When You Come To The End Of Your Lollipop

[addicted]

Last week we came to the painful conclusion that age and infirmity have caught up with us and that Boating is no longer an option thus we spent a few days clearing our much loved boat (9+ years of detritus!) and last Friday we took her to Sheerline to be brokered. She has been  fabulous and in all the years we have owned her has not once failed to start. We are finding this very hard as boating has been our "thing" for more than 30 years, but now Tony has a chronic back condition that makes it all but impossible to keep the boat properly maintained and my balance these days is not what it was either making it a bit risky coming in to moor. We are thinking of maybe buying a cabin or chalet as a bolthole instead but initial investigation indicates  that these come with expensive overheads. Does anyone have any experience of these? I know I am going to find reading all the posts on this forum  quite painful for a while and will be full of envy of those of you out and about on the  Broads. One of my big regrets is that we haven't had long on our recently acquired mooring  at Ferry Marina. I have really loved it there and would have liked to have been there for longer as despite some of the comments to the contrary on this forum when I posted our intention to relocate from Brundall. it was a good move and not one we regretted at all.

 

Carole

[Bluebell]

Sorry to read your post. It’s something that most of us may have to face at some point. One couple we know have “crew” to help and that suits them. Good luck with finding a replacement for the boat.

Jim

[SwanR]

Must be a hard decision Carole. 

I know it's not the same as a boat, but if you want any information about caravan ownership then feel free to send me a message. We are almost at the end of our third year of owning by the coast in Lowestoft, which has proved to be a good base for getting across to the Broads as well as enjoying quiet weekends away from everything else. There are various sites in the area, possibly worth considering depending on budget and site fees.

[addicted]

Thanks Jim, having the boat maintenance done by others is not an option unfortunately. A few years ago when we were moored at Brundall  and Tony was suffering particularly badly with his back. He paid  to have the first clean of the season done by a company there.It was diabolical and in the words of the owner of the boat adjacent to us "he waz robbed! " The boat was still filthy with the green algae of the Winter still evident  all over. He vowed then" never again". To be fair he is very meticulous in all areas of maintenance and in one of our previous marinas was known as Squeaky - as in clean!

Carole

 

 

[Chelsea14Ian]

Hope you have some luck with a cabin.or something. 

Best wishes Ian 

[vanessan]

Very sad to read your post Carole. The idea of a cabin or some sort of riverside unit has been very much on my mind too for the future as our ages and conditions (!) are also against us - we won’t give up without a fight though! I can’t imagine life without the Broads so something will have to be found to eventually replace the boat. I do hope you soon manage to sort something suitable out and can still enjoy what the area has to offer and of course still partake in the forum discussions. 

[Ray]

Sorry to hear your news, I think there are many of us who know that one day we will be in the same position.

 

[Lulu]

So sorry to hear this Carole . We had assumed you were out and about this week as we saw your boat wasn’t in the marina.  

[Happy]

2 hours ago, addicted said:

Last week we came to the painful conclusion that age and infirmity have caught up with us and that Boating is no longer an option thus we spent a few days clearing our much loved boat (9+ years of detritus!) and last Friday we took her to Sheerline to be brokered. She has been  fabulous and in all the years we have owned her has not once failed to start. We are finding this very hard as boating has been our "thing" for more than 30 years, but now Tony has a chronic back condition that makes it all but impossible to keep the boat properly maintained and my balance these days is not what it was either making it a bit risky coming in to moor. We are thinking of maybe buying a cabin or chalet as a bolthole instead but initial investigation indicates  that these come with expensive overheads. Does anyone have any experience of these? I know I am going to find reading all the posts on this forum  quite painful for a while and will be full of envy of those of you out and about on the  Broads. One of my big regrets is that we haven't had long on our recently acquired mooring  at Ferry Marina. I have really loved it there and would have liked to have been there for longer as despite some of the comments to the contrary on this forum when I posted our intention to relocate from Brundall. it was a good move and not one we regretted at all.

 

Carole

 Having owned many boats, mostly on the Broads over many years we came to the same outcome a few years ago.

Eve had got to the stage where she was finding if difficult to get off when mooring so we decided to give up the boat.  I bought a motorhome which we used a few times (in Norfolk and Suffolk) we tried to convince ourselves that it was just as good at boating, but it was'nt!

We now use cruise ships and let others do the work, but I still miss the 'Broads'.  So much so that me and four other blokes are having 4 nights on Absolute Freedom starting next Tuesday.

You just cannot get it out of your system!

[addicted]

1 hour ago, Lulu said:

So sorry to hear this Carole . We had assumed you were out and about this week as we saw your boat wasn’t in the marina.  

if only

 

Carole

[Paul]

If the major issue is maintenance then perhaps consider a share? There are several reputable syndicates represented on the forum. Of course that doesn't address the issue of boat handling and mooring and if that too is becoming prohibitive then shore based options might be for you. We reduced the amount of boating we did a few years ago for health reasons but still visit regularly. Whilst you will miss the boat there are benefits of being "land based" and many wonderful places to visit and eateries etc to try which are not accessible by water.

[Happy]

10 hours ago, Happy said:

 Having owned many boats, mostly on the Broads over many years we came to the same outcome a few years ago.

Eve had got to the stage where she was finding if difficult to get off when mooring so we decided to give up the boat.  I bought a motorhome which we used a few times (in Norfolk and Suffolk) we tried to convince ourselves that it was just as good at boating, but it was'nt!

We now use cruise ships and let others do the work, but I still miss the 'Broads'.  So much so that me and four other blokes are having 4 nights on Absolute Freedom starting next Tuesday.

You just cannot get it out of your system!

Sorry - its Monday not Tuesday - must be getting too excited!

Happy

 

[addicted]

I'm very much afraid that you are right and getting it out of our system  might prove to be impossible. We're looking into acquiring a holiday lodge or chalet.  we thought somewhere coastal may be a good idea , a complete change A motor home does not appeal -  we have issues with chemical toilets!

Thanks to all of you have responded to my tale of woe.

 

 

Carole

[Paws]

We are selling our boat for the same reason so we have brought a van over looking the sea in Skegness the out lay per year is the same as mooring fees it's great just turn up put the kettle on and watch the sea lovely paws

[addicted]

That sounds ideal. How did you locate the 'van.

 

 

Carole

[Paws]

There are loads of sites we are on Skegness sands  we just whent round them all at the moment some sites are giving you next years site fees for free we pay 2500per year that is March to 5jan plus gas and electric wifi ls £100for10months it's like sitting up home grate fun you can have a deck on the side and the front good for sitting in the sun with your tea hope this helps paws 

[addicted]

Thank you so much that info' is really helpful. is your caravan hooked up to mains sewer - so no chemical loo?

I know what you mean about "setting up home" we used to use our boat as a second home hence lots of stuff we bought just  for the boat (30 years worth!) to save toting it back and forth each time we went.  So now that we are back at home and have brought  everything off the boat we  now have a  spare room that is bulging at the seams with stuff  needing a new home!

 

Carole

[Paws]

Yes it is it's just like your house the price of the vans starts at around £10000.00 for a used one my son has just bought a 2020 one for 30000.00 you will be able to use every thing off your boat yes no loo to pump out paws

[Polly]

We stayed in a friend’s Mobile Home at Burgh Castle Marine, it is a private site and has lovely views.

[SwanR]

I would echo everything that Paws has said. Site fees vary depending on site and facilities. Large well known holiday sites can be £6000 a year whereas a small site with nothing there can be as little as £3000. Some extra charges for utilities and the open season length can vary. There may also be an option to rent it out if you wish. 

It’s worked out really well for us. We found the place just by internet searching and visiting. We kept to our budget and maximum travel time from home. It’s definitely our second home now, not just a place to stay. 

[SwanR]

Here's a little photo to encourage you ...

[addicted]

Thank you so much everyone for all the really helpful information. We have heard of the site at Burgh Castle. Apparently it's one of the largest in the country. I must say your site looks very tranquil Jean and rather elegant too - very tempting. We can't do anything until the boat is sold and the capital tied  up in it released and that could take some time. However we can have a lovely time going round looking.  I see lots of days out with a nice lunch somewhere on the horizon. Things don't look so bleak now I  must say. Just the possibility  of finding a new home for all the "stuff" makes everything look brighter I feel snowed under at the moment. What was decorative/useful on the boat definitely isn't when cluttering up the house!

 

Carole

[MauriceMynah]

Perhaps if you were to put up the details of your boat on the forum, you might raise some interest here. You know what they say, every little helps.

[Happy]

5 minutes ago, MauriceMynah said:

Perhaps if you were to put up the details of your boat on the forum, you might raise some interest here. You know what they say, every little helps.

  That reminds me of the actress and bishop?  

[addicted]

1 hour ago, MauriceMynah said:

Perhaps if you were to put up the details of your boat on the forum, you might raise some interest here. You know what they say, every little helps.

The boat we are selling is a Sheerline 1050 aft cabin. Not the Bluewater sea going type , the estuary class hull. She is the only one built  with the interior design she has. She was built by  the late Peter Applegate for his own use and for exhibition use and we became her first owners when we bought her in 2010 although she was actually built in 2006. She has a comprehensive list of  features including  bow and stern thrusters with remote control,  GPS,, warm air Webasto heating,, mains powered heated towel rail in ensuite, two heads with showers, one manual pump w.c. one electric, Both heads finished in Avonite with stainless steel basins, Island double bed in aft cabin with masses of wardrobe space, sleeps 6 in 3 cabins, generous galley finished with Avonite, built under oven/Grill, stainless steel hob, microwave oven, Large integral fridge,  Saloon area finished in cherry wood. Teak bathing platform,  she is in tip top condition having been meticulously cared for by Tony and any works carried out have been done by Sheerline themselves The Nanni diesel engine has done 489.9 hours and she is being brokered at a price of $135,000.00 by Sheerline  and as I'm typing this I'm wondering how on earth we can bear to part with her!

 

Carole