SwanR

I agree completely with that. Reedham was my first lesson in reversing out of a mooring, a tale I have probably told before. But it was our first trip for many years and our first time on the southern Broads. I could not figure out how I was going to get away without hitting something as I was clearly going to go too fast with the tide to manoeuvre out in forward gear! A very helpful private boat owner saw I was struggling and called out to me from the quayside exactly what to do, how far back out into the river to go and when it was safe to now move forward. A very valuable lesson that I have never forgotten and have used many times.

Very enjoyable read and I think that most of us can imagine those kind of goings-on. We will always accept help to moor as there is only ever the two of us on board. And we have had our help refused as well, particularly at Ludham Bridge this year when the couple on board an old Rick's bathtub could not have been making much more of a mess of trying to get into the bank and secured. But I have to say that having taken out a day boat from the Waveney River Centre recently, they are so busy at handover time, with a queue of people all waiting to take over their boats, that instruction is probably minimal although in fairness being experienced we didn't need too much instruction. The boat itself was a nightmare to moor. Reedham is the limit of how far you are allowed to go in that direction - you're not allowed to cross the chain ferry.

Looks like I should put this in my calender.

Thanks for your reply Robin. That's really interesting. The first couple of videos which I did I put together in YouTube and used free tracks from their site. But since then all the music has been from my own collection as I like to put the video together in iMovie, export it to a file on my computer and then upload to YouTube. I like having a copy myself to keep. I try to check the copyright situation on YouTube but have found that sometimes my videos won't play on mobile devices. I do remember finding just once that my video had been muted because of copyright so deleted it, edited it, and uploaded it afresh.

Robin I am curious to know whether you already own the music you use or whether you buy tracks specially. Finding the right music usually takes me longer than editing my clips and photos!

I'll let you have that one Grace!

We're another couple that don't tend to listen to anything when we're on the Broads - very occasionally we might put the tv on for the news, or watch a DVD. And Radio 2 might come on for a short time first thing in the morning. But mostly we prefer the tranquility of the rivers themselves - the peace and quiet is part of the charm. As well as the chance to talk to each other and have a proper conversation. My music choices elsewhere are very wide and varied like so many other people. But I like things that I can sing along to and increasingly I find myself listening to new recordings of old songs from the 50s to the 70s. Have just treated ourselves to tickets to see The Overtones in concert in December.

We passed Cover Girl on the Waveney a couple of weeks ago. Looked far more like a private boat than a hire boat. I certainly wouldn't pay that kind of money for one week at any time of year.

Just go to Salhouse Broad. There were plenty of ducks there back in May. And yes, they almost came on board the boat!

Nothing on YouTube? Any CCTV? ... I think I forget about people who might be lurking with cameras when i'm actually doing something. Sounds quite scary really though.

I saw that as well. Amazing!

Welcome to the forum Ben. I haven't hired that particular boat, or one of that style. But I have hired from Barnes Brinkcraft a couple of times and haven't had any problems.

What a great introduction. You have definitely got the same bug that we all seem to be afflicted with round here. With such engaging writing I hope that you will share your holiday tales with us.

Welcome Les! I had only been on the Broads once back in the 90s until hubby and I made our return five years ago ... now we can't get up there enough. Be prepared to be equally hooked ... but also be prepared for it to be busy. Last September we were surprised just how busy it still was so preferred to leave our moorings early, probably between 8 and 8.30am, cruise for the morning while many boats are still moored up, then get our mooring by early afternoon possibly for the rest of the day. It's whatever works for you.

I get updates on them occasionally from their Facebook page. I just like to see what they are doing.

Thing is that I know that I can do it but having hubby there gives me confidence. So yes, if I left him behind I would probably have immense anxiety about getting him back. We come as a pair after all these years together.

Must give this a go. Thank you for the details on how to do this.

Enjoyed the video as always. I could well identify with how Shiela felt ... I'm usually at the helm when we arrive and when we depart the moorings. My biggest fear is leaving with hubby still on the bank!! So I do think that Shiela was very brave to let you stay on the bank Robin while filming her turning the boat. That's not happening in this house!! ;)

Hope you're feeling on the mend Marina. :)

The thing I just would like sailies to remember is that just because a boat has a motor it doesn't always mean that it's easy to control. Once you take the revs off to slow down or stop then you can be equally at the mercy of the wind and the tides and start to drift. In that situation where the yacht can easily turn a bit sooner do they actually have more control? I know they have right of way but all I ask is for a bit more thought and consideration when they can see that you're trying your best to keep over. Have to say that the people at Beccles yacht club were brilliant yesterday with safety boats out keeping the young sailors and other boats apart.

Best wishes to Marina. I hope she's recovering well.

We were out on a 21ft Pilot dayboat on the River Waveney today when we came up against a yacht tacking quite quickly. Our boat was tricky to control in the strong breeze close to Oulton Dyke and not that powerful. I was therefore struggling to find a gap to get past him and his intentions were very unclear. Being an experienced hirer I knew that he should have right of way but was astounded when he suddenly tacked back across again right in front of me. I had to do the equivalent of an emergency stop, throwing the boat quickly into reverse and almost being spun round by the wind and blown towards the reeds. I was completely unimpressed and the chap on the yacht didn't even acknowledge that I had taken action to avoid an otherwise almost certain collision. He just gave me a stare that seemed to indicate that he didn't think I had a clue.

Welcome to the forum. I'm sure that you will have a great holiday. If it's your first trip and if you only have a week then I would relax and stay north. Having a few ideas of where you want to go is good and then just see what each day brings. I used to try to plan a route but now just see how we feel every morning. There's plenty of holiday tales that will give you ideas of where folk go day to day. And the handy information tab at the top gives you useful documents like time and distance charts to work out how long it takes to get from place to place.

Enjoyed all the photos. Never tire of seeing what everyone has been up to and where they went. :)

I think all the older coloured boats give some character to the Broads. I wish that the yards could find a way to stop turning out nothing but white boats with their newer models. Everyone notes how smart Summercraft look in their traditional blue and yellow. I wonder what they would choose to do with a new boat.