Musicman

Thank you, John and Mary-Jane Polly, it was lovely to see your family again, and to meet you and sail alongside. Brilliant looks a lovely boat and you sail her very well. See you again, I hope. Myer

Thanks everyone. I've had a great week and the weather's been better than the BBC threatened. Met some lovely new people and even bumped into some old friends on the river. Most rental motor boaters seem more considerate this year. If I held you up on the Bure today round the South Walsham Marshes I do apologise but the wind, tide and bend of the river made it very hard to make safe progress and safely direct the cruisers bearing down on me from both directions. Most private boat owners were excellent. It's not hard to pass a sailing boat safely. I hope it won't be presumptuous of me to post my tips in another thread. That's all for now. Back home tomorrow. Hope to be back next year as usual. I'll keep up to date via the forum. Safe boating Myer

Thanks everyone. It seems almost everyone reads this forum as almost everyone has waved at me! Some private owners avoid eye contact but I can't guess who they will be. I'm a motorcyclist as well and there's a similar etiquette among most riders to nod if it's safe to do so. Crossing Hickling Broad was fun today as there three races that I saw going on simultaneously, including one that was at right angles to the channel! It was like a cycle race going across a main road with no traffic lights. Of course, we all followed rules of the water and kept an eye out for each other. I slowed down and waited for a safe gap to cross the fleet as did the large motorboats but a few of the little day boats seemed a bit spooked! I'm planning to go through Potter Heigham bridge in the next day or two so maybe I'll see more of you further West. I would encourage you to try sailing if you have never done so. There used to be taster sessions on various Broads or supplied by some boatyards. Happy boating Myer

Hello from Surrey Glad to be on board this very friendly and informative forum. First motored on the Broads in the mid 80s with my wife. We also took a canal narrowboat from Guildford down the River Wey. We turned left onto the Thames and went up to Marlow. (Beautiful, come down and try it for a change. The locks are fun too). Later, after I passed my dinghy sailing qualifications in Southampton, i came back back to the Broads to sail solo on "Jenny" from Martham Boatyard and have done this once or twice a year for the past 9 years. Earlier this year I persuaded my family to come with me for a few days sailing on “Coriander”. This was at the end of March and we had one good morning of sailing before the weather turned too wet and windy for my novices. I’m sailing solo on “Clipper” from Martham next week so I hope we all have good weather and fair winds. Give me a shout if you see me. There seems to be a bit of “them and us” on the rivers and the forum. I hope I do my bit to make peace between the two fleets by giving clear indications of my intentions and which side and when to pass me. I always try to wave a thank you if I’ve held you up, I’ll post some suggestions for motorboats (and other sailors) on another thread but may I make one suggestion here? Please be patient and pass behind my stern and not cross my bow, especially if the gap between my bow and the bank or moored boat is rapidly diminishing. Here’s wishing you all safe sailing and quiet moorings with friendly neighbours. All the best Myer