Broads01

Yes indeed and Horsey busy also, even though the clothing being worn suggests it was filmed early or late season.

I enjoyed this short video because it seems to capture the period beautifully. It's a reminder how much boat comforts have improved in the last 46 years. Back then the presenter told us "most boats have a shower"....

I'm trying to imagine cruising past four abreast at the Yacht Station and how narrow it must have felt compared to nowadays. That could have been fun with a fast tide and traffic in the opposite direction.

Thanks, Fred, I had no idea Astons hadn't always been in the basin. I have happy memories of Mistral Craft, holidaying with them in 1986, their final year.

And I'm another March hopeful, booked for March 27th and just paid the balance this week. I'm still hopeful but very uncertain. I also have a booking at Ferry Marina for 15 Feb which isn't cancelled yet but I'm resigned to postponing. Nevertheless I'm feeling as positive as I've ever been. Please, please I and my family can stay well because I feel lucky to be so and able to look ahead to plans in the summer.

Fascinating thread and photos. On my second ever visit to the Broads as a twelve year old in 1983 we hired from Aston's in London. At that time the basin was fully occupied by their boats and they had the Beccles operation also. I always think of that holiday when I pass the basin now. After Aston's moved out of Loddon, the Princess Cruisers name returned briefly at the same location. They hired two boats as I recall, Mercury Princess (ex Aston Mercury?) and an aft cockpit 2 berth (Sabre Princess?). I assume the owners were unrelated to the previous Princess Cruisers.

Very enjoyable, what a brilliant snapshot of the time. Was the hire cruiser from Jack Powles?

That's not the point, this has got nothing to do with whether Sainsbury's are right or wrong. I'm pleased the "event" was dispersed quickly.

Don't get me wrong, David, in the current climate I wouldn't expect any holiday business to be delivering the service level I would normally expect. However, I still think the website should show correct information. You say the booking season doesn't get underway until the new year but I know I'm not alone in booking months before that. Plus the new year is only two days away.

There's nothing more frustrating when you're looking at holidays online than an inaccurate website. Imagine taking an interest in a boat on Hoseasons website only to realise later that the picture is a of a different boat or that the boat has actually long since disappeared. Whatever the staffing pressures, it's abysmal and there's no excuse.

You could but it's worth cruising as far as the Yacht Station even if you don't intend mooring there. I always enjoy the experience of cruising towards the city centre, just because it's so different to cruising everywhere else and you really feel like you've travelled somewhere. One of the many joys of the Broads is the degree of variation in scenery between different places.

The Yacht Station may be closed but is there anything to stop you mooring there?

I love the top picture, Dan. What year was that taken, around 1970 I suspect? I agree with you, it would be amazing to have an updated Caribbean or Bermuda back on hire.

Good to hear from you, Clive. The refits sound excellent. I'll be very interested to see internal photos when available. I remember Castle Craft very well, probably because their colour scheme was distinctive as Dan's brochure pic shows (Blakes Blue Chip, no less, that takes me back). It's some years since they finished so I assume the boat's been in private hands in the mean time.

Brilliant tip, thank you.

I'm not sure if it counts as a new boatyard but the Horning Pleasurecraft name has been resurrected as a separate entity to Richardsons. So far they just have Sunway and Far Horizon as per Richardsons Horning before but I have it on good authority there are more boats in the offing. http://www.horningpleasurecraft.co.uk

Where's that?

Where is your favourite mudweighting spot? I have two in mind. Firstly, anywhere on Surlingham/Bargate Broad. It's such a mini oasis of calm there. Secondly, the spot at South Walsham I discovered this year (thanks to Grendel's tale) near the entrance to the Inner Broad.

I love the Ferry House, Malcom. I'm sure you'll have a great evening.

I think it's a lovely mooring spot, albeit it was even better when the pub was open. I have happy memories of climbing up the mill also and the views from there were fantastic. From a practical point of view, when crossing south to north or vice versa, I like it as a stop off because between there and Stracey is plenty long enough in one hit.

Thanks Jean, I enjoyed re-reading your tale. There's me saying I didn't realise you'd been on Rose and then I saw my comment on your tale 😊. I don't normally bother with hook up but I definitely will for this trip. In my experience, how long the heating will run for depends on the condition of the batteries at the time. As you know I always do plenty of hours cruising to charge the batteries. However, sometimes I can run the heating for 5 or 6 hours without restarting the engine, sometimes it's petered out after less than an hour.

I know you've hired from Ferry a few times Jean but didn't realise you'd had Rose. Was it nice and warm with the radiators and is there any draught from gaps around the canopies?

Hi Jean, well one of the fun things about hiring is you get to choose a boat which fits the time of year and what you want to do. This time I wanted forward steer with dual sliding roof so I have the option of a blast of outside air by opening up the helm canopy a bit (I couldn't see myself using the outdoor helm on a dual steer very much). I had the option of White Emblem or Rose Emblem and chose the pricier Rose for the bow thrusters and the radiator heating. Stern cabin looks really nice.

I've today booked with Ferry Marina (for the first time) for 4 nights in February (first ever winter hire, all being well). I'm very grateful that Ferry remain on the sensible side of the solo hirers' fence plus they seem to be the only operator hiring 12 months of the year.

Not advised if you live in Tier 3 though. Also, if you live in Wales, as I do, travelling to England is still illegal unless it's for a permitted reason.