Jump to content

The Kiwis Have Landed


Recommended Posts

An update on THE NOISE as we have come to call it. Well, i say we but erindoors has a minor auditory deficiency, in that she is a tad mutton and can't hear it and wonders what the fuss is all about. Anyroadup, it started again around 5.20pm (about the time it started yesterday). We did a Boston Strangler act on every tap to no avail. So acting on the wise counsel of the august sages haunting these boards, i turned off the water pump. Silence (for me anyway, no difference for swmbo). After a little while i turned on the pump . It re-pressurised the system and not a peep since.

Ah well, i have caught a very good roach, had a glass or two of a passable shiraz, and i am gazing on the peace of Womack. Not a bad world sometimes. Going to have another go at Upton Dyke tomorrow.

Cheers

Chris

  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 09/07/2019 at 09:58, Broads01 said:

Having hired Swan Roamer with the same flush, 10 flushes is a bit optimistic. We hired for 4 nights, the red light came on about 4pm on the last day and I came to regret not heading for a pump out immediately. The toilet gave up the ghost during the night and wasn't the best experience. It was a fabulous boat and the toilet was brilliant - until the red light. 

Hi Brian. I did like the flush counting idea, it appealed to the empiricist in me. However, when i suggested to swmbo we count our flushes, i got The Look. This brooks no arguement and the subject was 

  • Haha 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, grounded said:

Hi Brian. I did like the flush counting idea, it appealed to the empiricist in me. However, when i suggested to swmbo we count our flushes, i got The Look. This brooks no arguement and the subject was 

Maybe you need a chart stuck to the wall and every time someone flushes they tick off another box?

  • Haha 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

C

1 minute ago, grounded said:

Hi Brian. I did like the flush counting idea, it appealed to the empiricist in me. However, when i suggested to swmbo we count our flushes, i got The Look. This brooks no arguement and the subject was 

Closed. (I am not sure what just happened, fat fingers perhaps) . I am sure it had nothing to do with the variance in our flush rate. Hers being 3 or 4 times that of mine???

Chris

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dawn over Ranworth. Ah, but (those paying attention may say), that should be dawn over Upton Dyke. True, but whilst cruising slowly down the Thurne, we had a conversation. We agreed we must have one last night at Ranworth as it is such a special place and the weekend will be manic and we have to meet friends at Coltishall early next week. So we turned right instead of left and on such decisions, the fate of nations can rest. Though not in this case, obviously.

So i spent a happy afternoon fishing and watching reversing 101. Not as a critic, take away my bowthrusters and i can be as cack handed as the next Johnny, but interested. More interesting was watching the people watching the reversing. There were those who will offer words of advice "tell him to shove it hard over and boot it love", those who get involved and offer to take a rope, and those who, regardless of the drama unfolding next door to them, just stay on their duffs sipping Prosecco or something. Fortunately they are in the minority.

Anyroad up it looks like the rain is easing so i am off to dangle a few more maggots before we head for Upton. Or we have another conversation.

Cheers

Chris

20190712_155407.jpg

  • Like 10
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just a quickie. We are now moored at Upton Staithe. A very pretty looking place. Friendly too. A strange thing happened on the way here. We were the recipients of manically enthusiastic waves from a private boat. A forum member perhaps? I think the boat was Autumn Gold. 

Oh, and i saw a Marsh Harrier. Brill.

Cheers

Chris

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Good evening. We had a conversation, which is why we are now at a mooring above Acle bridge. On the plus side i have just enjoyed the best steak and ale pie i have had since arriving in the UK, and that is saying something. On the minus side, the fishing is rubbish. On the bomb and my reactions are not what they were.

Hard to believe but we have been on this boat for 2 weeks now and we are on countdown for the return to Aotearoa. Still, another week to enjoy our favorite places. May be Thurne Dyke tomorrow? 

Cheers

Chris

  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 hours ago, VetChugger said:

Go on! Admit it! How many more of you looked it up? I did!

 

"Aotearoa is the Maori name for the country of New Zealand. The literal translation of Aotearoa is "land of the long white cloud"."

 

Or also known as the Land of the wrong white crowd. A lovely country grounded, you are fortunate to live there. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, vanessan said:

Or also known as the Land of the wrong white crowd. A lovely country grounded, you are fortunate to live there. 

Hello. Indeed there are those that do hold that view but it is a beautiful country with a great climate ( i can play golf in shorts in winter) and some awe inspiring scenery, but nothing like the Norfolk Broads. We love living there and would never consider coming back to live, but we do have to have our Broads fix when we can.

Great day fishing at Thurne Dyke and a good meal at the Lion. What a transformation has been wrought there! We remember it from 40 years ago and we did have some times.

Anyroadup, time for quiddler and we will see where tomorrow takes us.

Cheers

Chris

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

It has been a quiet day. I feel a sombre tone has settled on us as we approach our last few days. I had a bit of a lie in today, up at 5am. The bream in Thurne Dyke were very accommodating and i quite enjoyed myself, though they are very slimy.

We left our mooring assisted by the wind blowing us away from the bank and pottered up to Potter for some wotter(sorry, could not resist it) where the same wind played havoc with my attempts to moor. Hoping no-one noticed my cack-handed attempts we headed for Fleet Dyke. We chanced upon an excellent mooring and this time we remembered to book a table at the Ship.

My afternoon was spent catching bream after bream in a session such as i have not enjoyed in many a long year. But they are ruddy slimy. Lyn says i looked like an extra from "Men in Black" who had been slimed. My only concern now is getting my fishing clothes past the NZ Border Patrol because of all the organic matter adhering to them.

We then (slime free) had our meal at the Ship at South Walsham. We have enjoyed some excellent meals on this holiday but the meal this evening topped the lot. It was really, really good. How erindoors managed a treacle tart on top of her roast pork dinner i will never know.

Tomorrow we are off to Wroxham to meet up with some old friends from Yorkshire. He is an ex-police sergeant and a fellow Lion and he also enjoys his fishing. I hope to introduce him to the monster perch that lurk there.

Cheers

Chris

  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Good morning. I seem to have been too busy to add to our holiday tale for a day or too, but i have been putting in some serious rod hours. We met up with our Yorkshire chums in Coltishall . The are staying in accommodation in Haute Bois ( pronounced Hat Box i think) so whilst the distaff side went for a walk to check it out and have an intensive clack fix, Paul and i caught up over a box of maggots. No monster perch, sadly, but enough roach and perch to keep us busy despite the considerable amount of floating weed.

Another excellent meal at the Rising Sun (braised brisket cottage pie. Yum).

Tuesday started well with bream and rudd and a beautiful roach of around three-quarters of a pound.  I have included a picture of dawn over the rivrr at Coltishall. After more clacking and dangling we said our goodbyes and we returned to the Viaduct moorings along one of the most beautiful stretches of river in the whole of the Broads. We saw Kingfishers, Coots, and another Marsh Harrier.  Fishing at the Viaduct was a bit patchy, i think there were some Pike around. Some souvenier shopping for our two grandsons back home was followed by fish and  chips at Ken's. This was after reading a recommendation on these boards, but i think we both agreed that Greys has the edge.

We are now on our final lap back to Richardsons to hand back Slime, sorry Swan Rapture on Friday. We have just learned that our flight from Norwich to Manchester is not departing 4 hours later than expected, which is a bit of a bummer. Anyway after breakfast we shall head for Ludham Bridge. I hope the fishing is better there

Cheers

Chris

20190716_154032.jpg

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Strangely enough i was a bit of a Pratchett fan back in the day, but in this context "clack fix" means that uniquely femail form of conversation where the words are endless, and oft repeated, but unintelligible to mortal males. Stuck on a boat for almost 3 weeks with only me to talk to, i think she was getting desperate. The wild look has gone from her eyes now.

Cheers

Chris

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, grounded said:

Strangely enough i was a bit of a Pratchett fan back in the day, but in this context "clack fix" means that uniquely femail form of conversation where the words are endless, and oft repeated, but unintelligible to mortal males. Stuck on a boat for almost 3 weeks with only me to talk to, i think she was getting desperate. The wild look has gone from her eyes now.

Cheers

Chris

I think it might be a case of :default_coat: or :default_hiding: for you now grounded!

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well here we are moored at Sutton Staithe for our last night in Norfolk. An incident ocurred here today which gave me pause for thought. A large cruiser pulled up about 10 metres in front of ours. One of those with a very high built up stern with external steps leading to the upper helm and a bottom step or narrow bathing platform about 30cm above the water. One of the group, a well built chap, had just fastened the stern rope and stepped back onto the boat. I was having one of my last dangles (channelling Brando perhaps) when in my peripheral vision i saw him go backwards into the Broad with the most enormous splash. I was momentarily stunned (and thinking there goes the fishing) when he popped back up spitting copious quantities of Ant. Fortunately the boat was fitted with tranverse fenders across the rear and he was able to grab those. Then his mates came and dragged him out. All he lost were his sunglasses and dignity.

Now erindoors has been assiduous in her wearing of her lifejacket whilst mooring. As for myself? Not once. Barmpot is the term I think.

We have been valeting the boat prior to taking her back ( cleaner than when we picked her up) and i am thinking i do not want to give her back. She is not perfect. I would like an anchor winch, rear vision cameras, and a couple of USB ports at the helm, but she is without question the best we have hired.

There is no way i could check her in as excess baggage, even long-haul the allowance is not that great, but if someone in the forum could quietly suggest how I might get her to the Humber estuary and still get my flight to Hong Kong on Sunday morning, there would be a large drink in it. Nuff said. OK?

Cheers

Chris

  • Like 9
  • Haha 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, grounded said:

Now erindoors has been assiduous in her wearing of her lifejacket whilst mooring.

Me too, for the last 4/5 years. The older I get, the more unstable I get so I thought ‘better safe than sorry’ and I am now well into the habit of donning said life jacket. I have been boating for 37 years now and know how easy it would be to get caught out. Remember Charlie’s (Bound 2 Please) tale from a couple of years back? 

A great write-up grounded, I have enjoyed your adventures greatly. Whatever you are up to next, I hope it all goes well and I wish you a safe and enjoyable journey back to New Zealand. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

For details of our Guidelines, please take a look at the Terms of Use here.