sailorob

Thanks from Rob to Smoggy and Griff.

To 'FreedomBoatingHols' ; if it's not a nuisance, could you post a description of the requirements for a gas locker, or a link to them please ? To 'BroadAmbition', Griff ; is that fiver-refill which you mentioned strictly friend-to-friend, or could you email me a way to contact the supplier (discretely !) ?

Hi Everyone. New to the Broads in a boat which has a CampinGaz '3kg' (actually less) blue 907 cylinder only ; their refill prices used to be reasonable but are now insane, so I want to switch to something cheaper. Can anyone tell me the least expensive (I've given up hoping for 'cheapest' !) gas bottles to refill, small enough to fit into a sailing boat's stern locker, so that I can start with something which won't worry me every time I want to cook anything ! ? I've seen ways described online to refill the 907, but given the high price of refilling even the bigger bottles now, I doubt that it's worth the trouble and risk for the small saving involved. I'd be grateful for any comments and advice. Rob

Grendel, thanks for that. Having been reading a lot about sailing on the Broads, I was hoping for the advantage of the mast's height which you've mentioned. There has to be some benefit . . . ! But being rusty after a longish gap in my lifetime's sailing, I shall probably lose that advantage at first because I'll be playing chicken and feeling my way into this new-to-me boat with a couple of reefs down, shaking them out as my confidence returns. I'm not a racing sailor, to me racing in sailing is similar to the famous saying that a game of golf merely spoils a good country walk ! Oh well, to each his own. The MGC27 is (it seems) renowned for its speed, which to me just equates to nice handling and a responsive boat. The speed itself doesn't bother me, but I'm sure that'll change after I've spent too many windless afternoons waggling the tiller trying to 'scull' home ! Anyway, I don't INTEND ever to be in a hurry, I want a peaceful life. H'm, here's an anecdote which may amuse you ; sitting at our yacht club bar one Sunday evening may years ago, after having annoyed the one-tonners by weathering and head-reaching (rather ill-manneredly) through their racing fleet in a thirty foot Van de Stadt cruiser ; one of their skippers came over and asked (rather sourly) why we didn't join the races officially ? I said "no thanks, apologies, but we never race". He said "So you never find yourself sailing in the same direction as another boat near you ? . . " Point taken, it's sometimes difficult to resist the urge to twitch things a bit in those circumstances ! Your remark about the wider rivers in the south is also very encouraging, thanks again.

Thanks a lot, everybody, what a helpful bunch you are. I noticed a few questions, so for clarity : My boat is an MGC27 with the self-tacking headsail (she has a normal genny too but that's for sea sailing), I foresaw the problem of tacking single-handed along a fairly narrow river ! They are reputed to tack (and sail) like witches, I'm looking forward to that ! Believe it or not (long story, won't bore you here but happy to send an email to enquirers !) I've not yet sailed the boat and have only seen her in photos ! Yes, I know ! The fin swings up under the keel, that's what gives the slightly-over-three feet draught. So all the weight is still outside under the hull. I shall very tentatively see what happens when I try her with two slabs down and the fin up, and if she feels as if she's about to fall over I shall chicken out VERY quickly and drop the fin ! Thanks to those who sent me the links to the BA depths maps (not really charts ?) which are very useful, I've downloaded the lot and converted them from .pdf's to .jpg's for easier sliding between them on my computer screen. I hope and trust that they're on the pessimistic side, and they do say their depths are at Mean Low Water so there's hope for my <6ft draught with fin down. Sad about shallow Rockland and Bargate (Surlingham) though, I'd like to overnight there sometimes. Maybe I'll let the fin do the soundings, I haven't much faith in the depth sounder over soft mud. I believe that the fin swings up when grounding, so the stodgy tiller should give due warning that it's time to go somewhere else ! Deep fin = higher pointing and better tacking ; can't have everything. The mast is a lofty (for the loa) 38ft tall which, plus the 5ft of height from water to step, gives an air draught of about 42'. That's the boat's only feature which isn't Broads friendly. But it really makes little difference, once you have a mast you have to lower it for the bridges whatever its height. Would have been nice to be able to slip under Postwick, though. I've designed a fairly simple deck-mounting collapsible sheerlegs which should enable me to deal with lowering the pole singlehanded (VERY carefully and slowly, but who's in a hurry ? Bring your beers and come and watch/laugh, I don't mind !). Sure, I'm nervous ! However, being stuck in france due to Covid, I'll only have half of the summer for sailing and I'm not going to waste it on boatbuilding. She's in a marina at Brundall, so I'll be satisfied with toddling up and down the Yare until next year. If 'They' manage to fix the Haven and Mutford bridges, I'd be able to 'go round outside' and explore the Waveney too, but of course all the 'proper Broads' are 'up north' ; pleasures to come next year, when I should be able to drop the pole and sneak under bridges at low tide. Anyway, they tell me it's more peaceful 'down south'. As for the cost of pumping-out ; well, there are other ways involving plastic bags to avoid pumping a loo, and as I'll be on my own I can put up with them. I'll find the cheapest, become a 'regular', and pay up when I must. Well, that's the theory ; I've lived in some primitive parts of the world ! Reasonable conduct, respect for others and the waterways, and general discretion seems to be the way on the Broads, as it is everywhere else. Thanks again everyone, looking forward to 'bumping into' some of you ! Rob.

Hi everybody. I have an 8 metre sailing boat with a lifting fin, which I hope to sail on the Broads this summer. She draws just under six feet with the fin down, a little over three feet with it up. The only info I've found so far about water depths relates to 'chart datum'. I know that the Broads waterways are tidal. My questions are : Can anyone give me a rough practical guide to what water depths I can expect to find at representative locations along the main three rivers (Bure, Yare, Waveney), and in Broads on or by these rivers ? I don't expect a hydrographic survey ( ! ) just a general practical guide. What tidal ranges (springs and neaps) can I expect on each river both near the sea and as far upstream as is navigable ? I realise that this may be asking a lot, but advice from people with first hand experience would be very gratefully received. And finally . . . how much should I expect to pay to have a holding tank pumped out ? Thanks ! Rob.