marshman

Good to see your learning how its done in Norfolk now you live here, Ian!!!!!!!!!

Seeing as they cannot even predict weather 4/5 days in advance, I think, Andrew, that long range forecasts are next to useless! They might of course be right, but it takes only a fraction of time to look elsewhere and see that different modelling produces an entirely different result!!

Vaughan - you would certainly notice a Norfolk Hawker!! They are pretty rare these days but are, on average, about twice the size of a dainty damselfly!! At rest damselflies fold their wings back along their body whilst dragonflies leave their much larger wings outstretched. A Norfolk Hawker is generally all brown and has a wingspan of around 10cm - however unless you look at one in detail there are other Hawkers it can be confused with. Dainty they are not though!

Seeing as though Griff thinks that what I said in one of my posts is a load of what does roses a lot of good, and he is entitled to do just that, perhaps I could elaborate just what I mean - and by the way I have no wish to stop anyone going up there, its just the mode of transport! And I don't think I am a Nimby either - by all means let people go and see what I have seen so perhaps they could appreciate all the more why that area has become so special to me and why it could be to them if they slowed down a bit to stop, look and above all enjoy, what it has to offer. Probably around ten years ago when I was younger, and when my son had the spare time so I could "borrow" him, we used to regularly hire one of Colin Buttifants boat with the objective of gently exploring that part of the world and my most special of areas, Meadow Dyke. Sailing Meadow Dyke so many times has left a unique and lasting impression of serenity and peace. One day we "moored" by the entrance to Horsey for a couple of hours and it was one of those warm, lazy days with just a gentle breeze from the SW leaving Horsey a virtual millpond and over that period we were privileged, and excited to see amongst other things ,and apart from the normal common old marsh harriers as ever, the following Cranes flying low overhead A Bittern A pair of otters close by Kingfisher(s) Swallowtail butterflies Norfolk Hawkers And a water vole playing nearby Nothing came past to disturb the peace and for me who has seen them all before, I agree nothing special - except that it was crammed into just 90 mins! Thats what has made that area so very very special and a place that people can go and see what a special attraction the Broads became to our forebears over 100 years ago when most of what I saw was the norm. I just don't believe that opening it up further to bigger boats accompanied by more people totally disinterested in the special magic would be a plus - as I said earlier you can still go and see what is to be seen already but use the means already available if you want to savour the uniqueness of the landscape and its inhabitants now only more rarely seen in the rest of the Broads. Well, thats my view!!!! And I know others think differently!!

Cannot be too hard in the general scheme of things, as you say, but I wouldn't mind betting that there would be a lot of objections! From a personal point of view, I think the Upper Thurne is a really special place and such action would totally destroy it - my guess is thankfully it just won't happen and it will remain a refuge of raw natural and original beauty, accessible to those who want to view it, but far from the maddening crowds!!

I am sure the Mayor will find something to tax to raise the money - how about the CO2 we breathe out? Thats not meant to be a political comment but the new ULEZ extension is nothing short of a con, especially when many of the airborne particles have now been proven to come from tyres!!! Sorry - more thread drift!!!!

Thread drift sorry! I remember vaguely sitting on the steps of another pub in Brundall , the White Horse was it? Top of Station Road?

I know exactly why - people no longer go out, let alone eat out!! When did anyone here last go to the cinema - to which the cry will go up "It's all a load of rubbish" - yup but we still went out and watched it!!! One can hardly call it expensive either!!! Covid has a lot to answer for and it continues to change habits and expectations in the pub trade - notice how menus have shrunk??? I was out last night in the city - although the pub was full earlier by around 10 it was nearly empty. Restaurants now open earlier - and close earlier! What is a young chap like me meant to do - blowed if I am staying in but I can hardly waste away my time listening to a band! There are very very few of them left either.

But you are ALL assuming that their customers will be just like you!!!! But they might not be!!! Whilst I take Vaughan's view, we are talking about todays customers, not those of 40 years ago, and tastes and expectations do change. Whilst I know what steak and kidney pud is, a pub today would only have limited sales I suspect. Andrew - do you like your chicken in a basket? Whilst I don't go to 'spoons that often, I would bet that at least half of those eating will be having burgers - you do have to cater for what you believe would sell!!

Jean - I appreciate your views on Warners, but what you cannot do with a Warners hotel is take it out into the middle of Barton of an evening, nudge up to the reeds and drop a mudweight and spend a blissful night to be woken by just the dawn chorus!!!!

In all the years I have been on the rivers, I cannot remember a time when I moored up on the Staithe - I have always mudweighted.

My boat in theory will transit Potter on a good day, but at 12' and a bit beam, it was never going to be a realistic prospect. I don't think either Potter or Wroxham are sinking but slowly and inexorably, water levels are rising - ask anyone who lives around the Norfolk coast and they would probably say the same - ok its not noticeable by just looking at the river inland from one year to the next but they keep raising the flood walls in GY harbour for some reason or another. Not sure why but there does seem to be more water the other side of the sand dunes than there used to be , for whatever reason!!

They just seem so determined to keep a low, or even almost non existent profile!!!!

It says a lot about the organisation that they have a section on Latest News on their own website yet don't consider their comments to be "News" - they may be surprised to know that not everyone in the world has a Facebook account! I would have thought it important enough to post it on their own website but perhaps they think people who don't use Facebook are just "little people" and not important!

I am not sure but I have a feeling that Ranworth Staithe is owned by the parish.

Actually, I suspect if your phone is a reasonably modern one, it is probably just as secure, if not more so ,than your desk top) Athough I do use my desktop for banking sometimes, I find the phone just as straightforward!!!

Doesn't your bank accept photos of cheques to be paid in?

Not even sure I have a cheque book these days - or a paying in book!!!!

According to "other sources" she appears to be over Cantley way and that is currently being checked out!

First port of call, so to speak, would be to talk to Broads Control, who inturn would talk to Broads Beat. The guys are still out patrolling but not very often!!!

My water filter has a stop valve before the actual filter and these days I always ensure that is left open - the only year I closed it, the frost blew it! That could have happened to yours - pleased its fixed!!! Not easy access under sinks on boats!

The trouble with waiting at the Yacht Station is that they now charge you - wasn't that long ago if you wanted to wait for the tide, it was free! You might as well just bang on and spend the money as diesel - it will catch up with you soon enough!

Whats also interesting is that they have discovered that a lot of the "emissions" actually come from car tyres, as the rubber, as it wears away, turns into microscopic bits that you then breathe in, which in turn, don't do your lungs a lot of good. Unsurprisingly its worst in town,, although is that a coincidence that that's where the pollution is at its worst?? Still I suppose if we went back to stone wheels, they would just give off dust and then that would kill you too! Why can they just not let us die of old age, and call it that?

So as you can see it all depends! Generally, if you can apply it to tides, a deep low over Scotland and a strong southerly or south westerly will tend to push the tide away from the bottom of the North Sea and I would guess thats whats happening. As to how much, well look out of a window! I remember the storm of 1987, you know the famous Michael Fish one, the tide never came in that day at all!!!!!

Although the Thickthorn changes and the proposed dual carriageways either side of the Southern Bypass have been allocated the money and have approval, it looks as though further delay will occur as the "Green Warriors" have got involved and are lodging judicial reviews. Someone somewhere will find that someone will have forgotten to put a comma in the right place, so all bets are off for the time being. Oh how these geeks love to waste time and money and more people have to die at these choke points - both bits need dualling so dangerous junctions are blocked off, but no, we have to waste more time and money whilst the Greens have their say - they have crowd funded the costs believe it or not, although I doubt those inconvenienced one way or another will have contributed.