batrabill

Funny you say those are views you associate with a National Park because the National Park website front page has as its second picture from the top.....

Like you Mr Smelly I find it extraordinary that this "thing" with the BA leads people to talk down The Broads. Very odd, since the whole point is, The Broads are lovely and worth fighting for. Hang on, I see now, you ARE right. Its a nightmare, a dump, I'm looking out the window and I can see starving people run aground through not being able to find a mooring and literally choking to death on the idea that it is/isnt might/might not be a National Park. Others are being air ambulanced out after seeing pictures of the Acle Visitor Centre and having a fit of the vapours so bad they literally lost their minds. Run! Run for your lives! Go home and leave it to me.

So the situation is that “most” of the others support you but do nothing? That is worrying. Surely there is a point of principle here? Makes your fellow members sound a bit..... spineless?

I’m working in Bristol so a bit busy but always glad to help. I’m broadly on Mr Knights side. My questions: where are the other members of the Navigation Committee? If he’s right then I’d expect some to back him up? Perhaps the indominitable Lana Hempsell? and, Mr Knight, didn’t you write the Broads National Pike until quite recently? Perhaps that has had some effect on how you are perceived?

Genuinely, point me at an example of “over the top praise” It must exist, go on.

Yes, it’s not like I’ve ever presented a counter argument is it?

A while ago the voices on here that spin against the BA were so dominant that it appeared everybody agreed with them. Recently, in my view, a balance has been restored. The price everyone pays is that when threads get filled with anti-BA bile several people are in the habit of trying to balance the bile. Sorry

This makes me think of something..... Hang on... No, it’s gone.

I do want to be clear on my perspective here, I will fight to the death to preserve the right to sail on Hickling and Horsey. And while it is good to be on your guard against erosion of access I fail to see the conspiracy (even if t is a accidental conspiracy - ie the aims of BA NI and RSPB accidentally being similar by coincidence, not collusion) that some here detect in the behaviour of some organisations. ALL of them have to balance competing interests. On the whole I think the BA who I know quite a lot about, do OK. NI and the RSPB I know less about so am less able to comment. I do note your "if" MM, shouldn't have omitted it.

Interesting MM. While a lot of what you say is probably correct, you post does illustrate how if you list all the negatives you can create an impression that is very negative. It's the same in any area, list all the cases where the police have "failed" and you create an impression they are "failing". I say "probably correct" because there are many things that are not proved. 1. Dredging the lower Bure will lower the water level at PH bridge. I'm not sure anyone can prove that is true. The conditions in the system have changed so much over time that you are not comparing like with like. 2.|"The problem at PH is lack of dredging" - see above. 3. Happisburg. Well thats a complex one. Theres a huge area of sand that is being washed into the sea. Opinion differs as to whether its saveable or with saving. I do not see that whatever NI do in that case has any bearing on anything else, and why if you don't like what they are doing there it means everything else is bad? I don't agree with much of what you have written above, but on the whole I find your contributions t debates very interesting and useful. The first will not change the second. 4. Choice between Holiday hot spot and bird sanctuary. Not the issue, its both a holiday hotspot and a bird sanctuary and therefore you would expect the RSPB response to be much more nuanced than this false binary choice. This is often used against the BA "choose between nature and boats" and reinforced by the Sandford myth. In fact all these organisations have to constantly balance different and often competing pressures. 5. Natural England. The clue is in the name. But Human England are doing a bloody good job of messing the place up, and thanks to a lot of do-gooders like sensible politicians and organisations both public and private, he mess we humans make is held in check by regulations and counter pressure to preserve what we have. 6. Marina Quays - a question, was it never dredged before? Is it possible no one is bothering because no one is using it? Don't want to come across as aggressive MM but had so time to kill so wanted to consider this in the round.

I do think that many people misunderstand what the Press is there for. There isn't much money in local news so often the full-time staff would only fill a taxi. Others are "working from home". They largely regurgitate what they are given with the minimum amount of work. I think these figures were sought by Miles. I could be wrong but he recently got the figures for the last year and said he had asked for the 10 year figures. Possibly an FOI? How they got to the EDP it is hard to say. When they did they "reported" them (ie spent about 10 minutes typing them up and calling for a quote.) If they have any function it is to report, not write a puff piece titled Most Holidaymakers Have a Lovely Time on Norfolk Broads The facts are there, and actually don't look bad at all. Bear in mind 30-40 people die on Norfolk roads every year. I would repeat what I think is a really important point, that hirers should be properly taught. Driving a boat the size of an articulated lorry, with 5 minutes of instruction is foolish.

I wonder if this is the outcome of questions from Miles, well-known boater from another forum? He was after this data So 11 years, 200 reported crashes, about 1 and a half a month. Undoubtably many, many unreported, but probably at the less serious end. Not exactly boatageddon is it? I do note a comment underneath the article from someone who claims to have gathered anecdotal evidence that some hire yards are really skimping on instruction. That seems very foolish to me.

"Like the Berlin Wall"?? "Huge and overpowering"? To be honest, I don't know the spot well so maybe they have case, but it REALLY sounds like they are just against everything.

Is it a river?

Vaughan, We shall never know, but you can be certain that what you did do, worked, because the class is pretty strong. I'm not a huge fan of cruisers that don't look 'right', but when I race I'm not usually racing them. The "big boys" have their race and we have ours

"The Environment Agency, Norfolk Fire and Rescue, the Broads Authority, and Norfolk and Suffolk Constabularies are working together to run the survey so they can find out how people access information about the waterways to help them stay safe and make the most of their leisure time. A spokesperson for the organisations said of the initiative, “All of our organisations work with the public and receive feedback that a mobile app or web resource giving local information would be useful. We want to find out if there is a need for such an initiative. Before we start developing resources we’re searching for people who would like to be included in our research.” Does it always have to be about John Packman??? Is it just possible it might be useful??

I think it may be the free version.

Vaughan, Survey Monkey is a platform for anyone to create a survey. It’s actually really good, but if surveys are badly constructed the garbage in, garbage out rule applies.

Vaughan, Survey Monkey is a platform for anyone to create a survey. It’s actually really good, but if surveys are badly constructed the garbage in, garbage out rule applies.

Written quite a few surveys in my time and don't think this is very well constructed. Are they thinking of working together to make an App?

At a restaurant in the Broads I asked the waitress if I could add a tip on my card, she said, “If you do, I won’t get it” Fairly outraged as this is fraud really. When we add a tip we expect it to go to the workers, not the profit of the restaurant. I always ask now if the tip gets passed on and tip in cash if it doesn’t.

I don't think this visitors centre is a good use of anyone's money, but please can we make the objections sensible? The turn-in to the Bridge Pub is almost identical in mirror image to the turn-in to this site. The turn in to Pedros/The BBC is very similar, and is arguably more dangerous because cars coming from the North and turning right into Pedros are blocking the road just after the bridge, so are not seen until the brow. If those traffic movements are acceptable now, then how will use of this site be different? Coaches visit the Bridge and Pedros, right now. Either, you lobby the Council/Police etc to do something about this CURRENT deathtrap right now, or you stop pretending its a big issue.

I'm not in favour of the Acle Centre, but better to stick to facts. The BA said they would do, ’a full business analysis of the potential costs and income that such a facility could generate before [it] commits to approaching funding bodies for financial contributions.’

The site they bought is 620m long. Can anyone tell me why they can’t put in more mooring? So if they can, then no mooring has been “stolen”.

I actually don’t really want the Acle Bridge centre much, but every time I read the pike I want it more. Good place to start a Broad’s swim? Or do yoga?