SwanR

It sounds as if it would be interesting to see this ... but not so interesting to be stuck behind it!

Counting down to our time afloat so enjoying reading about your trip ... is it a bit chilly up there this week? April is quite an unpredictable month!

Very interesting to read through all the points on this thread. Lots of places for us to visit over time. We were going to come up to the caravan this weekend but ... there's a complete closure of part of the A12 here in Essex for bridge maintenance. So we decided against making the trip while we would have to divert around other local roads ... with everyone else!! I have my eyes on getting up to Oulton Broad on Sunday 14th May for the Dragon Boat Racing.

It was amazing hearing a cuckoo when we were moored at North Cove on the Waveney in June a couple of years ago. One of my favourite ever moorings.

Footie has been a very sad event in this house today. My hubby has supported Leyton Orient for 48 years only to see them relegated to non-league football next season ... that's if they even survive the next court hearing which could see them disappear completely. Staff at the club haven't been paid and it's a very sad state of affairs. I am sure that those of you who are true footie fans, loyal to your club, will understand how he feels. Apparently the Radio London commentator was in tears at the end of the match today.

Anyone else seen the new yurts sited at the Waveney River Centre? I've never been camping so I'm not entirely sure what I think of them ... and now we have the caravan I don't think that I will feel the need to give them a go! But it's an interesting option priced at £65 to £100 per night, bookable for any start day and any length of stay as far as I could see. https://www.waveneyrivercentre.co.uk/camping-pods#ud_id586

Enjoy your time afloat! You caught me out again Alan. Having mentioned soft drinks and a trip to Beccles I was waiting for you to get underway, thinking that's a lot of hours at the helm to do your shopping ... and then you had an early night!

Wonderful write-up of your day. Such contrasts between the early morning on the Ant and the later-in-the-day of Wroxham. I hadn't thought of Wroxham before in the way that you described, the contrasts of the many different craft and people, but you captured it perfectly. As for stern on mooring ... I'm sure we've all gone ever-so-slightly-too-fast on occasion and had the same experience as you. I'll never forget a picnic boat of giggling young ladies rocketing back towards Ranworth Island way too fast when we were there once!!

Maybe the chicken was in the wrong place ... that's not Great Yarmouth is it?! Looks like Acle to me!

Great read, looking forward to the rest of your tale ... there's only ever me and hubby on the boat which is why we like the reassurance of bow thrusters to give us a little more control. I steer and hubby does the ropes and shouts good clear directions to me ... job done!

Morning Eric! Always interested in hearing what is going in everyone's own world ... that's one of the best things about being online, you "talk" to people you would never meet in your everyday life. Hope the family are all well. After reading of predicted "hottest Easter ever" on trashy news websites, the reality would seem that they got it completely wrong or the warmer weather arrived a week early. We've had some bright sunny days in Essex but a chilly wind. Hoping to get to the caravan at the weekend ... perhaps it's the tallest wind turbine in the UK that is responsible for the east coast cooling sea breeze! (See video below if it works!) P1010205.MP4

Really enjoying this series Robin. And I liked the reflective filming you managed to do in the church. Very poignant. It was interesting to see Dilham - we've been to Wayford Bridge a couple of times but never attempted to go under the bridge and onto the last stretch of river. Well we're out on a forward steer cruiser in May and hoping to get through Wroxham Bridge and down to Coltishall. Maybe we will also manage to get up to this top stretch of the Ant as well with a low air draft.

Enjoyed your write up ... anyone travelling by train from London to Norwich will go past the end of my back garden ... if I'd known you were coming I might have put a flag out ... well probably not as there's rather a lot of trees and undergrowth to get through first but the thought was there. Mistley Place Park ... took my daughter there for one of her birthdays about 20 years ago. Dovercourt and Harwich is another favourite for a Sunday drive. Stayed at the Premier Inn opposite the station for a couple of nights and enjoyed seeing Norwich ourselves. So all in all that sounds like a good start to your holiday. Looking forward to reading the rest of your tale.

Welcome along Merlin.

Welcome along Brenda ... always nice to meet new members.

Always nice to have something to look forward to.

They just keep building ... everywhere. We don't ever go to Lakeside now as we prefer to go to Bluewater if we go anywhere outside of Chelmsford for shopping, which is rare as we have everything here especially with all the refurbishment and expansion the city centre has had over the last year.

Thank you so much for all the ideas. I will be sure to let you know what we find once we find it.

Thanks for the link Matt. Quo vadis I am eggspecting eggstrordinary eggspeditions.

Anything else going on please?

Anyone else got any ideas?

On the other hand of course there are those of us who come to the Broads ... because it is how it is, completely different to what we have all year round living in a city. That chance to escape, slow down and relax is what makes it draw us back to return time after time, year after year. Believe it or not there are those of us who don't want to moor near a pub, who just enjoy being on the boat in the middle of nowhere ... and if it's a modern boat well fitted out for two, a bit of luxury for a few days on which we choose to spend our very hard earned money then that's fine with me. Hands off!!

Welcome along! Essex person migrated from North London? Snap! And by the way fellow forumites ... I strongly object to Essex jokes and politely request that you refrain! They're completely not funny when you live here!

I'm not surprised given the current stance on taking children out of school. It must have created a number of pressure points in the holiday industry in general.

Thanks for that one Grace. That sounds like my kind of place and the Wayford Bridge Inn is one of our favourite places to eat out when we're around the Broads. Shopping and lunch combined.