Lulu

Bond Island is behind the chalets opposite the mushroom house. You can hire Bond Island. I believe it was once owned by Roger Moore. It has a crocodile in the garden. I had seen it on One Dan and His Boat vlog the other day so was curious to see it for myself.

Sunday 16th May We woke around 6.30 to glorious sunshine. I took Desmond for a walk, past the Bridge Inn and along Weavers Way. Ive never really walked much before in Norfolk and its so lovely seeing the rivers from another perspective. After breakfast we set off at 8.15 and decided on Potter as our destination, again with the hope of an electric post. As we were going up the Thurne, we passed Norfolk Lady again. Looks like we all have a similar routine of cruising times! We arrived at Potter and there was a nice space by one of the electric posts. There was a massive clump of reeds floating by the moorings which we later saw being towed away. Set off to go to Lathams and met Brundall Navy. Hope you can get Nipper through the bridge soon! Selsie went into Lathams for things we actually needed but they didnt have! I wanted a cake from Bridgestones but the queue was quite long and Desmond had been getting fed up with hanging around outside Lathams so we went back to the boat. We timed it well as we had had a tip off from a fellow NBN member (Boatyman) who was moored at Ranworth experiencing hail while we were in sunshine. 10 mins later, and it arrived at Potter. We couldn’t hear ourselves speak amongst the din. Later in the evening after a fair amount of rain, the weather cleared up and it was a lovely evening. I took Desmond for his evening walk and went in search of Bond Island. It had been a lovely relaxing day and certainly mixed weather! So good to be back.

Friday 14th May 2021 We both took half a day off work and arrived in the marina about 2.30 and our little crew member settled very quickly. It was so good to know we had the week ahead of us. We had been keeping an eye on the weather and were being quite flexible with our plans. We had a rough idea of where we wanted to go but unsure what day we would go home at this stage. Saturday 15th May We got up at 6.15. I took Desmond for a walk while Selsie got breakfast. We left the marina at 8.00. Desmond was nervy and paced around until he decided he was happier sitting high up in the helm and that became his spot when we were on the move. The engine lulled him to sleep and we could then relax. We passed Irstead which was free. We decided it was ridiculous to stop there so soon so carried on but oh it was so tempting! We intended to top up with water at Ludham but suddenly every boat seemed to be on the move at the same time after hardly seeing anything on the way. The boat we were behind suddenly changed their mind and reversed from under the bridge. We went along side a moored boat and hung about until all was clear. The weather was dull and spitting with rain and I didnt take any photos of the journey. We went past St Benets and work is progressing well. Each time we passed throughout the week, it was being worked on. We made the decision to go to Acle with the hope to hook up to electric. We do have heating on board but we wanted to be as comfortable as possible overnight especially as whippets are prone to feeling the cold. We waved at Norfolk Lady en route. It was a lovely cruise despite the weather. As we arrived at Acle we put Desmond in the saloon. This was to be the routine to keep him safe each time we left a mooring or moored up, much to his protests. There were quite a few boats there but we got our much wanted electric post with £3.60 left on it! After a while everyone left until we had the whole moorings to ourselves. This seemed to be a theme for the rest of the week.....was it something we said or did? I took Desmond for a walk on the Pedros side. I could already tell he was enjoying the new scenery. We spent the rest of the time watching the world go by, so happy we had loads of days left and not worrying about work.

Can’t think of a better way to spend a birthday onboard. Happy Birthday!

Yep, that was us and great to see you this morning too on our way up to Potter

I always thought it was Hob iss

When I lived at Raf Coltishall, we regularly fished at Belaugh, but never knew how to say it. Beelaa?

Lovely write up and photos Helen. Its got me even more eager to get back to the boat for our week soon

Certainly was the day and what a fantastic day it was. Even if the film missed the brief, it was an honour to be part of it. 😁 (never did receive my Oscar....)

Also with Boulters

Her steering is so very different to Luna’s thats for sure!

I love hearing about Water Rails adventures. Got such a soft spot for the old girl. Im fascinated how you manage the canopy on your own after myself and Ali taking it up and down crossing Oulton Broad numerous times one day last summer.

Absolutely agree. My parents hired a luxurious boat but mum couldn’t see out. If buying, go and view a wide range and don't make a snappy decision. We made the mistake twice and finally got it mostly right on the third purchase in a year. As has been said, there is always a compromise and i often wish we had stuck by our list of must haves. I want a boat that doesn't exist. Centre helm, stern access and a front well-deck still with a bow cabin!

Sunglasses and sun cream weather I see!

Just watching it now. Such a great YouTube channel Have a great day on the rivers :)

Definitely and hopefully it will be warmer at night. The plummeting temperatures each night recently, does make us prefer to be hooked up to electric. We arent really fair weather boaters but just hate being cold.

Friday 30th April to 2nd May 2021 This weekend was a trial run for Desmond to prepare for our week on the boat in May. He settled really quickly and sleeping arrangements were finally sorted when he gave up trying to get in my sleeping bag and decided his cave bed was ok after all. The plan for Saturday was to go early to Acle but the weather was all over the place with the heavy showers. Mid morning the sun cane out and we decided to go to Barton Broad then moor up at Paddy’s Lane. We put a plan in place that Desmond would always be locked in the saloon when we were either leaving a mooring or mooring up. This worked well. I took him for a lovely walk were he peed on every mole hill he could find. He finds the geese fascinating but once they hissed, he lost interest. We were tempted to stay there for the night but the cold temps forecast made us decide we would go back to the marina. We left this morning as we felt we had achieved a lot and didnt fancy being onboard with the rubbish weather due soon and too much to do at home. Just a few pics from a very successful weekend. There will be a proper log when we are away for a week and promise they wont be all of Desmond!

Welcome! We are at Broadsedge and if Marmalade is still in the same mooring, you are not too far away from us

Will Desmond be allowed in the gardens?

Think our first trip out with him next week will have to be to How Hill now!

We think our new crew member is going to take to boating life. He was a nervous wreck when we started the engine but very quickly settled down once it was running. We started it again a few times throughout the day and he was fine. We decided to stay in the marina and just get him used to getting on and off the boat, the general sights and sounds and moving around on board. He wasn't fussed about the geese thank goodness. We will probably go up next weekend and stay. He’s a tired boy now we are home. It’s been a busy day. Meet Desmond, our two year old whippet

Brilliant news!

Good luck with the move! Im so jealous. Our sale fell through and it all got too stressful with all the faffing so its on hold for a year or so. The good thing with the process is we were ruthless, got a skip and got rid of so much as we were moving into a smaller house. We also made use of Gumtree and sold a load of stuff which has paid for the boat’s electric bill, so the downside, we didn’t move but the upside we have loads more space! Keep us posted how it goes

The ensign was so faded it looked like we didn't care! There you go, a good excuse for a new one! Will post crew photo soon :)

29th March 2021 Well after much anxiety worrying about what we would find wrong when we got to the boat yesterday, the only thing was a lost NBN burgee that must have detached itself from the mast and a rather tattered bow rope. We cleaned the boat inside and out. Only one spot of mould in a cupboard and general dust. The dehumidifier had done a fantastic job. We put on the new ensign, swapped ropes around, and the engine started first turn. Good ole Perkins. Got to admit, we both got rather emotional. Yep we are soppy but this last lockdown has definitely been the worst for us and I think it was a mixture of relief and now good times ahead. I sat on the bow for a while in the marina in the glorious sun shine . It was such a good day. We had arrived at the marina around 7.30 and left at 11.00. We spent the rest of the day at home washing all the curtains, and other soft furnishings which are now ready to take back after the 12th April. Today our new four legged crew member arrives who we hope will love the boat.