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Norfolk Lady Tales


Mouldy

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Tuesday 22nd September

It was another beautiful start to the day.  As on Monday, I was keen to see whether the sunrise would be a glorious, and it didn’t disappoint.  I dressed hurriedly and went out to take a few photos.  The wife passed me with Harley, as they went for their usual early morning constitutional.  I didn’t stray far from the boat, as I wan’t sure that the wife had taken her key, so waited until she returned before walking round to Barton Turf.  Mirror calm water and the rising sun, combined with a little early morning mist hanging over the water’s surface combined to make for a very special photo opportunity.

When I’d taken enough, I returned to the boat for breakfast and just after 08:00, we started the engine for hot water.  With no one behind us, it was unlikely that we’d have disturbed anyone anyway.  When we’d both showered and were ready, we set off for Stalham.  I wanted to get the diesel topped up, as Norfolk Lady has quite a small fuel tank, we needed water too and Tescos for some additional provisions.  When we’d been on board for a couple of weeks in July, we’d been to Simpsons for fuel and a pump out.  I wanted to avail myself of their friendly and efficient service again, so we chugged slowly up The Ant, turning right towards Sutton then left to Stalham.

I’d put my loing telephoto lens on one of my cameras, hoping to see either an otter, or a kingfisher, but instead saw neither.  Never mind, there might be an opportunity later.  When we arrived at Simpsons, there was a boat moored awaiting a pump out and another holding station in the river, waiting to moor.  I couldn’t understand what the helmsman was doing, as there was room at the quay for both of us, so I skirted round him and moored, topping up the water whilst we waited.  

Debbie went off to Tesco with a shopping list and I waited with the boat and Harley.  As the first boat finished and manoeuvred away, I waited for the one who was still holding station to moor.  He was struugling to get near the quay, even with copious use of his bow thruster, to the extent that the operative from the yard called for ropes to be thrown so he could pull them in.  They also required a pump out and when they’d left, we pulled Norfolk Lady along to the fuel pump, where 25 litres werew squeezed in.  I offered to pull the boat back up the moorings to clear the pump, but was told that I was okay there until the wife returned.  By the time I’d paid for the fuel, the wife had returned anyway, carrying two big bags of shopping.

We cast off, heading back the way we came in and at the junction with the main river turned right towards Wayford.  Obviously, Norfolk Lady will never fit under the bridge, but I like that stretch of river and was still hopeful of spotting some wildlife.  We cruised slowly past Hunsett Mill and I once again wondered who had given permission to turn such a beautiful ‘chocolate box’ pretty cottage into such an abomination.  At least the mill itself looks good, now though, with new sails and paint.

Sadly, I didn’t spot any kingfishers or otters on the way to Wayford, but did spot a good place to moor for lunch, if it was still free when we returned and much to my amazement, it was.  We moored on the left hand bank a couple of bends before arriving back at Hunsett Mill.  There was a herd of cows in the field and the dog eyed them cautiously, obviously realising that she would be fighting a losing battle barking at them.

We had sausages (from Ludham butchers) in rolls for lunch and very tasty they were too, although I did regret not buying a couple more sausages as Harley is quite partial.  We sat there for a while and digested lunch before setting off again, hopeful of a wild mooring the other side of Barton Broad.  It was like a grand prix crossing the expance of the broad.  Five or six craft came past us at speed as we chugged across, clearly anxious to get to the prime moorings first.  However, as we approached Irstead, there was space at the Parish mooring (the BA one being occupied) so I quickly checked with the wife and agreed that it would be suitable for our overnight stay.

Once secured, I sat on one of the benches and read for a while, keeping half an eye on a fisherman who was catching fish literally one after another, nothing of any size mind, but he certainly wasn’t getting bored!

Deb read, then did some sewing.  It was a glorious afternoon – the best day of the holiday in truth, although we didn’t know it at the time.  I wandered up to the church and took a few photos.  Sadly it was locked, so I wasn’t able to go in for a look around.

The original fisherman left, only to be replaced by another, who was far more serious.  He wanted to catch bigger fish and was there until after we’d gone to bed.  We were eventually forced into the boat by midges, who usually feast on me, but this time it was the wife who got bitten most.  I cooked dinner which we enjoyed with a glass or two of wine and watched TV for a while.  

Not sure what it is about the Norfolk air, but once again I was feeling tired and we went to bed by about 21:30.  

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Guest Jayfire

Gorgeous pics as ever Malcolm, certainly puts my mundane pics to shame. Not being a camera sort of guy though, I am interested in learning what a loing telephoto lens is :default_biggrin:

And just for you -->:default_xmas2:

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15 minutes ago, Jayfire said:

Gorgeous pics as ever Malcolm, certainly puts my mundane pics to shame.  . . .

Well, thanks for saying mate, but yours aren’t so shabby either.

16 minutes ago, Jayfire said:

 . . . .  Not being a camera sort of guy though, I am interested in learning what a loing telephoto lens is :default_biggrin:

Typo, mate.  Sausage fingers weren’t ever designed for typing!!

17 minutes ago, Jayfire said:

 . . . . . And just for you -->:default_xmas2:

:default_yawn::default_yawn::default_yawn::default_yawn:               :default_biggrin:

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2 hours ago, NotDeadYet said:

Thank you very much. These posts and pictures are giving me great pleasure, as well as a heap of useful information about moorings and facilities.  We were out north and south a couple of weeks ago and I'm now at home thinking 'I wish I'd known that' as I read through your progress. . . . 

Thanks, Mike.  I’ve been going to The a Broads for years and still learning.  One of the purposes of a resource like this is to guide new and relatively inexperienced folk some pointers with regards to places to go and more importantly perhaps, some safety tips. 

2 hours ago, NotDeadYet said:

BTW, we love Staffies and hope Harley's condition improves.

We love Staffies, too.  She’s a lovely dog, but sadly will be on medication for her condition the rest of her life.  She’s happy, but where she used to enjoy long walks, we have to give her more shorter walks now.  But she does love being on the boat, sitting in the aft cockpit in the sunshine watching the world go by is her favourite plaace.

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14 minutes ago, YnysMon said:

Shame you couldn't get into the church Malcolm, it's got the most magical rood screen paintings.

I’ve been in there before, but can’t really remember the inside.  It’s not often that you get the opportunity to moor there, frankly, so whilst I can remember the interior of St Helens at Ranworth, I’ve really no recollection of Irstead.

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Irstead is my favourite Broads church, wonderfully serene and peaceful. From memory, a very ancient oak doorway; lovely old carved stone font; beautiful 15c wooden pews with original carvings (dogs amongst other things) and a typical half height Rood screen with the Saints' faces having been scratched out as per usual during the Reformation. It is little changed in hundreds of years.

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5 minutes ago, vanessan said:

Can you tell us prices Mouldy please?

Diesel was £1.20 per litre.  I didn’t have a pump out this time but it was either £12 or £14 back in July, from memory.  Excellent, friendly service, too.

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1 hour ago, charlesa said:

Irstead is my favourite Broads church, wonderfully serene and peaceful. From memory, a very ancient oak doorway; lovely old carved stone font; beautiful 15c wooden pews with original carvings (dogs amongst other things) and a typical half height Rood screen with the Saints' faces having been scratched out as per usual during the Reformation. It is little changed in hundreds of years.

Beautiful church , most interesting pew end carvings 

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Wednesday 23rd September

Sadly, no spectacular sunrise this morning.  To be fair, any sign of the sun would’ve been welcome!!  It was raining and quite chilly.  No rushing out with the camera, then!

We’d planned to go to Wroxham (Hoveton) today, so we got dressed and cast off around 08:15.  The tide was rising and I wanted to make sure we could negotiate Ludham Bridge successfully.  Deb cooked some toast for breakfast as we cruised slowly down the river, before going for her shower.  She emerged in time to take the helm and allow me to take our burgee staff down and fold the nav light.  The bridge marker showed 8ft 2 ins heading from How Hill and I know that it not quite as pessimistic as the one heading in the other direction, but edged slowly up to the bridge to make sure.  Once again, we went under with about three inches to spare.  

I replaced the burgee staff and moved the nav light back to its usual position before going for my shower as we turned onto The Bure.  The river was busy, as expected and we chuged through Horning, noting that the staithe was full, as usual.  The rest of the journey into Wroxham was uneventful and we moored in a suitable spot at Barnes pontoon moorings.  As I finished sorting out the ropes, a crew on a Bridgecraft boat were attempting to moor their 38 foot craft in a space clearly marked for boats up to 27 feet.  I pointed out the sign and suggested that they moored in the basin.  It turned out that there were nine of them in their party on four boats!

We got ready and wandered into town.  Just as well that the rain had stopped by then, really.  I checked with the staff in Barnes office whether I needed to pay to moor for a couple of hours.  They told me that there would be no charge, for which I was grateful.  There are so few available moorings there that the ability to moor somewhere is a bonus.  

On the way, I called into Jeckells to get a quote for either a canopy or tonneau for the aft cockpit of Norfolk Lady, before continuing round to Roys.  We needed some provisions, the wife had forgotten to pack her favourite cardigan, so wanted to see if she could find another and she wanted some wool.  I went into the supermarket first, whist she waited with Harley.  When I returned, I looked after the pooch and she went to look at the clothes.  Her quest was successful and she emerged smiling with a suitable cardigan. 

We crossed the road to the department store.  It wasn’t until I turned that I realised that she’d left me outside the window with a view of the Christmas decorations!!!  If ever there was a way to spoil my day, that was it!  I could have moved, but Harley had laid down and gone to sleep, so I turned and watched the traffic pass and tried not to think of the tat on display behind me.

Fortunately, she wasn’t long and soon came out with the required wool.  I suggested fish and chips for lunch, so she took the dog and shopping back to the boat and I headed for Greys.  I’m still not sure whether they are better than Ken’s or vice versa.  Food ordered, I waited outside until called in to collect it and hurried back to the boat.  We ate from the boxes and it was very tasty, too.

By now it was about 13:30, so time to head back towards Horning and look for an overnight mooring.  I had to chuckle at the sign outside one of the preperties as you leave Wroxham.  I’ve seen it many times and I still wonder why it's there.  One day I’ll remember to take some stones on board that I mustn’t throw.  I like Salhouse, but it was busy and frankly, given the facilities, I do slightly resent the mooring fee, so we carried on.  Horning staithe was predictably full still and I hoped there might be space at Cockshoot Dyke.  As we were going through Horning, we were passed, at speed, by Silver Jubilee (from Martham Ferry) and as Cockshoot came into view, the same boat was just finishing mooring, right in the middle of a space big enough for two boats.  No wonder he was in a hurry!

The moorings at the church were full and I thought it pointless heading for Ranworth, so we carried on.  As we approached St Benet’s, I could see a couple of spaces big enough for Norfolk Lady, so we gratefully slipped into one of them and tied up.

It was busy and a bit choppy for a while as boats rushed past, looking for moorings, but as darkness fell, it calmed down considerably.  The rain was back on, so we didn’t venture far.  I read, the wife knitted and we watched a little TV before dinner of Barnsley (lamb) chops, new potatoes and veg, accompanied by some wine.  Such decadence.  

The Norfolk air had taken effect again and by 21:30, we were both tired, so headed for bed.

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Thursday 24th September

I hadn’t really expected to see a sunrise this morning.  The weather forecast was bleak, with some farly wet and windy weather heading our way, but I got up early to check and was surprised to see a red glow in the sky.  I hastily pulled on some clothes and grabbed a camera, before venturing out.  The sunrise was truly spectacular, certainly the most dramatic of the holiday.  The rising sun combined with the cloud created a glorious glow which the photos do not really do justice to.

The wife wandered over a little later with the dog, who seemed quite sprightly this morning.  I regretted not changing to my wide angle zoom lens, but I had been in so much of a rush to capture the scene, that I hadn’t thought about it at the time.  Never mind.

As I walked back to the boat, I could see a rainbow in the opposite direction and sure enough, not long after, the rain started to fall.

We had planned to meet Helen (Ynys Mon) and her husband, Graham, for a meal at The Lion on Thursday evening, so the plan was to go to Ludham and the butchers in the morning, then go to Potter for Lathams (not for Christmas decs, I hasten to add), then finish at Thurne Dyke.  When the plan was made, we hadn’t considered the weather.  However, with the forecast rain and wind, I could see issues arising crossing back over Breydon either Friday or Saturday, so after exchanging a few text messages with Helen, we decided to head back south instead.

We just about had time to get to Yarmouth for slack if we left pretty much straight away, so we started the engine and cast off.  I was disappointed about missing out on the meal, not going to the butchers meant we had no food on board for later and I had intended to spend one night at Upton, something that I’ve still yet to do after so many holidays on The Broads.  But crossing back seemed the sensible option.  Not long after, we received another text from Helen to say that they’d also decided to head south as well, cutting their time on the northern rivers as well, due to the impending weather.

We had breakfast as we cruised back down The Bure, passing through Acle, Stokesby and past the Stracey Mill.  We were making good time, aided by the falling current.  There were a few boats heading back from Yarmouth and one or two going the same way as us.  

My hasty calculations about timings had been reasonable accurate, we went by Yarmouth Yacht Station about 10 minutes after slack, passed under the bridges that were showing 9 feet clearance and were soon turning by the yellow post onto Breydon.  There were a few craft still heading north and we must have been about half way across when a Broom Skipper (similar in design to Norfolk Lady and with the same airdraft) went by in the opposite direction.  I wondered whether there would be sufficient clearance under the bridges by the time they got there, given the speed of the rising tide.  

Once across, we turned right, continuing along The Yare, past Berney Mill and our overnight mooring from the previous Saturday at Polkeys Mill.  The weather had started to brighten up, there were a few breaks in the clouds and the sun was making an occasional appearance and by the time we reached Reedham, it had turned into quite a pleasant day.  We needed water, so moored there, once again aided by the Ranger.  The river level was lower than when we were last there on Saturday, so no need to drop the fenders this time. 

I filled up with water and not long after, I spotted Moonlight Shadow cruise by, with Helen at the helm.  It was lunchtime and we still had a couple of burgers in the fridge that we’d bought at Ludham on Monday and a pack of brioche buns from Tescos at Stalham, so I cooked the burgers while Deb ran up to the chippy for a portion of chips. Not exactly healthy eating, but satisfying none the less.

Lunch eaten, it was time to move on.  I didn’t want to go back to the yard, it seemed to early to go back, especially as we had intended to be out until Sunday, so instead, went to Loddon.  We prefer to moor at Pyes Mill, it’s better for the dog and quieter, too, but as we approached it looked quite full.  As we drew level with the car park we found a suitable space, occupied by a couple of fishermen.  The wife apologised to them as we pulled into the space.  They were clearly not impressed and boarded the Broom hireeboat that was moored behind us and readied to cast off.  I couldn’t understand why they couldn’t fish from the aft cockpit, but there you go.

We got ready and walked into the village.  It was really quite a pleasant afternoon after all.  It turned out to be the quiet before the storm, as we later found out, though.

We found suitable provisions for a couple of days lunches and evening meals in the Co-Op and wandered back to the boat.  Again, I read and Deb did some sewing.  Later in the afternoon, as darkness began to fall, the rain started.  I cooked dinner and when we’d washed up, we settled down to watch TV until we went to bed.

I fell asleep, listening to the sound of the rain falling on the roof.

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20 minutes ago, vanessan said:

Wrong lens or not, they are lovely photos Mouldy. Looking forward to the Friday’s instalment, not the best of days was it?!! 🙄

You can say that again!!  Have to say now that the camera didn’t find its way out of the bag on Friday.

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15 minutes ago, ranworthbreeze said:

Hello Malcolm I see you managed to get a shot of Southern Crusader moored at Loddon.

Regards

Alan

Hi Alan

Did wonder if it was Ranworth Breeze, but it was as you say Southern Crusader.

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Hello Malcolm, the easiest way to tell Ranworth Breeze from Southern Crusader is that Southern Crusader has a blue strip and foot holds for climbing up to the side rails. Ranworth Breeze is a white hull and superstructure and has rails all around the boat and has drop down boarding ladders, plus the canopies are totally different.

Regards

Alan

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More amazing photos Malcolm. A new career? It was such a shame about the weather. Helen and I had hoped to meet up too while they were on the northern rivers but it wasn’t to be. As for the Greys or Ken’s debate, I have always favoured Greys but we had cod and chips from there last week but it seemed to have lost something. Will be trying Ken’s next time round to see. 

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2 hours ago, SwanR said:

More amazing photos Malcolm. A new career? . . . .

I wish.  It has been a hobby for a long time and I’m really enjoying the opportunities that have opened since we bought Norfolk Lady and have more time to spend in the area.  
I might try to produce a calendar next year, if there is a demand, with some funds going to the Forum.

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