Hi From Kingston Upon Thames

[Woodsie]

HI all, thanks so much for letting me join. I have already found a lot of useful information here and I'm sure I'll find more. My long suffering partner and I are taking out Silver Coral from Brundall, after the Easter weekend. We are experienced boaters but usually go on canals in narrow boats or broad beams. We have been on rivers a couple of times, once on the Thames in a narrow boat and once on the Saone in a cruiser. I love messing about in boats and she loves the countryside and birds in particular so it works well as a holiday.

Given I've read what I can so far e.g. I now know a little bit about mud weights - which will be a new thing for me - is there anyhting else you think I should know before we set off. Suggestions for good food pubs & moorings in the south would be great. Oh and I'd better ask for the best bird sites too.

Also my other hobby is barbecuing and I have a Weber Smokie Joe - a mini kettle barby - we've taken it on barge holidays before and enjoyed some nice cooks on the tow path. I am assuming we can do so on the broads, am I right? I did search for this I topics but didn't find anything. 

Thanks in anticipation of your help

John.

[BrundallNavy]

9 minutes ago, Woodsie said:

HI all, thanks so much for letting me join. I have already found a lot of useful information here and I'm sure I'll find more. My long suffering partner and I are taking out Silver Coral from Brundall, after the Easter weekend. We are experienced boaters but usually go on canals in narrow boats or broad beams. We have been on rivers a couple of times, once on the Thames in a narrow boat and once on the Saone in a cruiser. I love messing about in boats and she loves the countryside and birds in particular so it works well as a holiday.

Given I've read what I can so far e.g. I now know a little bit about mud weights - which will be a new thing for me - is there anyhting else you think I should know before we set off. Suggestions for good food pubs & moorings in the south would be great. Oh and I'd better ask for the best bird sites too.

Also my other hobby is barbecuing and I have a Weber Smokie Joe - a mini kettle barby - we've taken it on barge holidays before and enjoyed some nice cooks on the tow path. I am assuming we can do so on the broads, am I right? I did search for this I topics but didn't find anything. 

Thanks in anticipation of your help

John.

Welcome.  As long as you don’t light it on the deck not a problem at all..  Yes people really do do that !!! 

[OldBerkshireBoy]

 and 

Ask the hire yard about the mud weight when they explain everything to you if they forget it.

[OldBerkshireBoy]

Willy weather (stop sniggering at the back) is a useful site (and app) for tides and winds to have. Hopefully you wont need your wellies. 

[Lulu]

Warm welcome to the forum :)  The Aweigh app is also useful 

[YnysMon]

Welcome to the forum. 

There's lot of useful resources about the Broads and boating on the web. One of those I found most useful is this one...

https://www.mynorfolkbroadsboating.co.uk/home_for_smart_phone.html

It's also worth browsing the websites of some of the large hire boat companies, as they usually have a section on things to do on the Broads, including walking guides.

[grendel]

there is of course no tow path on the Broads, and you cannot moor everywhere (if there is no mooring there should be prominent no mooring signs) that said there are some lovely wild moorings that you can use, and you can of course drop the mud weight on any  of the broads. if mooring somewhere other than the staithes and official moorings you may well need to use a Rhond anchor (similar in use to pins on the canals, except its shape is specifically designed to hold in the soft ground often found next to the bank)

unless you have a 4 legged friend aboard that needs access to the bank, mud weighting can be delightful (just not in the middle of the rivers please) after sunset hire boats are not allowed to cruise, and private boats will need navigation lights.

if you head north, its probably better not to try mooring anywhere other than the recognised moorings below acle as the sides can be shallow and the tidal range could leave you aground.

crossing Breydon, you need to make sure you can fit under the bridges at great Yarmouth, low slack (1 hour after low tide ) is about best as you get the benefit of the tide both ways, though by then the tide can still just be coming out of the bure as it also rises decreasing the bridge heights. (there can be a 6 foot range of tide at great yarmouth)

Bridges, some are low and you need to use a bridge pilot to take you through, (wroxham and potter heigham). there should be a plaque at the helm with the minimum height needed, pay attention to this, and the height markers before the bridges, if in doubt get someone to sight along the roof to see that it clears the bridge, some bridges may need the canopy open and the screen lowered (depending upon the boat.)

other than that, have fun, enjoy yourselves and dont worry. 

[OldBerkshireBoy]

When going under a bridge do not be tempted to pop ones head up for a quick look! 

[OldBerkshireBoy]

Silver Coral is a fwd steer single level boat with sliding roof so less worries about any bridges 

[addicted]

A very warm welcome and best wishes for future cruising. For the most sound advice you've come to the right place. You'll find experts in just about every aspect here. I' m not one if them I hasten to add!

 

Carole

[Popeye]

Hi Woodsie and welcome to the forum, I am sure you will pick up a few good tips here.

Regarding barbeques, yep, you can barbeque on the bankside, of course taking into consideration any possibility of setting fire to surrounding vegetation. Take care when mooring to nice looking places at high tide on the lower Broads as the tidal range is quite big and you can be left high and dry when the tide goes down. You will not have this problem if you moor to recognised BA moorings. but do leave a bit of slack in the ropes to allow for the tide to drop.

On the upper Broads the tidal range, say above Thune mouth, is only a few inches and is not a problem but still leave a bit of slack in your ropes.

As to birding, in the South you will see many species, especially the Marsh Harrier and I have seen Barn Owls in the area too. If you go North and you can get under Potter Heigham Bridge it is a birder's paradise, you name it, it is possibly there and you can often see the Swallowtail Butterfly there too. In the Spring you can often hear the elusive Bittern and if you very lucky, even see one. Otherwise, Barton Broad is another good place for birders.

Make sure you read your manual supplied with the boat, especially with regards to passing over Breydon Water and through Great Yarmouth, there is information there which is indispensable.

Have a good trip.

Regards.

Popeye. 

[grendel]

I once had a swallowtail butterfly settle on my shoulder when wild moored just above How Hill

[YnysMon]

When we were last at Dilham (head of navigation on the river Ant) in November we had a kingfisher perch on our bow pulpit rails. It was just around dawn. The previous afternoon we had spotted a barn owl on a walk from Dilham to Tonnage Bridge.

[BroadAmbition]

Welcome onboard Woodsie

Griff

[floydraser]

[Smoggy]

Please remember there is no public towpath, all the banks are owned by someone so be careful with that barbie.

And wild moorings on the lower reaches is a no no due to the tides.

Water runs pretty fast on the lower reaches too, always try to moor into the tide, much bigger tidal range on the southern rivers.

And enjoy!

[ranworthbreeze]

Hello John,

Welcome to the forum.

Regards

Alan

 

[Bikertov]

Welcome aboard John 

[Bogart]

Had a lovely pork belly in the Nelson's Head in Reedham saturday and a good pint.

[annv]

Hi John You need too remember to moor into the tidal flow which isn't always up river and the height of water(rise & fall) can be as much as two feet depending where you moor so dont have the mooring ropes to tight. Enjoy having no locks. John

[Popeye]

18 hours ago, YnysMon said:

When we were last at Dilham (head of navigation on the river Ant) in November we had a kingfisher perch on our bow pulpit rails. It was just around dawn. The previous afternoon we had spotted a barn owl on a walk from Dilham to Tonnage Bridge.

Yes, Kingfishers are quite an often sight on the Broads. You often hear them with their call, a peeeee and you see them flying close to the water if disturbed. The trick is to note where they land and shut the engine down and do not move in the cockpit and slowly cruise past. Doing that you will get a wonderful sight of one of our most colourful birds.