Newfies Afloat

[Tempest]

Bramerton Common

I think you have me beat with No 1. It looks ruddy familiar but I just can't place it!  

Sent from the Norfolk Broads Network mobile app

[MauriceMynah]

I don't think I've moored there. I don't go south very often.

[Upcycler]

On 17/05/2020 at 12:01, MauriceMynah said:

 I don't go south very often.

At your age I'm sure it's inevitable 

[Tempest]

Just been through the most traumatic time in our families history, after losing mum through cancer in November and my Nephew in May we laid Dad to rest on Friday, who went into hospital for a routine prostrate operation a couple of weeks ago, which incidentally came to notice when we were last up on Moonlight Shadow with Dad as he was up every 5 minutes, bursting but couldn't pass much

Mum and dad have been coming to the Broads since the late 70s and passed the bug onto us

Sadly when he went in they found he had terminal cancer and he passed away peacefully 7 days later

He loved MS and his last meal on the Broads was in the Ferry House, Surlingham and we remember him remarking what a wonderful pub and meal as he had generally been a northern Broads visitor in the past only going south on a couple of occasion's

We are next down on MS week commencing 12th September and we are going to go north and visit some of mum and dad's favourite locations, but on the Thursday we intend going back to the Ferry House to toast mum and dad and thank all the people who my parents met and made Norfolk such a special place for them both

[SwanR]

My sincere condolences for the loss of your family members. I hope your next trip is a blessing for you in your healing process. 

[YnysMon]

Really sorry to hear of your losses. It must have been a shock losing your Dad so quickly. I hope that the happy memories that you had with your Dad on his final trip help to ease the pain.

Hope you have a good week in September. We’ll be on board MS the fortnight after your week. 
Helen

[Mouldy]

So sorry to hear of your loss, Warren.  Like you, my first introduction to the Broads was on a family holiday when I was  thirteen.  Dad’s mobility worsened after his 80th birthday in 2010 and the last time he came to the area was in 2016, when we hired the adapted day boat from NBD and took him and mum along the Bure to Coltishall and had lunch at the pub.  He didn’t say much, due to the onset of dementia, but looked happy enough and mum said how much he’d enjoyed the day.

We lost him in February the following year and I often think of his last trip on the Broads.
Enjoy your holiday in September.  I hope that memories of recent events recede and you are able to remember the good times and relive your memories with fondness.

We will be up on Norfolk Lady from Friday 18th so may see you around.

[NeilB]

Sorry to hear of your loss.  This year has not been a good one as I also lost my mother who caught Covid 19 whilst in hospital.  It was mum & dad who introduced me to the Broads.

[YnysMon]

My condolences Neil. That must have been a terribly worrying time for you. I lost my Mum in 2017 and found visits to the Broads were a sort of lifeline during her decline and the have continued to be. 

Helen

[NeilB]

Thanks Helen.  This is why we now have a share in MS, to enjoy more family time in an area we love.

[Tempest]

5 hours ago, Mouldy said:

We will be up on Norfolk Lady from Friday 18th so may see you around.

We will be visiting the Yare on the Friday for our last evening, as our son will be with us and never been!

So if around be nice to see you 

[Mouldy]

1 hour ago, Tempest said:

We will be visiting the Yare on the Friday for our last evening, as our son will be with us and never been!

So if around be nice to see you 

Could well be a plan

[OldBerkshireBoy]

4 hours ago, Tempest said:

We will be visiting the Yare on the Friday for our last evening, as our son will be with us and never been!

So if around be nice to see you 

Are you buying?  

[Tempest]

Off to Brundall tomorrow for the start of another week on Moonlight Shadow with my wife Julie, son Mike and his girlfriend April with our 2 Newfies Roxy and Yogi

It seems so long ago since we have been on her ( February 2020) after missing out in June due to the lockdown

I really need this break, in fact we all do and no doubt our beloved Newfies will be as excited as us to get back

The weather looks kind and whatever the world throws at us, we are just going to relax and enjoy the beauty of the broads and the time together in a place we adore.

Will take some pics and post a few updates over the week, which no doubt will have a few doggie pics and stories

Take care all and if you see us by all means come and have a chat

 

[YnysMon]

Hi, really looking forward to your tale, especially as we’ll be on Moonlight Shadow just after you vacate her (any chance of a meet up?...socially distanced of course, we can’t board until 2pm.) 

We’ve not been on her since February either, so very much looking forward to our time on her. The weather forecast for next week looks great, so we hope you have a super wonderful holiday.
Enjoy!

Helen and Graham 

[Tempest]

Would love to meet Helen and Graham, but we will probably be on the road back around 9am on the Saturday, as the Friday we intend getting back to the mooring around lunch, hopefully refuel and pump out and give her a good clean ready for yourselves and then off to the Yare where hopefully we will see MM

In the morning we need to get away early as I have to be back in the north west in the afternoon

You have a wonderful time also and we will make sure we look after MS for you

Take care

[Mouldy]

2 hours ago, Tempest said:

Would love to meet Helen and Graham, but we will probably be on the road back around 9am on the Saturday, as the Friday we intend getting back to the mooring around lunch, hopefully refuel and pump out and give her a good clean ready for yourselves and then off to the Yare where hopefully we will see MM

In the morning we need to get away early as I have to be back in the north west in the afternoon

You have a wonderful time also and we will make sure we look after MS for you

Take care

Have a great week Warren.  I hope revisiting some of your mum and dad’s favourite haunts on the Northern rivers rekindles happy memories of time spent with them in days gone by.
Looking forward to hopefully meeting up next Friday at the pub.

 

[YnysMon]

We will also be going back to our mooring in Brundall by lunchtime our final Friday and cleaning the boat in the afternoon. Trying to get a refuel and pump out Saturday morning is pretty much impossible with all the Brooms hire fleet taking precedence. Anyway, Seren has agility classes Saturday mornings, so Graham wants to get back for that.

[Tempest]

Just a quick glimpse of a brilliant week

Will post a full update of the trip when home

Currently at Oulton Broad Yacht Station chilling after a wonderful Chinese

[Tempest]

Just got home after another fantastic week on Moonlight Shadow:

Saturday 12th we travelled from our home in Bolton (yes...the very same one!) with plenty of masks, sanitisers and gels to keep a liner clean!

We soon had the boat loaded up and we were off down river towards our first stop of the trip which was to be Reedham Quay as we planned to cross Breydon the following day

In our party on this occasion was my wife Julie, my son Mike, his girlfriend April and our 2 Newfies Roxy (7 year old black girl) and Yogi (1 year old brown boy)

We sat outside the Lord Nelson for a drink, then wandered down to the Ship for what was supposed to be one drink as we planned to get fish and chips from Reedham Chippy as we had heard good things about it

The plan, didnt go to plan, but that was only because their was a 60`s event on at the Ship with Elvis and Abba tributes being sung and the atmosphere in the beer garden was too good to leave behind.

We eventually left around 7.45pm as we knew the chippy was closing at 8, but when we got there they were actually closing up and as such we only managed to get some sausage, chips, peas and a couple of scallops as we were resigned to their last offerings before closure.

Nonetheless the food was good and retiring to the boat to relax after a long day was a good call in the end, eventhough Julie really wanted to stay at the ship longer!!

This is MS moored at Reedham Quay 

 

Roxy and Yogi chilling at the Quayside

 

We had a couple of Rum and Cokes on the boat and retired for the night

[Tempest]

Sunday 13th September

I am an early riser, so it was no surprise to everyone on board when I was up taking Roxy and Yogi for a walk around the lovely village of Reedham and even stopped to take a picture of the wonderful Owl carving


We had a sausage and egg sandwich each from the Post Office which has a little cafe inside and to be honest we werent keen as it was only when we were presented with our sandwiches did they tell us the egg was actually pre-boiled eggs sliced and put on the sausage and we all found the sausages to be a bit fatty for our tastes and the bread was the thickets bread we have ever been offered in a sandwich. Finally it was very hot either so all in all a bit of a disappointment.

We we soon off towards Breydon Water 

 

 

 

 

It was a glorious day!

 

 

Once through Great Yarmouth we headed up the Bure towards Acle, but decided to call in at the Ferry Inn, Stokesby to give the dogs a leg stretch and have a quick pint to quench the thirst!!

 

 

 

Before long we were back underway again making the short trip to our destination which was Pedros Dyke as we had booked a meal there this evening


 

[Tempest]

Monday 14th September

On the Monday we headed up the Bure and then the Ant and stopped off at Ludham Bridge to visit the Bridge Stores, grab some breakfast at the wayfarers cafe, which again we were slightly disappointed with as it didnt seem up to its usual standards and we just put it down to the current situation with COVID and the potential issues around getting adequate stocks................ There is a shinning light to our breakfast issues which comes later.

The meal at Pedro`s the night before was exceptional as each of the 4 of us chose 2 items each and being the greedy sods we are we then ordered two additionals which was more than plenty for us all. 

We also had an evening of G&Ts and found the surroundings really enjoyable. Prior to going to Pedros though we did go across to one of our favourites on the broads, the Acle Bridge Inn, but on this occasion we only had a couple of pre-meal drinks, which didnt stop Roxy and Yogi becoming stars of Facebook as they took photos of our dogs and put them on their facebook pages

 

 

But back to Monday.....................


We then made our way to the moorings at Barton Turf for a lunch break and again to give the dogs a walk, before making our way to the Sutton Staithe Hotel for evening meal

Again the menu appeared to be a reduced one, due to the current issues, but the food was good and plentiful and we just love the green here and the dog friendly atmosphere in the pub

 

 

 

 

After food and a glass of wine on the boat we settled down for the evening

[Tempest]

Tuesday 15th September

April was leaving us today as she was back in work tomorrow, so we were up early and making the trip from Sutton Staithe into Wroxham as she planned to do some shopping then get a taxi back to Brundall to pick up her car

 

 

 

The lighting was stunning as we travelled away from Sutton down the Ant and onto Barton Broad

 

 

 

 

We were even treated to a show of wings by a show off!!!

Another quick break at Ludham Bridge and we were off again

 

 

As you can see from the pictures, this was to be the hottest day of the week and we had to get our dogs into the water soon!!!

When we arrived into Wroxham we made our way into Barnes Brinkcraft pontoon marina and paid the £5 fee for the day (£10 for overnight) and did some shopping. There was loads of space, albeit the rivers were extremely busy in this area

 

After April had made her way off by taxi to collect here car and start the journey home we made our way to Salhouse Broad and gave our dogs their well earned swim which they just loved

 

Salhouse was particularly beautiful in the September sun!

 

We then made our way to the Fur and Feather for a drink and to kill 2 birds with one stone as it gave the dogs time to dry off after their swim and it worked a treat, because by the time we got back to MS they were clean and ready to board.

We made a meal on board and then settled down for the evening with a glass of wine as the sun dipped below the trees and out of sight

 

 

[Tempest]

This was to be our longest day of boating as our son, wanted to go to Oulton Broad!!

Salhouse to Oulton Broad?

Yes!

The tide timetable showed low water around 4pm, but we planned to go through GY around 3pm to give us ample time to get to Oulton Broad

At 8am we fired the engines and started to make our way to Horning with the plan to stop there if there was space on the staithe (which we didnt expect) or at St Bennets Abbey to get the timings right for the trip to GY.

Luckily for us though the Staithe had a gap which MS was able to slip into and this allowed us to have a nice morning in Horning and watch the world go by

We also bought breakfast from the Staithe and Willow and I waited in anticipation for my sausage and egg barm.....................only to be handed a bacon barm as they had no sausage or eggs..........

Breakfast wasnt really the strong point of this trip....... Well not yet anyhow!!

 

 

As we set off down the Bure we commented that the stretch from Horning to Ranworth was as busy as we had ever seen it (apart from a regatta day!)

 

We had a short stop at Stracey Windpump before heading through GY and onto Breydon water

 

 

 

I actually enjoy it when the waves are up, but not so for Julie!!

We arrived at Oulton Broad around 6.45pm that evening and went for a drink in the Waveney and ordered a chinese from the Magic Wok

 

 

We highly recommend the Magic Wok (website https://www.chineselowestoft.co.uk/ ) which you can order for collection online or by phone or they will deliver

We had chicken fried rice with chips and curry, whilst our son had salt and pepper chicken with rice and we all said what a really great chinese meal that was

[Tempest]

Thursday 17th September

We were up early chatting to the other boaters and it was good to see the family on lightening and thanks to the skipper of Magic ??? who lent me a hose to fill up my water tanks.

I am going to buy a flat hose and bring it with me in future as the number of times I have come across a tap with a standard hose connector, but no hose!!

I also got chatting to Chris the skipper of a beautiful Ocean 42 called Winters Moon and it was just really nice to be part of a family of boaters all chatting away about their adventures and why they enjoy the water so much

Soon we were off on our travels as our destination was to be the Ferry House at Surlingham. This is our favourite pub on the broads, for the moorings, the facilities, the people who run the pub, the welcome and the food. We just love it, but what made it more special was this was the very last pub my father visited before being taken ill and it holds many special memories for us all and my parents who loved the broads so much and introduced us to it many years ago

The run up the Waveney was relatively busy for the southern broads as a gaggle of boats headed up towards Somerleyton

 

 

We then had a break at Reedham and were soon off again

 

But as we travelled up river we decided to stop off at another location, which Malcolm Mouldy first gave us an insight into

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We then did something which we had never done before. Dont ask me why, but we hadnt, although I had heard from Dave Whitworth that he highly recommends it, so we nipped through Surlingham on our way to the Ferry House and we were not disappointed. Stunning spot and we will have to have a stop over here in the future

 

 

Before long we were at a packed Ferry House mooring as many boaters use this place as a stopover prior to going back to Brooms or Freedom boats

 

I highly recommend booking a mooring in advance or you may not get in!!

We booked a meal for 7pm on a large table (please!!) as we had our Newfies with us and they didnt disappoint as this table was the exact one that dad sat at and the chair to the right of my son was the chair he sat in, so it was only right and proper that we had a toast on him and for mum who passed in November

The food was exceptional and we agreed it was the best pub meal of the week, whilst the Magic Wok was the best takeaway

 

The Ferry House also does breakfast and after the week we had, we thought we may as well try and finish on a high, so we booked in for breakfast which starts at 9am until 11