Monaco 1 - 12th To 23rd July 2021

[KevinB]

7 minutes ago, DAVIDH said:

Rockland Broad is such a beautiful place. It reminds me of Marham Broad, untouched and unspoilt. You could forgive yourself thinking you were cruising in the 1930s. I envy you on your kayak. Now that certainly would be a way of getting back to nature. 

Thanks David, yes it certainly is a lovely spot, so nice just drifting in the kayak in total silence and to think we were only a short cruise from Norwich city centre!  Like a different world.

I can’t remember ever being up through Potter Heigham bridge sadly, I was too young to remember at the time, back in the day when the bathtubs went under no bother!

[750XL]

We visited Rockland for the first time last October and loved it. Great for fishing too, we were pulling out a fish every 30 seconds from there!

[KevinB]

3 minutes ago, 750XL said:

We visited Rockland for the first time last October and loved it. Great for fishing too, we were pulling out a fish every 30 seconds from there!

Can’t believe I hadn’t visited there for 20 years 🙈 

I did notice a lot of fish at the surface at night , I also noticed that at Norwich this year, stocks seems to be very healthy!

I have never fished on the Broads yet, doing it for a living it just doesn’t appeal to me on holiday 🤣

[CambridgeCabby]

We find the New Inn Rockland to be one of ,if not the most, welcoming pub we have visited whilst afloat 

[Broads01]

We were moored at Rockland on the same night on Forth Bridge 2 to your right and visible in your photos 2nd and 3rd from last. We ate at the pub too (it's called the New Inn btw) and we too were impressed with the food and the service. I've visited Rockland many times but it was only the second time I'd moored for the night there and we really enjoyed it.

[KevinB]

1 hour ago, Broads01 said:

We were moored at Rockland on the same night on Forth Bridge 2 to your right and visible in your photos 2nd and 3rd from last. We ate at the pub too (it's called the New Inn btw) and we too were impressed with the food and the service. I've visited Rockland many times but it was only the second time I'd moored for the night there and we really enjoyed it.

I twigged it was you aboard Forth Bridge after reading the forum that night ,  I wasn’t a member then only a browser 😂

We saw you a few more times that week at Oulton Broad, Acle and Irstead 😂

[Broads01]

15 hours ago, KevinB said:

We saw you a few more times that week at Oulton Broad, Acle and Irstead 😂

Ah yes, we were at Oulton Broad Tuesday 20th overnight (I think you were there as well if this was you on the right of the photo?) and at Bridgecraft Wednesday 21st. We were at Irstead Thursday 22nd when I guess you were on your way back to base.

[KevinB]

4 hours ago, Broads01 said:

Ah yes, we were at Oulton Broad Tuesday 20th overnight (I think you were there as well if this was you on the right of the photo?) and at Bridgecraft Wednesday 21st. We were at Irstead Thursday 22nd when I guess you were on your way back to base.

Yes that’s right, that was us at Oulton broad, it was a beautiful sunset that night, we were at the top end of the free moorings at Acle opposite bridge craft and Irstead was our last day on the sad journey back to the yard 

[KevinB]

Monday 19th July

After a very peaceful night, Monday morning was another lovely sunny day, we awoke to find a frog outside on the deck by the door, much to the kids delight, I lifted it into the long grass on the bank before we left.

We decided to head for the Waveney river centre, it’s always a favourite stop for us, the pool and park is great for the kids and we all like it there. We left Rockland at 8.45am, I never book any moorings but did wonder after we left if I should phone to ask if there was space at WRC but as it turned out there was plenty moorings when we got there anyway. Leaving Rockland via the short dyke, I was surprised how many boats were moored there, seems a very popular spot for fishing. The yare was pretty quiet, met a few boats but it wasn’t until Reedham it started to get a bit busier only a couple of moorings free too. The new cut was fairly busy, steady stream of boats heading in both directions before turning onto the Waveney. The Waveney has always been a favourite stretch of river for me, I don’t know why as there isn’t really much to see but it always seems to feel a bit more remote and less congested. We arrived at the WRC at 12.15pm, there was plenty of free moorings, we got our “usual spot” 😂 last mooring on the left on the quay side infront of the tents. There was a few large private boats opposite and 3 Silverline marine boats which all looked immaculate. The tide was still ebbing when we arrived and I noticed a lot of sediment stirred up, a short while later I went to adjust the ropes slightly and we were actually hard aground in the mud. When we were last here 2 years ago they were in the process of installing water pipes and a new quay heading and I was pleased to see there was now hoses installed, much handier as there used to be only one on a meter at the river side, I topped up the tank again.

We relaxed on the boat a while, kids went to the park then we walked to reception to pay for the night and see if we could book swimming as it was timed slots only due to covid situation. The slot were all booked for the day but they had space for the 2pm slot free, it was now just after 2pm so we quickly paid and nipped back to the boat to get changed. 45 minute slots so we still had plenty time in the pool , we booked again for 9am the next morning 😂 We booked dinner in the Waveney inn for 6pm, we had eaten here several times before and always liked it. It was another very hot day so we relaxed on the boat a while and took the opportunity to make use of the laundry facilities and got some washing done and hung on the boat to dry. The Waveney inn was very quiet, despite the amount of tents, lodges and caravans there was just another 2 tables inside and 1 outside occupied. The meal was ok but not that a great menu choice and they had ran out of a few things , quite pricey for what it was I thought and disappointing compared to the New inn at Rockland the previous night.

After dinner we went  for a walk around the park and noticed more lodges had appeared since our last visit,  we walked along the road to visit the church , St Mary ,Burgh St Peter, it’s just along from the entrance to WRC. It’s a very unusual looking church seemingly in the middle of nowhere, but there are some recent graves here.

We got back to the boat around 8.30pm , kayak launched again and I took Ava for a paddle around the marina and down the river a while, it was another beautiful quiet night. We sat at the stern of the boat till well after dark taking in the peace and quiet, such a lovely spot.

No we can’t keep the frog!

 

 

[YnysMon]

Lovely tale again, sounds like really special day that will be remembered. I’ve been wanting to have a closer look at that church. It’s history is tied up with the Boycott family, the term ‘to boycott’ originates with one of the family who worked as a (not popular!) land agent in Ireland during the late 19th century. Interesting history!

[KevinB]

1 minute ago, YnysMon said:

Lovely tale again, sounds like really special day that will be remembered. I’ve been wanting to have a closer look at that church. It’s history is tied up with the Boycott family, the term ‘to boycott’ originates with one of the family who worked as a (not popular!) land agent in Ireland during the late 19th century. Interesting history!

Thanks 🙂

Ah I didn’t know that about the church, that is very interesting, I must go and google it now 😂 we had a look inside and wrote in the visitor book

[YnysMon]

It’s worth googling, the guy who built the church sounds like he was a bit bonkers too. 

[SwanR]

Enjoying your tale. It’s interesting to read about a real family holiday given that we’re always out as a couple. 

[750XL]

Another good read.

 

I've also seen reports recently on Facebook of people hitting the mud at Waveney. Are river levels exceptionally low at the moment? Or is the Waveney basin just silting up?

[CambridgeCabby]

Any holiday tale which is about family holidays always brings a smile to my face as I remember fondly our children when they were small loving the experience .

Our eldest son ( then aged 8 or 9) would always disappear below decks as we passed Salhouse Broad heading downstream to reappear in his swimming gear 5 minutes later in anticipation of us mooring in Ferry Marina so he could spend literally the whole day in their outside pool , only for us to moor up one year and for him to excitedly run off and for him to return long faced five minutes later to tell us they had filled it in .

TBH Katie and I often mention it when passing the Ferry Marina and both bursting out laughing , God we’re evil parents .

[grendel]

I think water levels must be low, I saw 8 foot mentioned at beccles old bridge the other day

[Broads01]

39 minutes ago, CambridgeCabby said:

Any holiday tale which is about family holidays always brings a smile to my face as I remember fondly our children when they were small loving the experience .

Our eldest son ( then aged 8 or 9) would always disappear below decks as we passed Salhouse Broad heading downstream to reappear in his swimming gear 5 minutes later in anticipation of us mooring in Ferry Marina so he could spend literally the whole day in their outside pool , only for us to moor up one year and for him to excitedly run off and for him to return long faced five minutes later to tell us they had filled it in .

TBH Katie and I often mention it when passing the Ferry Marina and both bursting out laughing , God we’re evil parents .

My daughter used to enjoy the indoor pool there when she was young (2010-2011) but I think that's gone now. Whereabouts was the outdoor pool?

[CambridgeCabby]

1 hour ago, Broads01 said:

My daughter used to enjoy the indoor pool there when she was young (2010-2011) but I think that's gone now. Whereabouts was the outdoor pool?

It was where the car parking is now immediately behind the sales boats at the back of the Marina 

[KevinB]

10 hours ago, SwanR said:

Enjoying your tale. It’s interesting to read about a real family holiday given that we’re always out as a couple. 

Thanks very much Jean, glad your enjoying it 

5 hours ago, 750XL said:

Another good read.

 

I've also seen reports recently on Facebook of people hitting the mud at Waveney. Are river levels exceptionally low at the moment? Or is the Waveney basin just silting up?

Thanks 👍🏻
I’ve never had any problems with boats grounding in there before , possibly could do with a bit of a dredge out, but also water did drop quite a bit, had to lift the kids up to the quay

5 hours ago, CambridgeCabby said:

Any holiday tale which is about family holidays always brings a smile to my face as I remember fondly our children when they were small loving the experience .

Our eldest son ( then aged 8 or 9) would always disappear below decks as we passed Salhouse Broad heading downstream to reappear in his swimming gear 5 minutes later in anticipation of us mooring in Ferry Marina so he could spend literally the whole day in their outside pool , only for us to moor up one year and for him to excitedly run off and for him to return long faced five minutes later to tell us they had filled it in .

TBH Katie and I often mention it when passing the Ferry Marina and both bursting out laughing , God we’re evil parents .

I remember the outdoor pool well, spent a lot of time in it 😂 

It was great, back in the day when you were allowed to moor in the marina right in front of it.

I asked someone at Ferry marina a few years ago about the indoor pool, it is still there apparently, just been floored over and turned into the boat sales offices 

[KevinB]

Tuesday 20th July 

We had a very quiet night at WRC, a couple of boats set off early but we were in no rush today. We headed to the pool again for 9am, another good swim, pity the jacuzzi was closed due to covid situation. It’s a good pool for the kids, not too big , they were limiting it to a maximum of 20 people for 45 minute slots , still plenty room to swim.

We weren’t sure where to head today, obviously had to watch the days now for getting back to Stalham for Thursday night 😭 Oulton Broad powerboat racing has always been a highlight for me, lots of memories from family holidays in my childhood. I had been checking the racing schedule and Thursday 22nd was to be the first race , not really feasible for getting back to Stalham the same night  😂   I wondered if it was worth phoning the yard to ask if the boat was going back out on Friday or if it was Saturday….we could maybe get one more night..🤔 I already knew the answer as all fully booked but as there was some last minute cancellations due to the “pingdemic” and it doesn’t hurt to ask does it…so I phoned Richardsons and as expect the boat was going back out on Friday, the guy on the phone said it was worth asking but the only way I’d get extra time on the boat was if I stayed to clean it after we handed it back 😂 I declined that offer 😂  Knowing we could only really manage one more night south we debated whether to head to Oulton broad or Beccles as we like both, decision made, Oulton broad it is.

After topping up the water again, we left WRC around 11am for the short cruise down to Oulton broad, river was very quiet apart from a few day boats, we arrived at the yacht station around half an hour later. The yacht station was very quiet, there was no other hire boats there when we arrived at all but quite a few nice private boats moored. The Wherry hotel moorings were fairly busy with more boats arriving, we have never moored there for some reason. Arriving at the yacht station I asked the attendant if it was ok to moor on the pontoon stern on to the broad , pity there wasn’t going to be any powerboat racing as it was an ideal mooring to watch it from.

It was another hot day, so we relaxed on the boat a while and had lunch and watched the comings and going’s. The kids were desperate to go to the park so we headed off around 2pm, an ice cream being the first stop ..or in my case 2 😂 ( it was a hot day 🤣 ) Next they wanted on the rides at “the Boulevard” , I remember there being a outdoor pool here when I was younger, it seemed to have been mostly filled in and smaller bit left at the end and the rest turned into a beach where you paid to sit 😂  We then went a walk around the park and visited a couple of shops. It’s a pity the Spar shop closed, Louise was keen to make tea on the boat tonight and had nothing on the boat to cook, couple of small shops up the street didn’t stock much , we picked up a couple of things from Jeckells and decided to get a takeaway later. By 6pm a few more boats had arrived but only a couple of hire boats. We got pizzas from Flames just across the road from the yacht station , we had been there in previous years and it was always very good. We sat on the rear of the boat and ate them, very nice they were too. It was a beautiful night so the kayak was launched again and I took Leo for a paddle on the broad , Ava wasn’t keen tonight. It was a stunning sunset and I sat outside till late enjoying the peace and quiet, always something special about Oulton broad at night I think

 

 

 

 

[Broads01]

I can see why you asked for that spot, great view from your stern.

 

 

[SwanR]

Lovely photos. We’ve never moored at Oulton Broad but visit quite often when we’re in Lowestoft. It’s interesting to read other tales and see how different every holiday can be. 

[KevinB]

12 hours ago, SwanR said:

Lovely photos. We’ve never moored at Oulton Broad but visit quite often when we’re in Lowestoft. It’s interesting to read other tales and see how different every holiday can be. 

I’ve always liked the yacht station moorings and outlook from Oulton Broad , but I can’t remember ever being at Lowestoft,  apparently we went when I was very young by water taxi when it was still running 😂 We did think of walking there this year but decided against it

[CambridgeCabby]

Oulton is one of our favourite Southern Moorings , we normally go side on to the pontoon , the vista is amazing to awaken to, well worth the mooring fee (£18.50 inc elec)

Normally have a stroll in the evening to The Commodore for an excellent Ghost Ship or two and a bite to eat then a relaxing amble through the park before returning to our boat.

Last time we visited we caught the train into Lowestoft for some retail therapy , we couldn’t believe how short a train journey it was , and very good value 

[KevinB]

52 minutes ago, CambridgeCabby said:

Oulton is one of our favourite Southern Moorings , we normally go side on to the pontoon , the vista is amazing to awaken to, well worth the mooring fee (£18.50 inc elec)

Normally have a stroll in the evening to The Commodore for an excellent Ghost Ship or two and a bite to eat then a relaxing amble through the park before returning to our boat.

Last time we visited we caught the train into Lowestoft for some retail therapy , we couldn’t believe how short a train journey it was , and very good value 

Yes it’s always been a favourite of mine too, pity I missed the powerboat racing this year. I’ve never thought of going side on , would probably need to book that in advance as outer pontoon always seems popular.

Thanks for the heads up about the train, I didn’t realise you could do that 🙈😂