chrisdobson45

I've used these people twice, great service and reasonable cost. You'll need to have the turbo removed from the engine and taken to them (I used a courier). They aren't local to the Broads but take in work from all over the UK. https://www.midlandturbo.com/

I’ve just found an album of my late father’s photographs of the Broads, taken in the early 1950’s before he married my (not at the time) mother. I’ll scan and post some more images when I’m able. Sent from my iPhone using Norfolk Broads Network

Is this what used to be Pearson's boatyard? If so, my affair with the Broads started here....

I tried booking a week in early August to tack onto a week previously booked staying on the North Norfolk coast. To be honest there wasn't much of a choice available, starting in Wroxham, and being flexible with our start date (either Friday or Saturday). Brooms had something, but didn't really want Brundall as a start and didn't fancy waving goodbye to the thick end of £1600... We ended up with a second week inland near Holt and a promise of a day boat for the wife...

There's the solution, turned a potential issue into an opportunity!!

This was one of my favourite locations on the Broads as a kid, the shop sold just about everything a 10 year old would want. When I was much older my family hired a boat and my sister's fiancé came with us (he later was stupid enough to marry her). He had moored at the Bridge Inn overnight and decided that once cast off we would go under the bridge and moor up at the shop to get a morning paper. We had hired a dinghy and my sisters fiancé (we'll call him Gavin as that was his name) decided he'd row across the river to us. We duly set off and moored up at the shop, bought a newspaper and some other bits and pieces, and waited for Gavin... 10 minutes later and no sign of him, another 10 minutes and my sister was starting to get concerned so we headed downstream to find him. Surprising how far down the river the current had taken him, he was down near Stokesby by the time we caught him up...

About 30 years ago my wife (at the time) and friends were visiting Oulton Broad one summer Sunday. We came across a family stood on the quay at the Yacht Station in some distress. Their little boy (about seven years old) had been feeding ducks with his sister and had lost his new glasses into the water. He'd only had them a week and wasn't used to them. They had simply slipped off his nose. Shoes, socks and jeans off, into the water, didn't realise it was so deep and cold!! About 10 minutes of diving in the filthy water with just about zero visibility returned a couple of cans, a spanner, several stones and finally a pair of blue NHS specs, none the worse for their dunking. By way of thanks we were treated to a pot of tea at the café on the corner of Bridge Road and the car park behind the Yacht Station (now closed).

I very nearly booked the last remaining unit for a week at the beginning of August (Friday 2nd August) over the weekend but wasn't able to convince the wife that she'd be content to sit in the "dog run" at the front. Instead I opted for a cottage in a village a few miles south of Holt (used to live there so know it well)….

I've not played church & pub cricket for about 40 years, memories of me and my dad...

A business meeting in Lowestoft wouldn’t be complete without a dash to Oulton Broad for fish n chips before a dash back to London Sent from my iPhone using Norfolk Broads Network

Here’s Brinks Royale 3 at Stalham Staithe

We took Brinks Royal 3 under Ludham Bridge in July 2017, gauge said 8ft 6”, boat’s air draft was 8ft 6” and we cautiously sailed through with about 6” to spare. When we returned under the bridge we had a Go-Pro attached to the cockpit roof handrail, we made it through, the Go-Pro wasn’t so lucky, it got cleaved off the base of the mount. The Go-Pro stood about 4” above the handrail and there must have been about 2” less than we needed. Lovely boats, did everything we needed it to do.

What about Bishops Stortford FC?? Is that close enough to Sawbridgeworth??

...speaking to our usual abnormal load haulier this morning about one of our babies being moved from Peterborough in May it was stated that there are many bridges that have "issues" whereby the stated bridge clearances are a lot less in reality. This particular piece of equipment is about 4.2m high on the trailer so a bit of a beast to move...

Only in very special circumstances are overbridges physically measured prior to an abnormal / oversize load being moved. The route will be dictated, adopting data provided by a number of statutory authorities. As previously mentioned by Paul above, resurfacing works can and have had detrimental effects on clearances (a haulier engaged by my employer managed to get a large crawler crane stuck fast under a bridge approaching a site in the West Country some years ago, the road had been planed and surfaced, reducing clearance by 120mm). Last year we struck an overhanging road sign twice with a large piece of construction equipment in London, once going into site and again leaving the site six months later (the sign having been replaced exactly as it was after we demolished it...)

Davydine's post rolled back the years to July 1987 and a holiday on the Broads after graduating before six of us (three couples) went our separate ways. We booked a six berth centre cockpit cruiser from Aston in Beccles. I had been on the Broads about a dozen times with my parents prior to then so I was put in charge... I was allowed to borrow my dad's car (Volvo 340GL in metallic brown) for the journey down from Nottingham, me, the girlfriend and a car full of her luggage, despite warnings of lack of storage. We successfully arrived in Beccles after five fraught hours on the road, the others in the party having taken the train to Norwich and then Beccles. The first problem was that the boat had a twin cabin and a double cabin, the second double being a converted sofa in the centre cockpit / lounge. We drew lots, I ended up with the fore twin cabin, not the worst place to be... Guess what? about 75% of the clothes that my girlfriend brought with her stayed in the car. We had a week of glorious weather, however, the couple who slept in the lounge didn't get up until late so we missed every early morning that week. The boat was well past its prime, however, it was cheap. We didn't hit anything or break anything. We took it through Wroxham Bridge without a pilot and managed to see most of everywhere. Memories are like old Polaroid photo's, somewhat faded around the edges but reflective of a gentler time...

Pearson Marine, Brister Craft, Aston Boats & Harvey Eastwood were yards my family hired boats from in the 1970's & 1980's, now all long gone....

Was it this? https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/environment/anglian-water-plans-new-pipeline-norwich-to-ludham-1-5985034

Airdraft of 8'6" would make Ludham Bridge possible (we did Ludham with Brinks Royale 3 two years ago and she was marked as this airdraft, and there was about 4" to spare under the bridge). Lovely boat, Birchwood's were made locally to home, so a fondness remains. The factory is still there in Huthwaite, off Commonside, now semi derelict after use as an indoor carting track.

When we first went on the Broads as a family in the mid 1970's my mother slept in a life jacket for the first three nights. Crossing Breydon was an adventure and we had a couple of rough passages, a memorable one in a Brister Craft Broom 30 (remember the bright yellow decks and upper works?) when a galley cupboard door burst open and spewed the contents all over the floor, breaking most of the plates, cups and saucers. A little shop in Oulton Broad sold the exact ones and replacements were purchased... My sister was very, very sick, good times....

...and here is is, handsome boy... Sent from my iPhone using Norfolk Broads Network

eight from eight....

We moored at Norwich yacht station overnight a couple of years ago, near the bus stop on Riverside Road. Very, err, educational, still mentally scarred by what was overheard being discussed by the good people of Norwich when waiting the arrival of the next bus... Sent from my iPhone using Norfolk Broads Network

We have been a few times since July 2017, once for an early supper during a stupid 240 mile round trip. Always found the staff pleasant and helpful and the food to be great. We’re also fond of the White Horse as well (where our lab, Jasper, was treated like royalty) Sent from my iPhone using Norfolk Broads Network