Springer’s Retreat On The Rivers

[kpnut]

20 hours ago, YnysMon said:

Those ducks near Horning are a cheeky lot!

They certainly are. I always thought people encouraged them onboard but no, she decided to just fly up as we were going along. Good thing she didn’t fly straight in through the sunroof and land on a dog! Finlay’s training would have really been put to the test. Not sure she’d have fared so well with a Jack Russell!

[kpnut]

Tuesday 20th June.
Sunny start and I was again surprised at how little river traffic went past early on. Two boats by 8am. As we departed, the sky looked rather black and sure enough, by the time we arrived at Wroxham it was raining hard.

There were three boats waiting for the pilot at the bridge by seeing as none of them seemed ready for the off, I nipped through, filled with water at the yard and moored up after the railway bridge. This was for a Lesley to try having a little walk. Once the rain had stopped, we set off. She managed to get off the boat well enough, but walking with crutches to the town end of the mooring was enough for her. I know so well how she feels, having been there numerous times myself.

Back on board for the journey upstream. I’d read about the amount of loose weed on the surface and it was pretty bad, but no worse than I was expecting after the weed cutter had been at work towards the end of last week. We moored up at the lock and spent a warm, sunny afternoon chatting and with the dogs swimming. Very relaxing. 
 

[kpnut]

Wednesday 21st June.
Another beautiful morning to wake to and it stayed that way all day as we headed off on the long trip from Coltishall lock to Upton Dyke, via a stop at Ranworth for a climb to the top of the church tower for Ray and me. I don’t intend mooring at Ranworth when on my own during the ‘season’ but have the quandry that if my guests would like to, it’s their holiday and Ray duly paid the £5, with me keeping the receipt for future use. I voiced my disapproval to the attendant who sensibly didn’t get into a discussion. I had the last spot on the staithe at 12.30pm, and by 3pm when we left, there were 4 empty spaces. Anyway, deed done and I feel cross about having to feel like I do about it. We had a nice lunch in the Granary so I at least have contributed to the local economy. 
My mood brightened markedly when I found the end of Upton Dyke available as it’s one of my favourite spots. Lesley managed time off the boat to sit on the bench while Ray and I walked the circular route to the black mill and down the track into Upton. As we passed Eastwood Whelpton three yachts were readying to leave, all with ladies on board. It was their Wednesday evening sailing session/lesson. Bookable in advance for £20 for a two hour? (maybe1.5?) lesson. I am seriously thinking I will do this one Wednesday when I’m on my own, to at least learn how to ‘read’ yacht movements for when I want to pass them. It did look a lot of fun. 
The sunset, which I didn’t take a photo of, no idea why, lingered for ages and then a crescent moon appeared with Venus sitting below and to the left, very clearly visible. 
 

[YnysMon]

10 hours ago, kpnut said:

As we passed Eastwood Whelpton three yachts were readying to leave, all with ladies on board. It was their Wednesday evening sailing session/lesson. Bookable in advance for £20 for a two hour? (maybe1.5?) lesson. I am seriously thinking I will do this one Wednesday when I’m on my own, to at least learn how to ‘read’ yacht movements for when I want to pass them. It did look a lot of fun.  
 

Good idea, I’m sure you’d enjoy it.

[kpnut]

Thursday 22nd June. Upton Dyke was so peaceful overnight and we woke up to another sunny morning. As seems to be the norm at Upton, the early morning local dog walkers all seem to be spaniel owners. Maybe that’s where I need to move to?😄

For info for dog owners- quite a scum of blue green algae on the water in the dyke this morning.

First port of call was Potter Heigham for a view of the bridge and to buy milk and duck food. No spaces were available on the 24hr moorings,  so I cheekily asked if I could moor on the pilot moorings for 10 mins. Ray nipped over to the shop while I stayed onboard in case I needed to move for someone wanting to come into the mooring. Lesley and I chatted to the young ranger, in his first season of work in that role. He told me he hadn’t known that paddleboards needed a toll before starting the job. I suggested a public information campaign by the BA might be in order. He also said the rangers were commenting on how quiet it is at the moment, which makes me ponder about the shortage of public moorings at Potter Heigham. No spaces on a quiet weekday mid morning in June. (I don’t think double mooring is allowed there, but could be wrong, not that many people do it nowadays anyway and it seems to me a bit unfair to count double moorings in the ‘no. of moorings available’ statistics).
The loss of the ‘quiet moorings’ previously provided by the chalet owners is a real blow, the moorings are overgrown and if the BA were to spend any money on new moorings, it would be a very good place to start. 

Duly topped up with provisions, we made our way to Womack staithe where I had no intention of stopping, it was just sightseeing. There were no spaces anyway. Then back down to Womack Dyke moorings for lunch. 
And then on to Thurne Dyke for our overnight stop. I had hoped to be on the river end, mainly for the view but also ‘cos it’s out of the way of boats going up. I managed a tight little spot a couple of boats up the dyke. Lesley managed to walk right up to the shop, which is big progress with her back problem. And later we had a very nice meal in the pub  as a treat for their last night on board. 
I expect Finlay is wondering what’s going on this week, he’s only had one walk of any distance, but he seems happy enough in this heat to just chill out. He decided to check out Alfie’s little Jack Russell sized bed at one point. 

Yet again, posters on Facebook groups seem to have caught the sunset last night at Thurne, but it just looked misty to me. The mist came in about 9.30pm and is still here early this morning. It’ll undoubtedly burn off fairly quickly though. 

[SwanR]

Lovely write up Kate. I thought it looked a little misty this morning too. I guess there are certain moorings that are the ones likely to be busy even if the rivers seem a little quiet. It’s been a great week for showing off the Broads. 

[kpnut]

Friday 23rd June. 
starting with my attempt at a Thurne photo last night (admittedly taken from inside the boat). 

The forecast overnight mist burnt off quickly this morning

and the day has been oppressively hot, but not that I’m complaining really as a ‘dry dog towel’ day is a treat. 
We stopped off at How Hill as we’d booked the electric boat trip into the marsh for 11am. An hour of very quietly moving down the little dykes at water level, seeing mainly dragonflies, and then a short walk to the bird hide overlooking Reedham water, with birds and waterfowl getting on with their lives. 
A quick look-see in wherry Ardea and in Toad Hole cottage rounded off a really enjoyable few days. Both are certainly worth a visit. Of course we had the obligatory icecream too after our lunch. 
 

Each trip I do with guests on board is different as each guest has different interests and different perspectives in what they see. This week was a ‘chill-out’ week due to mobility issues, sometimes it’s a ‘route march’ week which the dog loves, and others it’s an instructional week on how the boat works, with me getting nowhere near the helm apart from mooring.

[Roy]

Hi Kate I’m enjoying your holiday blog as usual. 

Do you know if ardea is at how hill all summer to view? 

Thanks 

[SwanR]

Sounds like another lovely day Kate. And what a great way to look at all the different experiences you give your friends. 

[kpnut]

2 hours ago, Roy said:

Do you know if ardea is at how hill all summer to view? 

Yes she is. She’s replaced Hathor for the season as Hathor is having work find on her. 
She does go out on certain days on charter though, so perhaps look on the wherry trust website for those particular dates before making a journey specially. 
She’s worth going aboard. 
 

And pleased you enjoy reading. It’s a useful diary to myself plus all my musings about things that puzzle me along the way. 

[Roy]

16 hours ago, kpnut said:

Yes she is. She’s replaced Hathor for the season as Hathor is having work find on her. 
She does go out on certain days on charter though, so perhaps look on the wherry trust website for those particular dates before making a journey specially. 
She’s worth going aboard. 
 

And pleased you enjoy reading. It’s a useful diary to myself plus all my musings about things that puzzle me along the way. 

Thank you I will check before going but I don’t need any excuse to visit how hill it’s such a lovely place. 

Thanks 

[kpnut]

Saturday 24th June.
Up early for a shopping trip to a diy shed in Great Yarmouth for among other things, a paint tester pot to keep on board in case of mishaps. I treated Finlay to a cooling mat and he made good use of it today. and managed, at last (after numerous visits to the shop) to buy a matching rug to two I’d previously bought at Lathams. Not often my shopping trips are completely successful. 

It was still only 10.30 when I set off down the Ant, a bit later than I’d ideally wanted. My plan was to visit the nature reserve at How Hill as I’d never been round it before, take the dog on a good long walk and move on. I managed the first bit, leaving Finlay on the boat as dogs are not allowed in the reserve. Halfway round I found a spot I just knew I’d visited before, in 1997. All that time I’d been wondering just where it was on the Broads I’d taken a photo of my two children pond-dipping. It makes perfect sense, we’d have been on some activity day they were holding. I used to look out for activities like that when on holiday with them. No wonder Catherine ended up as an aquatic ecologist! I’ll show her the photo I took this time without telling her why and see if she can remember. She’d have been 9 at the time. 
I encountered hundreds of dragonflies and damselflies, and some snail shells, but not really much else apart from picking up my first midge bites of the season. The little guide book I was given is very good. 

It was far too hot for a long dog walk and the boat was penned in by this time so I stayed put. The wherry’s dinghy at my stern and a boat with its nose over the end of the quay (helping to protect mine from any ‘events’) over my bow made me snug in what Lulu calls Luna’s Nook. 
I did a bit of painting, got some woodwork ready for varnishing,  stuck down a bit of flooring that had originally not stuck well, and also replacing the ‘screw fixing’ bit of an electric back box that I’d noticed was cracked. So my shopping trip had been worthwhile. Jobs ticked off. 
We went for our walk towards evening, the reverse of one I did last week, exploring further than the normal circular walk down the moorings and back along the lane. Finlay seemed to enjoy himself, prettying himself up in the process of rummaging about. 

A spot of whistle training on the How Hill field to conclude his walk saw him very steady on the rabbits that had come out to graze. At one point, with him running towards them then dropping to the whistle, while they ran off a bit, and then both he and they all sitting stock still looking at each other, wish I’d videoed it! They must be quite used to dogs to have not run off into the bushes immediately. 

It was a beautiful warm, calm evening. 

[kpnut]

I’m out on a walk at south walsham and have been sitting in the shade overlooking the broad at the public staithe. 
As I arrived, there was a very strange thing going on in the water. Ive never seen anything like it. 
Looked like a starling murmuration, of insects or little fish fry or something, with dragonflies following it to and fro across the water. It made little splashing noises. 
Well I watched this for 5 minutes and decided I must take a photo so crept up slowly as I didn’t want to scare away whatever it was. You might have to zoom in on the photo. 

 

 

 

And promptly got rained on by a garden sprinkler who’s water was coming over the fence into the broad!
My thought of becoming a famous scientist discovering some new invertebrate behaviour will have to wait a while longer. 😂

[Gracie]

I watched the most dire film on Prime the other day about a giant man eating crocodile who made little waves and splashes before it attacked just like in your photo Kate. Yep, I reckon it's a crocodile  x

[MargeandParge]

It must have come from the Southern Broads where they all live alongside the other monsters, according to educated crews.

Kindest Regards Marge and Parge 

[Troyboy]

Hi Kate, this is our new addition. We lost Ollie in October. This is a female called Vera. She is 9 yrs old and belonged to the under keeper at Wykeham. He retired her 4 days before Christmas. She really is a darling. We are lucky to have her.

[kpnut]

She looks completely adorable. And intelligent. I hope to meet her sometime. I think we might get her and Finlay mixed up , apart from the little smudge of white on the end of his nose. 

[kpnut]

Sunday 25th June.
What a stunning morning to wake up to. I set off early (for me) after a walk round past the wind pumps and back. I only wanted to go as far as Fleet Dyke and the second wild mooring up the dyke was free. 

We had another walk down past the moorings, along past the staithe, along Kingfisher Lane and back along Marsh Lane and across the field to meet the carpark by the staithe. At the little pond halfway along Marsh Lane a man and his daughter of about 9 came along, they were geocaching, using an app to find little boxes hidden in obscure places. I suppose it’s like modern day orienteering. They were having great fun and I bet had walked quite a few miles without the littl’un realising. I showed them on the map how to get to the next place they wanted to be as they had to detour due to the path they needed being overgrown. 
I stopped again at the staithe where I saw my ‘natural phenomenon’ which turned out to be a water sprinkler (I took a photo and think I put it on the my day thread). 
It took an age to get back past the moorings as I stopped to talk to numerous people. 
And once back, we did nothing for the rest of the very hot day which explains all my rambling posts throughout the afternoon. Sorry. I’ll try to keep myself busier in future. 

[kpnut]

Monday 26th June. 
An early walk along the riverbank at Fleet Dyke and onto the Bure as far as the pumping station by the two dead trees proved to me that the footpath is in a better state than it was in May. Good oh!

Then off to Boulters for fuel and pump out. It was windy trying to get in but the nice young man grabbed a line for me to keep me on course as I reversed in. It was £1.45/litre and the pump out was £17 (every 4th one is free with the loyalty card).
I stopped for a late lunch on my way back up the Ant and then it was time to return to my home mooring at Stalham. A fantastic trip all round. 
 

Seeing as I had time before 5pm, I sought out the person at Richardsons who services the life jackets for some advice about how to go about it, seeing as I couldn’t make head nor tail of the instruction book. He was extremely helpful. Paul R also gave me permission to borrow a buoyancy aid for a newborn. It’s very diddy. Catherine and Roald will be at the boat with 5 wk old Ellie for two weeks soon. 
 

Then the mundane task of packing up and cleaning the boat etc before the departure in the morning.
Not long till I’m back though - just enough time planned at home to get my allotments sorted and do some creative cooking with all the produce Tony has undoubtedly had to freeze. There won’t be many days next month when the boat will be unused, which pleases me no end. 

 

[SwanR]

Sounds like it was another enjoyable trip Kate. Hope it will be a great experience for your daughter and her family. 

[kpnut]

49 minutes ago, SwanR said:

Sounds like it was another enjoyable trip Kate. Hope it will be a great experience for your daughter and her family. 

The only thing I’m pondering is the heat and nappy situation! It hadn’t dawned on me till halfway through my trip when the pop bags from two dogs were beginning to build up. 

Best that can be done is a bucket with sealed lid in the stowage locker out the back. And mooring up regularly where there is access to good waste skips with heavy, closable lids. They are reverting to disposables for the duration of the trip. 

[kpnut]

On 23/06/2023 at 22:40, kpnut said:

Do you know if ardea is at how hill all summer to view? 

Hi Roy, I’ve just been told that Hathor is back at How Hill, much earlier than the lady who showed me round led me to believe. So I presume that Adea has gone back home. 

[kpnut]

If anyone sees Springers Retreat out and about from today for a week or so and get a blank look to a wave, it’s nothing to do with me!
I’ve told Catherine and Roald that they’ll probably be spotted. They are chatty folk so say hi if you walk past on a mooring. 

[CambridgeCabby]

I’ll make sure to tell them that they’re to get the blackberry liquor out if I spot them 

[kpnut]

14 minutes ago, CambridgeCabby said:

 

I’ll make sure to tell them that they’re to get the blackberry liquor out if I spot them

 

I think it’s finished and been replaced by gooseberry gin. And the much tamer elderflower cordial that I made last month.