons given that there seems to be some debate as to whether 12th night is really 5th or 6th January and therefore whether it is strictly still the right side of the deadline!

Oh yes, we have Yammer as well ... but it hasn't really taken off and I don't think anyone much is using it, certainly not in the part of the company where I work.

Where I work we have to do online training courses that take about 45 to 60 minutes with a test at the end that you have to pass and yes, one of them is social media!

Oh .. and just to add, someone mentioned the "like" tally. Have you never checked your profile here to see when you last won the day by having the most likes? I was victorious on the 3rd January and before that I think it was last October!!

That video is hilarious - I even thought about sharing it on Facebook! Seriously I think you can be selective about what you do on social media ... keep the real definition of the word "friend" rather than linking oneself to someone else's third cousin removed who you've never met and never will and don't care about. If I didn't have my account I wouldn't be in touch with my family in America ... and yes, I do think that's a sad reflection of today's world. As for NBN ... I have use for both the forum here and Facebook group. They serve different purposes for me ... the only problem is that there are quite a number of people who I really can't tell on Facebook who they might be within the group here, because here we have our usernames and on Facebook people mostly have their real names. The group for owners on our caravan site is useful because we can keep track of what's going on while we're not there. Although there are some people who do nothing but moan about everything. And as for the local community hub .. as someone else said, why don't they all just Google things rather than relying on someone else to sort their lives out for them?!

Interesting topic even though I don't own a boat but have considered it a number of times. We would have been the kind of owners who treat it like a car and give it to a boatyard once a year while hoping that breakdown insurance would have kept us covered while out and about. Can it work like that if you really don't want to do any of the maintenance oneselves?

Oh dear ... I remembered a day too late!! I can't even blame Eastenders as it wasn't on last night ... substituted by some programme with men kicking a ball around a field!! *Note to self* Must try harder. :)

Now all I need to do is to resolve to lose that stone!! :)

I would be here forever making reply to so many of the posts above. Let's just say that chocolate and eating too many sweet things is something that I am always struggling with ... the subsidised vending machine in the staff room at work doesn't help. I have to walk past it to get to the coffee!! I gave up the gym a couple of years ago after having been regularly for about 15 years so perhaps it's time I went back ... except that after a long day at work I really don't have the energy or inclination. I thought that maybe I would substitute proper walking instead ... but it didn't really happen last year. The problem is that unless one is going to walk the streets (!!) you have to drive somewhere first and then walk in a circle back to the car! Maybe I should just resolve to buy more shoes and handbags ... I think Grace would approve of that one.

Welcome along! It is so interesting to see what everyone is up to, owners and hirers alike. So I will look forward to reading how 2018 works out for you.