On Reflection

[YnysMon]

Thanks Jean. Lovely photos and I loved the YouTube video too. Great photo of the daffs...was that down Horsefen Lane, the road toward Hunter’s Yard? Sounds like you had a grand relaxing time.

[SwanR]

7 hours ago, YnysMon said:

Great photo of the daffs...was that down Horsefen Lane, the road toward Hunter’s Yard? Sounds like you had a grand relaxing time.

Hi Helen, yes, that's exactly where it was. I love seeing so many daffodils together like that, really brightens things up and makes you feel that spring can't be too far away.

[BryanW]

Hi Jean.  Assume Richardsons are still providing towels?  We are up end of April on Swan Roamer assuming we are not confined to home since we are over 70.

[SwanR]

12 hours ago, BryanW said:

Assume Richardsons are still providing towels?  

Hello Bryan. Yes two large and two small towels, and two tea towels and a little kitchen starter pack. I think this is only on their platinum boats of which the ex-Swancraft fleet qualify. Hope you are able to get your time away. I am so glad that we managed to get out last week, very fortunate indeed. :)

[SwanR]

Day Four - Sutton to Ranworth to Paddy's Lane

We knew that this day was forecast to be even windier than those which had gone before. 40mph winds. We even considered staying where we were but ... we were only out on a short break, the sun was shining and we didn't want to waste the day. But where to go? In the end, after some debate about lunch stops at the top end of the Ant, we opted for a cruise all the way back down to the Bure and along to Ranworth again. Yes, we had enjoyed the Maltsters and decided that it would be no hardship to head back there. 

Coming back up the Ant, as we needed to be in easy distance of Stalham for returning the boat the next day, we debated where to moor. How Hill was too soon, Irstead was occupied, Gayes' Staithe was full and we didn't fancy trying Neatishead as we were quite tired by this time. Crossed Barton Broad to find half of Paddy's Lane closed off as they look to be replacing the quay heading and generally re-doing the moorings. But there was room on the side opposite Cox's yard and we were soon tied up ready for a quiet evening and some general packing and tidying.

 

Day 5 - Paddy's Lane to Stalham to Home via Goodie's Farm Shop

Just a short hop back to Richardson's to hand the boat back. We were the first away from our moorings by about 8am and found a space on Kingfisher Quay to slot back into. Job done. Time to get signed off, buoyancy aids back to the store and our fuel refund collected from Reception. 

We were soon on the road but as usual when coming back down the A140, we stopped at Goodie's Farm Shop for supplies. Saves us needing to do any shopping when we get home. I can highly recommend the Applewood smoked cheese, the fudge, the carrot cake and the lemon, lime and coconut cake. :)

[SwanR]

March Hiring and the Weather!!

I would definitely hire in March again, this is the third year that we have done so. The weather was grey and cloudy for two days, then bright and sunny for two days. However the whole week was windy, 25mph winds rising to 45 mph the last day or two. Barton Broad was very choppy and there were waves on the Bure in particular. We seemed to be going against the wind and the tide a lot of the time - we didn't try to factor that in when deciding where to go. We had the heating on quite a bit which probably accounted for a good part of our diesel costs which were £59.

Two nights were stern on mooring and two nights were side on. Didn't make much difference in the wind. Noisiest nights we have had on a boat ever. Bouncing against the quay if moored stern on, ropes creaking when moored side on.

I would however go later in the month next time. This is the first year that we have gone before the end of the fishing season and it definitely made a difference. More boats out, still plenty of room at most moorings but we didn't get the solitude that we got last year when 3 out of 4 nights we were the only boat where we moored up. I missed that.

On the subject of the fishing Mr SR caught a very nice bream and perch at Ranworth. At Sutton he was catching lots of tiddlers!!

Where to Eat?

We had some very nice bacon baps at Bridgestone's in Potter Heigham before we picked up the boat on day one. That was sufficient and saved us cooking on the boat later ... I didn't cook on the boat all week.

The Sutton Staithe Hotel was doing a lunchtime deal of two courses for £7.95. I can recommend the ham, egg and chips followed by apple pie and custard. Great value, large portions - just basic food at an affordable price.

Our favourite this time around was The Maltsters at Ranworth. I've not been a huge fan in the past but it's probably a few years since we ate there. The food was so good that we went there twice for lunch - scampi and chips both times. We also went in there one evening for a drink, which is something that we rarely do. The atmosphere and the staff were very friendly and we thoroughly enjoyed our time there.

[SwanR]

The Boat Yard

We hired from Richardson's. The staff were very friendly and the handover sufficient as we have had this boat many times. We were delighted to leave the yard around 1.45pm. Reception opens at 1pm for checking in. Yes it can feel a bit like a conveyor belt but it works for them. I haven't been there at a really busy time of year so can't comment on how that works on a busy Saturday afternoon mid-season but it all worked very smoothly for us, as it has done on our previous visits.

Unfortunately we did have the engineers out three times, all for the same problem. They were very good when we called and it didn't inconvenience us as we were moored up for a while anyway. They were very polite and always cleared everything up once they had finished. Basically when hooked up to the shore power the inverter didn't work for more than a few minutes. Very odd. Each time they came out they thought they had fixed it only for us to find later on that it still wasn't working. In the end it turned out that the cable wasn't working properly, or wasn't the right one. So it was drawing too much power and overloading the inverter.

We also reported that the rev counter was only working intermittently. Didn't matter to us but I think if you were a first time hirer and had been told for example that 1200 revs = 4mph, but then the rev counter stopped working, you might feel a little unsure of what your speed was. Hopefully they have fixed this now.

I have to give a thumbs up for the overall package. I do think that they are hard to beat for price. They haven't entered into the last minute discounts that other yards have started doing and I like that. They are one of only a couple of yards where I would now feel safe to book very far in advance.

[SwanR]

Swan Reflection 2

Between numbers 1 and 2 we have hired this boat around six times now. It is best described as compact being only 31 feet long. The brochures tend to describe it as an ideal starter boat. What can I say ... comfortable, steers in a straight line, easy to moor, very good bow thrusters ... and I still think that the ex-Swancraft boats have the best electric toilets on the Broads! 

My worst mooring was Ludham Bridge for water. The wind was pinning us to the bank and even with the bow thrusters I could not get the boat away. In the end Mr SR pulled us round by the bow rope to give me enough of an angle to reverse out.

My best mooring was coming in at Sutton which restored my confidence after the experience at Ludham Bridge .... and of course as we got in by the water point we needn't have actually stopped earlier after all. 

Here's a few photos of the interior for anyone who might be hiring this boat. And yes, I would definitely hire it again.

 

[SwanR]

Finally for this trip, here's my video. I was at the helm most of the time so didn't get very much footage while cruising. But I do enjoy putting something together as a memory of my holiday. Enjoy!   

 

[Broads01]

Thanks for the detailed write-up and photos Jean. I'm glad you enjoyed yourselves. I'm interested to know, what makes you favour Reflection over the larger Swancraft 2 berths? As you may remember, I've hired Roamer and it was brilliant.

[YnysMon]

Looks a lovely boat Jean, I can understand why you’ve hired her several times. Thanks for commenting on your experience all round.

The Maltsters is an interesting one. We’ve been there for a few meals, some really excellent, some not so good.

[Guest]

2 hours ago, SwanR said:

In the end, after some debate about lunch stops at the top end of the Ant, we opted for a cruise all the way back down to the Bure and along to Ranworth again. Yes, we had enjoyed the Maltsters and decided that it would be no hardship to head back there. 

Lovely to hear that you enjoyed your break Mrs SR, it really doesn't matter whether you retread the same rivers or head somewhere new, as long as you are aboard, there isn't a bad day on the river.

Rightly or wrongly, I like to think Mr Nog and I have persuaded you to enjoy the Maltsters once again 

[SwanR]

7 hours ago, Broads01 said:

I'm interested to know, what makes you favour Reflection over the larger Swancraft 2 berths?

Ah well. We first hired this boat back in 2012 as novices ourselves when it was based on the southern rivers. Weather was great, loved the boat, and there we were hooked. Both Reflections were newer than the other boats and we just stuck with them. The bedroom and bathroom space is a bit cramped admittedly but we knew what we were getting. We are looking around at what we might book next and it could be time for a change. 

[DAVIDH]

12 hours ago, SwanR said:

Finally for this trip, here's my video. I was at the helm most of the time so didn't get very much footage while cruising. But I do enjoy putting something together as a memory of my holiday. Enjoy! 

Really enjoyed the video Jean. I'm interested in your choice of backing music. Are they your "favs" or is it just what you are allowed to use? I can quite imagine the Korgies and the Carpenters being on your own "playlist".

[SwanR]

9 hours ago, DAVIDH said:

Really enjoyed the video Jean. I'm interested in your choice of backing music. Are they your "favs" or is it just what you are allowed to use? I can quite imagine the Korgies and the Carpenters being on your own "playlist".

Thanks David, I'm glad that you enjoyed it. The music I use on my videos is always tracks that I own, so it is music that I like. But you're right that it's balanced with what you're allowed to use these days on YouTube. As a creator there is an area where you can check copyright details of tracks as to whether if used your video will be viewable worldwide, blocked in certain countries or muted.

It always takes me longer to put the music on than it does to pull together the clips and photos. I am quite fussy and I have a feel that I'm trying to achieve. If it doesn't feel right to me then the search goes on until I find a track I think fits and that passes the copyright issue as far as I can tell. I think I've got better at trimming the footage or fading the music so that it fits together more exactly.