Our Week On Concerto 4 (22-29 Apr)

[JonC]

Thought I would do a quick recap of our week on Concerto, with some comments on the boat.

We left Kent at around 10am on Friday 22nd April and headed of to Stalham to pick the boat up, traffic was on our side and we did it in under 3 hours  We decided to head straight to Richardsons  to see what time we could get aboard, low and behold the boat was ready so we could get sorted. We grabbed a quick snack from the food wagon (nice hotdog and chips) grabbed some bits from Tesco and then went for a chat with the handover guys. After running through  the basic safety stuff, ropes etc, he double checked that we were happy with boat handling, were experienced and then we completed the handover (we have previously hired similar boats from Richardsons).

Concerto 4 initial thoughts. Concerto is a pretty standard RIchardsons bathtub, rear mounted engine, sleeps 2 adults and 2 (small) children. The double bed is a good but odd size (bed sheet didnt fit that well), the children's bunk beds would be cramped for teenagers, but theres just the two of us so the bunks were used for storage. Toilet / shower cubicle is a bit larger than on some other boats, bog is of the straight drop with foot pedal (prefer this to the pump ones). There is a corridor running from the front compartment to the back door, sleeping compartments are not full width of the boat because of this. Main compartment has has full sliding roof and sides, access out front door to the front well. All the onboard kit worked perfectly, cooker cooked, fridge chilled, 240V electrics kept my laptop charged, etc. Like previous hire craft from Richardsons the boat was perfectly clean, all the kit we wanted was in the kitchen and it was all spotless, bedding was clean and ironed, extra blanket to compliment the duvet was also provided. Helm was just about wide enough for two people to sit at, there was also a 3 seater settee, reasonable sized dining table and 4 stools. 

 

For our first nights (Friday) mooring we decided to head to Neatishead, either Gayes Staithe or the village moorings. Rather happy to get in at the village moorings, but my attempts to turn the boat on the ropes were defeated by the wind, but that wasnt a big problem. So off to the pub (White Horse) for a few pints and enquire about an evening meal, we got booked in (several didnt). The beer was good, the menu was a bit uninspired, but the food was good just lacked the wow factor. Cider selection was also limited, maybe not many ask for it. Headed back to the boat for an early night, slept very well, found the bed to be hard but that suites my back, more about my back later.

Saturday morning, woke up with the sun, read in bed for a bit, got up and made a coffee (freshly ground and made on an aeropress) chilled out for a couple of hours, then head down to How Hill for a shower and coffee. We decided to head to the Lion at Thurne for a meal, some drinks, and some music. Moorings were plentiful at Thurne, we sat onboard and watched some intrepid sailors rigging their boats and heading out in to the windy wilds. We had a great evening in the Lion, the food and beer were very goodm the music provided by One Hand Clapping was excellent.

 

Sunday morning started a bit windy. Most people (including us) were struggling to get off the moorings and turned around, took me a couple of goes to get out. Once back on the river all was well. Decision made to head up to Horning and beyond. It was at this point I realised that all was not bliss and happiness with Claire (my wife), bobble hat, scarf, wool gloves and winter socks had all been donned, she was also huddled under one of the blankets. Enquires concerning her level of warmth also received a decidedly negative response. I think it was around this time it started to hail, big time. And because of the gaps around the sliding roof it was also inside the boat! Bit of work with towels and we were hail free, for now. Horning was busy so we decided to head to Wroxham to look at getting under the bridge and head up to Coltishall. 

 

[JonC]

As we approached Wroxham I noted that the river level was a bit high, but we had already decided to moor up there for the night with the idea of getting under the bridge the nest morning and heading up to Coltishall. . We got off the boat, then back on, chased by another hail shower, then back off again and a stroll around Wroxham. Grabbed a takeaway then back to the boat for a glass of beer from my St Peters mini cask  Whilst enjoying  beer a Barnes boat moored up in front of us, crew included people in fancy dress, another boat tried to moor alongside them, bounced off thrashed around a bit, then moored up in an odd place. Have to say I did worry a bit at this point, but they headed off down the pub and were perfectly quiet when they returned.

 

Monday morning we left the Barnes moorings at 8am and moved up to the pilot moorings. Grabbed the chance to get stome stuff from the shops, unfortunately the coffee place wasnt open so headed back to the boat. River level still looked a bit high. Phoned the bridge pilot, he came over and gave it a squint, thumbs up and off we go. Have to day I held my breath as we went under, there was not a lot of room. Soo off to sunny Coltishall   Have to say the stretch of river heading to Coltishall is lovely, probably my favourite on the broads. Nice relaxed cruise up there, plenty of wildlife, and the weather improved. Not long after leaving Wroxham we had a deer swimming across the river in front of us, didnt seem that bothered about the boat, then again we tend to cruise at a lower speed than most people, aiming for quiet rather than speed. Once we moored at Coltishall I went for a stroll, checked out the Red Lion (very good) and purchased some kit to winterise the boat. Couple of minutes work with kitchen roll and bin liners and we had a nice warm, draft free boat, and the hail couldnt get in   All the proper saftey vents were left unblocked, holes letting daylight, hail, small birds were all blocked. Back to the Red Lion later to meet up with a friend and to have a proper session, very good drinking pub, locals also make their own cider which was available in bottles and won the Claire award for outstanding cider. Headed back to the boat around 10.30 for some much needed sleeeeppp. 

[SwanR]

Enjoying your write up and photos. Looking forward to hearing how the rest of your week went. The draughts that get in are the one drawback to hiring that kind of boat but on the other hand it can be easier to get under some of the bridges with the lower air draft. We really must try to get up to Coltishall this year ourselves.

[Hockham Admiral]

Sounds an intrepid start, Jon! 

We'll be interested to see how the rest of the week went, the weather in West Norfolk was pretty bad at times.....

[BroadScot]

Ah the joys of sliding canopys. Great in warm weather though, it has to be said. Newspapers are handy for blocking out the draughts, the old methods are still good.

Looking forward to the rest of your holiday tale.

Iai

[JonC]

1 hour ago, BroadScot said:

Ah the joys of sliding canopys. Great in warm weather though, it has to be said. Newspapers are handy for blocking out the draughts, the old methods are still good.

Looking forward to the rest of your holiday tale.

Iai

The original plan had been to book one of the similar boats that lack the sliding roof, but I wanted 240V and a Friday start date so it was Concerto or more ££. I had taken some stuff to insulate the boat, but the gaps were a bit bigger than expected, an investment of a couple of quid on bin bags (pack of 30) and 4 pack of kitchen roll and it turned it in to a pretty snug boat. I had meant to put the costs in above, will shove them in here

Concerto £ 343.00
Non-Refundable Security Waiver £ 45.00
Fuel Deposit £ 125.00
1 x CAMRA Discount  £ -30.90
Fuel refund £92
Total £390.

On the fuel front, considering we used the heater more than before, but did slightly less miles due to my back, we only used £33 of fuel in the week. Did have to pay £12 for the bridge pilot, but well worth it to get to Coltishall.

[BroadScot]

Always a delight up the Bure to Coltishall. We have seen more Kingfishers up that way than anywhere else on the rivers. Coltishall moorings are a good height also for bath tubs and bad backs ! (Knows all about bad backs!)

Iain

[Gracie]

I agree, the cruise through Belaugh up to Coltishall is stunning, we have often found little inlets and tied to trees for the night, watching Kingfishers diving for breakfast at sunrise, magic

Thank you for your holiday tale, Jon, really enjoying it. We also hired Concerto and agree with everything you have said about her, we didn't have a problem with the drafts though, it was mid August when we hired her and boiling hot, the roof was open well into the night on some occasions

Grace

[JonC]

Tuesday, woke up early ish, had coffee, sneezed and my back went. I just about managed to hobble back to bed, spent the next couple of hours curled, up, managed to straighten out a bit around mid afternoon, this is the bit where I really appreciated the type of bed that's fitted in Concerto, spent all day in bed, pretty unable to move. Early evening got my back together enough to walk with a stick, but moving around helped so we set off towards the Recruiting Sargent, slow hobble down there and very impressed when we arrived, nice range of beer, think I had Grain and Humpty Dumpty. We just about managed to get a table, lots of people phoning being told no, and a few walk ins, but they were very busy. Everything about the food was excellent, one of those times where I really felt price was well worth it, not cheap, but excellent. Ended up overstaying the 24hrs moorings, purely because I was unable to safely drive the boat or assist with mooring, was worried that if it went on too long we would have to phone Richardsons to come and get us.

 

Wednesday. Back had improved enough so that I could drive the boat so we headed back towards Wroxham and the bridge!! Lovely journey back down river and moored up near the bridge, had a chat with some other holiday boaters who had gone up river the previous day, the river level had been so high the bridge pilots had worked in teams of three to get the boats under, and had warned that passage on Wednesday might be an issue, luckily we had turned up at the low water, even then the gauge showed less than 6 1/2ft, Concerto is 7ft eekk. Had an interesting chat with another hirer, he was on one of the newer Ricos boats that also had a sliding roof, he had resorted to filling gaps with newspaper to keep the boat draft free, so not just the old boats then. Bridge pilot came over to look at who was waiting, decided to take us as one of the higher boats and off we set, again a very close pass under the bridge, going at speed seemed to help. By this time the weather had improved, lovely sunshine and the journey down to Horning was beautiful, we decided to carry on to Ranworth. Claire is more than happy to take control of the boat so she spent a couple of hours at the helm, this game me a chance to get the camera out. 

[SwanR]

It's funny now to think of how we all took the boats under Wroxham Bridge ourselves. Sounds like booking ahead is a good idea for the best places to eat.

[riyadhcrew]

Hi Jean,

I always book ahead as much as possible to guarantee us a table.

[Broads01]

Enjoying your write up Jon. I had Concerto 5 last September and also experienced the drafts through the roof even though you had colder weather than I did. Even so I do think the Concerto/Rhapsody layout is brilliant as the open plan galley across the boat works better than the narrow corridor ones. Sorry to read about your back problems - I get fidgety to get moving every day I'm on the boat so being stuck in bed would be a nightmare.

[trambo]

Hi Jon, nice reading and sorry about the back, nothing worse.

Sliding canopy craft are notorious for being draughty. I cure this by just getting two cheap foam pipe insulation strips from B&Q and cutting them in half so that they are U shaped. The advantages are that they are very flexible, neat, have hardly any weight and take up virtually no room in the car.

Fred

[JonC]

Good idea about the foam Fred, might try that next time. With a few minutes work the boat was fine, I would be happy to hire Concerto any time of year.

Just in case somebody else is looking at hiring this boat and reads this, there is no 12v power socket near the helm, the nearest power socket is 240v, its just behind the seat but would need a long cable to charge any kit used at the helm. I had a tablet mounted on the windscreen providing a map, it also has the speed on it. The software I use is called Alpinequest (android), and you can download 1:25K OS maps for free, and store them on  the device. The software will display your location, record a track, distances, speed etc. To be honest Concerto was quietest at around 3mph, so thats the speed I went at most of the time.

[NorfolkNog]

Hi Jon

 

Just been reading your holiday tale, many thanks for sharing with us. Sorry to hear about your back, hope you're feeling better now. Glad you managed to find some good beer and I spotted the St Peters you had on board, excellent stuff. The guy at the Red Lion is keen on his beer and it’s always been well kept in my experience.

 

I’m ashamed to say I’ve been a CAMRA member for many years and never realised that you could get Hoseasons discount!  Must look out for that if we book through them again.