Solo Southern Wanderings

[vanessan]

13 hours ago, Broads01 said:

Yes indeed, Neil. I'm very happy to say the Ferry House is as good as everyone says it is. It was a lovely meal, not just standard gammon, egg and chips but huge gammon, two eggs, sweet potato chips and a plate of freshly cooked vegetables. The atmosphere is warm and friendly. 

That is a good looking plateful. Normally I think you would just get the gammon, eggs and chips so having the dish of veggies as well is a huge bonus. Makes sure you get your 5 a day too! I think sweet potatoes are still underrated, much better for you than normal spuds but just as versatile. Bet you felt full after that lot but with a little bit of  too!

[imtamping2]

The Ferry House are definitely FEEDERS........ looks great and I know it tasted the same .....enjoy

[Broads01]

Of course, just as it was time to return the boat this morning the sun was shining and lots of blue sky, albeit it was still cold enough to need my coat and hat on. Having had some breakfast and packed up I couldn't wait to get outside and open the canopy. It was a short but lovely sunny cruise back to the boatyard.

Andy was there to greet me and I mentioned the battery issue. He asked me if I'd had any issues with the fridge, to which I replied there were none and the lighting and TV all fine too. He thought it could be a heater issue rather than a battery issue. I had used 100 litres of fuel, mainly from fighting strong tides but also because I had to run the engine a lot at moorings, hence Andy kindly gave me a hefty discount on the cost taking that in to consideration. We had a good chat about Rambling Freedom, currently out of hire because it needs a new rear roof amongst other things and he showed me aboard. What lovely old cruisers they are. We also had a good chat about the hire industry and he mentioned the camaraderie that exists amongst hire operators, even though they're competing with one another in a difficult market. 

I'm home now after a journey thankfully free of delays. Overall, whilst certainly not my best Broads holiday ever given the terrible news I received on Friday morning and the persistent bad weather, I feel remarkably satisfied. It was as good as ever to fulfil my passion and I got quite a bit of satisfaction from battling against the conditions. It was lovely to be back on the south Broads after a 3 year back and the friendly, individual service I received from Freedom was a refreshing change. Andy confirmed he has no plans to stop solo hirers which is great and I'll definitely go with Freedom again. I'll do a boat review in the hire boat section. 

Thanks all for reading along and your kind comments. I'm back in 4 weeks time with Mrs Broads01 on Swan Roamer. 

 

[SPEEDTRIPLE]

It`s been a good write up Simon, many thanks for taking the time.  It`s also good to hear favourable reports about one of the smaller independent yards, as they don`t get the coverage that the bigger agency yards get. Freedom are a great family run yard, like Pacific, Bridegecraft, and Summercraft, yet too many people have a fear of going away from the likes of Richardsons and Herbert Woods to name just 2.  The more good reports these smaller independent yards get the better.

It`s just a shame you were the receiver of tragic news during your holiday, but at least you will have many good memories of your friend, as well as being able to raise a glass or two in his name.