ranworthbreeze

Hi the same as most of the other posters I enjoy a glass of wine or a beer with my lunch especially on a hot day. Yes we do have them: I am not in favour of crews getting wasted on the Broads or any waterway for that matter it just causes ill feeling and at worst potential death to the crew or who they may encounter. After saying that the policing of any policy or law like this is very difficult to enforce. A Broads Authority Ranger or a Cost Guard Office could detain you until the police were called to breathalise you, on the Thames the river police are police officers so that would be a different case. In the article above:- "The Government takes alcohol abuse at sea very seriously," said Jim Fitzpatrick, a transport minister. So serious that most MP's are giving a spirit allowence of House of Commons branded whisky etc. I did a job for an MP in Doncaster a few years ago, his office had a wall of cupboards floor to ceiling with more whisky bottles than I have ever seen in my life. I am talking hundreds here and I have been associated with Brewery work for more years than I can remember. Goverments keep coming up with these knee jerk reactions/solutions when ever anything happens in the media and it is making this this once proud country more of a namby pamby state. Regards Alan

Hello Marina, If you are still around next week we are on the boat from Tuesday, I will also be fitting our NBN burgee. The last time we were on the boat at the end of May it rained all day. Regards Alan

Hi Mowjo, You do not know me very well, a blue dress indeed, have you no style? It would have to be green to match my eyes! Regards Alan

Hi Colin, There is nothing wrong with a narrowboat, any vessel be it on a river, canal, broad or on the sea is that skippers pride and joy. If we had been able to find a suitable share scheme on a narrowboat in 1999 with would not now have a share in Ranworth Breeze, we may also have been unfortunate enough to get caught up in the Challenger Syndicate scandal, sadly a few of the Broads Syndicate boats were effected by this in 2007. We did have a RCI swap holiday on a narrowboat that was cancelled (at very short notice) and a substitute boating holiday offered in the mid 2000's which effected over 650 RCI boating holidays. We still like the canals and will be going again in October. Regards Alan

Hi Alan, Our mast can be removed if required from its hinge and there is a waterproof 3 pin plug and deck socket to connect it into. It requires a 3 pin connect for the two lamps and uses a common ground. The seals on most of the navigation lights are not that great even at lamps costing £50-£70 so cleaning the internal glasses or plastic lenses is required also the lamp connections oxidise (one of the fibre glass cleaning pencils is good for cleaning the connections). Regards Alan

Hi Grace, We arrived back on Friday after a 7 and half hours journey (usually takes 5 hours with a stop) accidents and road works most of the way. Back in the day (over 40 years ago when the Motorway stopped at Bristol) our first visit to Cornwall took around 16 hours, we set off from our local at 10.30pm and arrived in Newquay in the late afternoon. If you want advice I can suggest some great places to stop at, Tan & I celebrated our 25th anniversary in Devon and spent out anniversary night on Burgh Island. A great but expensive location, but well worth the experience (I will add some pictures of us scrubbed up for the occasion) The is a B & B at Torcross where the front bedrooms are overlooking a small service road/prom and straight onto the pebbled beach (you could cast off into the sea from the bedroom windows) Tan loved it, we stayed for two nights and it was as cheap as chips. The pub just down from it (Start Bay Inn) is well know for all of its fish dishes, sadly because we had good weather this year we did not call in there and kept very local to Hope Cove and its surrounding beaches. Incidentally a number of the exterior shots on Poirot Series were shot in the South Hams at Salcombe, a apartment block was converted for one of the episodes just up the one way main street. The beach scene on Burgh Island was filmed on one of the Hope Cove beaches. In a weeks time we will be just getting back on the boat. You were being observed for most of the week early in the morning, I couldn't waste valuable beach and hot tub time Regards Alan

Hi Alan, You could put forward running lamp and anchor light on a dropdown mast mounted forward of your windscreen. Ours on Ranworth Breeze is bolted to our screen and goes through the bottom of our canopy. We just unbolt the mast from the screen and drop it down for the bridges (we tend to drop our canopy most of the time whilst cruising). Regards Alan

Hi Steve, I would moor up at Oulton or Beccles Yacht stations, that way your boat should be safe. Public transport might be an option, but being as your base is Womak Staithe I do not know how that ties in with regards to trains. Regards Alan

Come on girls; this is not a drooling blonds forum! Regards Alan

We used some of this for recovering our upper helm control panels. it made a very good job of them. As John says it may not be too good on an hull. Regards Alan

The issue with household bins is that there is not a national policy of what colour, what can also be put into the bins etc, also every region is different. In Sheffield we used to have Green (garden waste, grass, hedge clipping etc, now withdrawn unless you pay) Blue for plastic, glass or paper (there is a bin plus a box, you choose which has the paper in) and Black for general waste. More recycling should be encouraged by the councils, I know in Sheffield since they have withdrawn the Green bin service they can not fully meet their targets with regards to recycling. In Devon where we are staying they have Brown & Green the Green are for general waste and the brown can be used for all food waste, garden waste and paper and cardboard. I find that people who collect the rubbish on the Norfolk Broads are very amenable and will go out of their way to help boaters. We were moored at Loddon at the staithe last season and I asked one of the guys who were empting the bins(located next to the public toilets)if there was a bottle recycling bin, he replied sadly not but if you have any rubbish just leave it outside the back of your boat and we will remove it (in Sheffield if it does not go into the bin with the lid flat they will not collect it). As I said earlier we need a national policy so everyone knows where we all stand. I like the idea of using the council office bins, but could not endorse that action, honest. Regards Alan

It is classified as a cottage, but it is a four bedroomed house (the last one on the cliff path to Thurlestone out of Hope Cove. It has a walled garden which is great for Stuart's dog Toby and Oscar, Jo's sisters dog. The two dogs that are brothers and go everywhere together. You can see the Eddistone lighthouse (about 16 miles away) from the beach at low tide and from the house all the time. Great seeing the light at night. For the last two nights there has been a large ship waiting to get into Plymouth. It was lit up like a Christmas tree and two yachts overnighted just outside of the Hope Cove harbour. Here's a picture of Oscar. Regards Alan

I am still looking at the forum in the mornings whilst everyone is still in bed. Poor journey down on Friday it rained for most of the 5 hour journey to Hope Cove. The weather has been a lot better than the forecast but that is not unusual in this area. Here a picture of Bolt Tail from the lounge French doors and some of the family on the upstairs veranda, Tan, Joanne (Stuart's wife) and Michael. Regards Alan

It will only get worse, the old adage is that we are never more than 6 feet from rats (this is somewhat misleading) I am not talking about the smaller water vole. Any build up of rubbish will encourage vermin, be it rats or gulls which will scatter the contents of any bags over the deposited areas. Regards Alan

Hi Iain, I thought you had joined that exclusive retirement club; that everyone around younger than me has joined. Work I ask you!!! Regards Alan

I have just been on the oulton Broad & Barnes Brinkcraft webcams toget my Broads fix of today. I can not tell if it is raining but the weather looks as dull as dishwater. I hope it clears up soon for all the people currently on holiday, but doesn't peak to soon for our visit on the 15th July. We have to fit in a none boating holiday before then however (I know is there such a thing as a none boating holiday). Regards Alan

Try this link:- https://www.google.com/maps/@52.7116552,1.4081442,16z?hl=en-US Regards Alan

Hi Roy, We raised this issue on the 6th June with a link to the report. To remind you please see:- The only thing the concerned councils will save is a line in their accounts at one level and a far greater cost further down the accounts for the cost of removal of fly tipping. Regards Alan

Hi Roy, I agree with you and the pub trade is not what it once used to be, after saying this the publicity may improve the pubs trade. We had a Pub in Sheffield that we used to go in just through the Wicker Arches, I can not remember the original name but it was renamed "The Hole in the Wall" after a gasometer that was being demolished (in the early 70's) blew up. A few miles from us on a roundabout the same house has had a coach and a lorry through its lower rooms, at both times the family had to be evacuated and rehoused whilst major structual repairs were undertaken. Sadly accidents do happen. Regards Alan

Welcome aboard from Tan & myself. Regards Alan

Hi Eric, Welcome to the friendly forum from Tan & myself. Regards Alan

Pub-goers have spoken of their shock - and relief - after a car ploughed into the side of a city pub during rush hour. The Golden Star in Norwich earlier this evening http://www.edp24.co.uk/news/video_person_injured_as_car_ploughs_into_busy_norwich_pub_1_3651067 Regards Alan

Hi Grace, The practice of gongoozling is very addictive my favourite place is to be sat outside The Hotel Wroxham with a cold beer waiting for the fun, sat on the bench at the side of the Potter Heigham bridge can be interesting as well. I often go on the webcams to it gives me a boating fix especially if I am sat in Sheffield at my desk and find it is sunny in Norfolk. Regards Alan

Hi Grace, What have you done to the Barnes Brinkcraft webcam? its just gone off line? Regards Alan

Hi Alan, Your first boat was very similar in design to the 17 foot 6 inch Woodwitch (a plan you buy to build the marine ply boat) Far to many years ago we made one of these in a mates garage, I enjoyed doing the woodwork on this and using the bronze gripfast nails. You had to make the frames and then make the keel (or hog I think they called it in the plans) the frames were softwood and the keel and various stakes were mahogany. Sorry for going off of topic. Regards Alan