Can You Remember......

[donnygeoff]

Can you remember the first time you got behind the wheel of a boat on the broads, hire or owner.

What one word would describe how you felt......

Left alone to deal with everything. You have just left the yard in your hire boat, or the marina in your time share/parents/friends/other half's, pride and joy....

Mine is DAUNTING (If I had used two words it would be S**t scared).

 

 

 

[Timbo]

Mine would be EXHILARATED! 

The clearest memory I have is of a year before we bought Royal Tudor. Ellie and I had hired a boat from Herbert Woods...Price of Light I think...a dual steering position craft. Although the first to arrive at Potter we were the last to leave the basin. As we gently cruised out of the basin the air was literally electric, hot and humid. Cloud boiled in the sky and thunder rumbled. At Thurne mouth the lightening flashed and the hot wind picked up speed as the storm rolled towards me over the marshes. Big drops of rain pattered onto the banks and I inhaled the heady fragrance of the sun parched mud and soil. Lightening flashed again and the thunder crashed as the storm passed directly overhead. The wind buffeting me atop the boat as the sky turned black as I pushed on to reach Fleet Dyke. Lightening flashed, crashed and crashed again as I laughed and howled into the wind. For I was Ahab and Fleet Dyke, a safe mooring, a dry roll up and wet cup of tea were my whale!

It was a bit like that! 

[MauriceMynah]

It was 1965 and I was 11. My uncle who had taught me to handle a boat on the Thames Estuary said "Right you are, Keep to the right, pass Port to port and give way to sailing craft." He then left me at the helm of this 40 footer albeit only for a couple of minutes while he had a 'comfort break' as they're called now. I too was S*** scared but as proud as punch too. It was one of Richardson's called 'Fancy Free'

I'd love to find some pics of her but all I have is a very small pic originally from the brochure.

[Timbo]

Carol has the plans for Fancy Free on her website MM!

 http://www.broadlandmemories.co.uk/documents/boats/plans_fancyfree.pdf

[Malanka]

My first was on the boat hired by my oldest friends ( 53 yrs and counting ) parents. Was from bridge craft and it was a dog kennel boat, all yellow and plastic. I was 14 and it was magical, in those days (1976) it was a thing if you saw a heron it was ooohhh loook a heron . Not like today where they are everywhere. One other thing in those days it was at the height of the topless sunbathing thing that still carries on in some places and Johns dad would yell "t*ts" and us boys would rush topside to see some lady boobs . This was the summer of 1976 which was amazing . Wimbledon, boobs and boating did it get better than this for a 14 yr old . Driving the boat was good too lol .  

 

Fiona disowns this post. In 1976 she had a broken wrist and spent the summer in her neighbours pool. Boating didn't enter her life until I dragged her to the broads in 1991. Hooked ever since .... ( thank the gods) 

 

Martin

[YnysMon]

1976, etched into my mind as the year of the great drought. I sat my O levels that year.  Fortunately for me and my sanity the weather wasn't that great until the day after I sat my final exam, then the scorcher set in. Yes!  Unfortunately I wasn't able to appreciate a lot of it as after three days of sitting in the sun devouring the books I hadn't been able to read whilst revising I came out in a horrible heat rash. Sigh...

I really regret that I didn't discover the Broads until 2015. Obviously the Broads were the place to be in 1976 (and every year since!).

[tjg1677]

October  1974 taken for my first ever broads trip By  my brother aboard Aston cairn.  It started a love affair with things that float that has lasted to this day.

Thing thatStockport in my mind for some odd reason, was my brother teaching me how to go from ahead to astern smoothly, near Berney arms and remember gary Sheraton on  the radio singing I get a Kick.......happy memories!

[BroadAmbition]

No first time memories for me as my first time I was only months old. I sort of grew up with it year by year.

Not that I can remember the year, (guessing I would have been about 14 therefore 1974) but being given the helm of a Brooms Admiral from Berney Arms mill through to the Walkers factory at GYA with no guidance offered and full responsibility - that was special. Same goes for piloting same craft through PHB for the first time , probably same year. 

However 1976 was a special one, not just the glorious wx but I remember having to cut short a week afloat to get home and prepare for a train journey from Donny to Plymouth. 12th October was the day I arrived at the main gates of HMS Raleigh. A journey that would last 24 years and 12 days. The bit in between - as they say is History 

Griff

[Boatingman]

May 1964 Jack Powles Rippling Foam you needed three hands to helm it when mooring one each for wheel,motor bike style throttle and gear stick which was direct, great memories

 

[Springsong]

Like Griff really started at 9 months, the first time helming probably 11 or 12 years of age on a Vesta or Vestella .First of my own hires was 67 / 68 again a Vestella Landamores obviously thought I was capable enough. The first boat I owned, Springsong, had separate lawnmower type throttle on the bulkhead and an enormous weapon of a gear stick protruding from the cockpit floor.

 

As for 1976 I was nicking Lark dinghies from Portsmouth Polly and sailing to the IOW for a drink on my day off from The Royal Beach Hotel in Southsea.

[Springsong]

Me attempting the mud plank in 1951 and Springsong  c1983

[ChrisB]

I was probably in my late 30s before I helmed a boat with a wheel by which time I was a yachtmaster and had covered a few thousand nautical miles all with a tiller in my hand. In fact my first wheel helm was as crew on a Nicholson 38 ketch from Brixham to Poole.

[addicted]

My first experience on a river craft was 1989 .newly married, we bought a Shetland 760 with a Mercruiser 898 engine. My husband had owned several boats before , the last one being a Broom 30. The first day on our new boat he, armed with a camcorder sent me out to cruise round the marina lake.  I got on fine even managing to bring it in to pick him up from the pontoon without clattering it. I was hooked from that moment on but didn't discover the joy that is the Broads till 2010

 

 

Carole

[ChrisB]

27 minutes ago, addicted said:

My first experience on a river craft was 1989 .newly married, we bought a Shetland 760 with a Mercruiser 898 engine. My husband had owned several boats before , the last one being a Broom 30. The first day on our new boat he, armed with a camcorder sent me out to cruise round the marina lake.  I got on fine even managing to bring it in to pick him up from the pontoon without clattering it. I was hooked from that moment on but didn't discover the joy that is the Broads till 2010

 

 

Carole

Around 2005 I decided that I had done my bit and wanted to retire even though I was 10 years off 65. We started to search the West Country for the right house and more importantly the right location for me to buy another boat. 

In just a few years it had changed alot, we were not so sure we liked the West as much as we had when the family was young and every weekend we would head to Ridge Nr Wareham and our sailing cruiser. Then Judith my late wife dropped the bombshell " I am not sure I want to go to sea anymore. We are getting no younger. If you have an accident or are taken ill I will never be able to get the boat back"

"I used to sail on The Norfolk Broads with school friends, just before I met you" said I " would you like to have a look" and that is how we ended up in North Norfolk with a "Stinky" @ Stalham.

[ExSurveyor]

I can guarantee my 9 year old granddaughter Ellie will remember yesterday.  She cast off and drove the Broom Scorpio up river and returned after an hour and moored up,  all with a proud granddad sitting in the passenger seat with a beer.  She needed very little guidance other than,  relax. 

 

[SPEEDTRIPLE]

June 1970. I had my 12th birthday on the Sunday and had a go at steering i think across Breydon, as it was so wide. I don`t think my dad had much faith in my ability to steer then, but then my dad never had any faith in ANY of my ability to do anything. Strange when you consider i feel i owe most of my engineering, mechanical, and DIY skills to what he taught me over my childhood and early adult years. As for my ability to steer a boat, i think i do okay, but i suppose like anybody else, i`m not perfect.

[deebee29]

My first holiday on a boat was in June 1983 when we hired Broom Navigator 2 after a number of years visiting Norfolk on holiday and always commenting on how much fun it would be to have a holiday on a boat.

That love for the Broads stuck and is still as strong today.

Roll on Saturday 

One of my lasting memories of our visits was Saturday 13th July 1985, Live Aid day when we had Cherry Willow from Willow Craft in Brundall (sadly long gone but Cherry Willow is still about in private hands)

We listened to the concert all day on the radio and caught the evening part on the tiny TV. ......... It wasn't till many years later when the DVD was released that I was able watch the whole concert.

Great times

[thingamybob]

Never found it any problem. I used to be a member of our school sailing club and had no problem in making a sailing dinghy do what I wanted to do with it after a bit of instruction from a schoolmate of mine. Later, my parents used to hire a caravan in Norfolk and we went out on the little pop pop day boats and then we hired the boat pictured in a recent post that I have made today.  

[Polly]

We came to the Broads in the mid 90s when the lock slaves, I.e. Warp,  our daughter and their various friends made their own holiday plans rather than narrowboating with us.

'Let's try the Broads, I suggested, there are no locks to open.'

We got HW's catalogue and discovered they would let idiots like us out on Saily things, never tried before. We hired Ladybird and booked two days tuition at Wroxham Broad. 

Motoring up wasn't unusual, we had motored many times before, the bungalows were a surprise though!

My really memorable moment was on day two of our tuition, it was an almost still morning, we got the sails up and ghosted down to meet our tutor. Sold! 100% on sailing but with it all to learn of course.

[TheQ]

About 1978, A Royal Air Force Sailing Association dinghy course at Horning SC, within 6 months  I had a Laser dinghy.... a variety of dinghies have followed since.

Rescue boat duties followed  at least twice a year ever since.

Sometime between then and 1983 I did go out on a day boat a few times.

About 2001 bought my own motor boat

[BrundallNavy]

My first time was 1972 aboard Wood  Annenome from The Norfolk Education Sailing centre at Ludham, 1973 to 1976 as Skipper also on Wood Annenome.

My introduction to alcohol was at the age of 16 in the Lion inn at Thurne with the Lady Yacht club, now that was a baptism of fire.

Doug. 

[SteveO]

Our first experience of the Broads was in the early 1980's. when we hired a Hampton Safari, Wicked Lady III, from Ripplecraft at Somerleyton. Our week started badly, with gusty wind and torrential rain. We made it to Reedham on our first evening and,  in desperation, triple-moored at the quay. We awoke on Sunday morning to watery sunshine, mercifully still tied on. During the week, we covered the whole Broads system, South and North and by the end of our 7 days, we were well and truly hooked. At the start of the week, I was thinking "What the hell have we got ourselves into?" but by the end it was "When can we do this again?"

Steve

[MauriceMynah]

1 hour ago, brundallNavy said:

My introduction to alcohol was at the age of 16 in the Lion inn at Thurne

Ahhh now that is another, and very interesting route for the thread to take.  Our introduction to alcohol....   ...   ...Mmmmmm 

[Chelsea14Ian]

I had two holidays on the broads in the Sixties when I waste school, and had a go then I was so happy to be driving a boat.Then the next time was 1974 with my mum.When we got married Marina was worried about boating, because she can't swim.When Alan first starting boating we spent a day with him and Dave.Then the bug cut in, hols day boats then eight years ago little Kingfisher,now Sweet kingfisher.No money but lots of good times on the river Ian

[VetChugger]

I have posted this before!

Our first tast of the Broads was two weeks on "Spitfire" from Alphacraft. I think "Spitfire" is now "Merlin", having said that, it may have been "Mustang"! Its a bit since! Well, despite trying to cross the fields just below Stakesby and plowing  head first at full chat into Loddon staithe (Lots of stuff was spilt and chucked about) We had a wonderful time and, this bit is gospel, we managed to visit every single beer glass on the Hoseasons holiday map!