Jump to content

A Mad March Hire On Rose Emblem


SwanR

Recommended Posts

Day One - Monday 14th March

As I mentioned a few months ago Ferry Marina very kindly let us hire Rose Emblem for a few days' break before their season officially started. So it was that we set off for Horning on Monday, the sun shining brightly and everything we needed stowed away in the boot of our car. We made good time and after our usual stop at Goodie's Farmshop on the A140 for a few little extras ;) we arrived about 12.15. The boat was about ready to go so we packed all our stuff on board and after a short handover that was it, we were away within an hour.

We don't like to plan our trip too much but do like to have an idea of where to head for our first night's mooring. It therefore made a nice change to start from Horning. It was such a beautiful afternoon and we didn't see any other boats until we were almost at the mouth of the River Ant. Having made our minds up that we would head for Ludham Bridge I made the left hand turn across the Bure and gently meandered my way along in the breeze. I'll write more about the boat another day but it tends to be a bit heavy on the steering and needed a lot of revs to get going. Thankfully as the bridge came into sight my way was clear and there we were through our first obstacle and moored up in no time.

We had a little stroll along the bank - I wanted to take some photos. Fortunately we phoned the Dog Inn before setting off down there as it turned out they aren't serving hot food until Easter - I had suspected that not everywhere would be fully open yet. I don't do any more cooking than is necessary when we're away so it was the easy microwave option for our tea. That did mean running the engine for a while longer but we needed to do that anyway to keep the heating running into the evening as it was freezing cold. The skipper's manual advised only running the heating for a maximum of two hours without the engine on - it's an odd mixture of hot air and radiators. So let's not start the debate about running the engine while moored up - all I can say is yes, it was necessary on this occasion!

Now I don't know about you, but whenever I've passed through Ludham Bridge it tends to be one of the busier mooring spots. Well not last Monday. :) It was actually our quietest mooring of our time away as there was only one other boat there overnight. Lovely. We really enjoyed being there. 

More days to follow and some photos too but for now I'll leave you with a sunny afternoon at Ludham Bridge ... officially known as Horning Marshes on the mooring sign.

Ludham Bridge.jpg

  • Like 10
Link to comment
Share on other sites

That was very definitely our reward for being out and about in March. Although as you will see as we go through the week there were a couple of places that we still couldn't get moored up ... I'll let you ponder where that might have been. :)

However what you may like to know is that we saw several ex-Swancraft boats already out on hire - Swan Reflection 1 and Swan Reflection 2, Swan Roamer and Swan Radiance. They were looking well turned out as of course were all boats at the start of the season. What I would be interested to know is whether they will become popular boats with Richardson's customers or whether Swancraft's ex-clientele are prepared to follow the boats to Stalham as we are doing in June.

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Jean

Great to see the season beginning with the first Holiday tale (not dismissing Howard & Linda's earlier visit of course - hope all is well with Linda)

it's great to see an empty mooring and such a lovely day, even if it was cold.

looking forward to the rest of your adventures.

( 5 weeks today and we are on our way :party:)

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Day Two - Tuesday 15th March

So after a cold night we awoke quite early but I'm a morning person and I like to get up, get sorted and get moving. Breakfast was the usual toast and coffee quickly cleared away so that by around 8.30 we had set off up the River Ant. Our plan for the morning was to get to Wayford Bridge - Tuesday was the one day when the cloud didn't clear and we didn't see any brightness at all but it was still lovely to be out. We meandered our way up the river passing very few other craft. Coming out onto Barton Broad it was quite choppy but with no sailing boats to avoid it was a good crossing, just one or two other boats heading over from the Neatishead direction.

We then continued straight up past the turn off for Stalham and Sutton, enjoying a leisurely 3 to 4 mph around the twisty turny course of this part of the Ant until we arrived at an empty mooring. Tactics planned for which way round to moor and how to then reverse out, we were soon tied up and sat with another cup of coffee. Quiet conversation watching the birds especially the kingfishers passed an hour or so until we went over to the Wayford Bridge Inn for lunch. Lovely food - hubby had liver and bacon and I had scampi and chips. Mmmhhhhmmmm ... best food of this trip. Very friendly service and I would highly recommend stopping in here if you get the chance.

Back to the boat and time to head back to see where we could find to moor up for our second night. We were treated to seeing several kingfishers as we got underway and didn't pass any other boats all the way back down to Barton Broad - that's the real pleasure of being out before the season gets started and why we wanted to try a pre-Easter trip for the first time. We had hoped that we might get on the staithe at Irstead so as to use the electric hook-up and be able to keep the heating on without running the engine. However, there was a boat already there and as it was relatively early we decided that it was worth pushing on back down the Ant. Passed How Hill - slightly tempted to moor here as there were no other boats and we haven't ever spent the night there but decided to carry on. Passed Ludham Bridge and back through safely to the other side, we were soon back to the Bure and headed for Ranworth. Always the Island if we couldn't get on the staithe by any chance. But as we came into Malthouse Broad we could see there was plenty of room.

Now this is where it got interesting. It's that old thing of being able to moor between two boats already there but being totally indecisive if you have a choice! Decided to go for the right-hand end as you face the staithe coming in. Got quite close, turned the boat round, reversed up, started to use the bow and stern thrusters to get in position but very quickly realised that they were no match for the strength of the wind that does tend to catch you down there. I've had trouble stern-on mooring there in the past so made a quick decision. As the wind was blowing us around to the left, we would just have to moor on the side rather than the front. Hubby had one rope on already so I let the bow swing round and we came in nicely as the first boat down the side. Job done, electric hook-up plugged in, heating on, time to put the kettle on again and make the most of the panoramic view from that position. :)

There were three boats already there and three or four more arrived before dusk. It was interesting watching them also struggle with the wind which made me feel better about having ended up not quite in the place I had planned to start with. We had some sandwiches for tea and then popped over to the Maltsters later for a drink. Back to the boat and we decided to put on a DVD - anyone remember Shirley Valentine? Yes it was my choice although we were both laughing at the lines I remembered having watched it so many times and yes I did fall asleep before it was halfway through!

The heating seems to be more effective on this boat if you are plugged in to the electric rather than running it off the battery so the boat was warmer that evening. We had taken a double sleeping bag with us which worked well so had an early night about 9.30 and were soon fast asleep.

Here ends day two ... a couple of pics of the River Ant and our mooring at Wayford Bridge. :)

P1080997.jpeg

P1090007.jpeg

  • Like 9
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I wasn't sure which yard was Jon's. Could see a couple of people working on one of the boats on the other side of the river from where we were moored but other than that there was no-one around. Rose Emblem needs 6 foot 10 to get under the bridges which is more than Swan Reflection. So we wouldn't have got under Wayford Bridge as there was less than 7 foot clearance and it was almost low tide. Otherwise we might have been tempted to carry on towards Dilham. I guess that might be one to check out in June.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Jean

Jon's yard pretty much occupies the right hand bank going upstream roughly between the old isolation hospital and the Bridge. Worth a visit, he's a real character :bow

Dilham is well worth a look if you get chance again. Lovely stretch of river and the pub's not bad either cheersbar

  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Day Three - Wednesday 16th March

After a cosy night onboard we awoke to find that the wind hadn't abated and soon started to consider how best to get away from the staithe without drifting round. While hubby was outside filling up the water we saw an interesting manoeuvre taking place. For some reason one of the boats had wanted to move from one end of the staithe to the other - not entirely sure why but anyway I reckon that if I had been the skipper I would have been really wishing I hadn't bothered. They moved off into the Broad but despite having several young lads on shore to take the ropes and pull their boat back in, this turned into a major exercise due to the strength of the wind taking the bow round no matter what they did.

Fortunately I had the wheel hard over to the right before putting the boat into forward gear and we made a clean exit without any problems. Well almost without any problems. Rose Emblem's mud weight weighs 22kgs according to the numbers on the top and my hubby did struggle a bit to get it lifted and back on board.

So where to go today? Womack Water was our first port of call for two reasons - firstly to see the work that had been done along Womack Dyke and secondly to moor up and go to the King's Arms for lunch. The stretch along the Bure between St Benet's Abbey and the Thurne is my least favourite. Rose Emblem keeps a straight course making her fairly easy to handle if a little heavy to steer, but seems to need a lot of revs to get going. As the price is all in at Ferry Marina we weren't worried about how much diesel we might be using but we needed around 2000 revs to get to 5mph most of the time. Having said that, the engine isn't noisy so it didn't make too much difference to us, just felt like you had to "put your foot down" to get going.

After a nice stop at a very uncrowded staithe - we were the only boat there at one point - we left early afternoon and made our way towards Potter Heigham. I was a little anxious about this as the wind was up and I've seen those videos of people in trouble if they try to turn too close to the little old bridge. This was also the busiest stretch of river we encountered and I had three or four boats behind me by the time we got near to Herbert Woods. Once again we were after a mooring by the electric posts - we haven't got in up there during any of our trips over the last few years and this was to be no different. There was a space behind Lightning but I couldn't judge whether we were going to overhang the back end of the mooring. I wasn't confident about trying for any small gaps either so decided to swing the boat round and head back the other way.

In some ways this was a shame and in other ways it wasn't. You see this was our dilemma given how cold it felt last week but how beautiful the rivers were. Do you go for the electric posts at all costs or do you go for the quieter moorings which are actually what we prefer? We had hired the boat because we could take an electric hook up cable with us but we weren't having too much luck mooring where we could use it. Not really fancying the idea of trying Stokesby we opted for our preference of a quieter time down Fleet Dyke. We did consider Womack Dyke but with all the bank profiling that has been done it did look as if that could be very exposed in the wind at the moment. It really does look completely different and I suspect the wild moorings are gone, at least for now.

Having moored up and having had the obligatory coffee and something sweet to eat, we then went for a lovely late afternoon walk right from the bottom end of Fleet Dyke near South Walsham Broad up to the junction with the Bure. Cold but very refreshing - you just needed enough layers on! When we came back there were a couple of other boats had arrived but there was so much room that no-one had any really close neighbours and we weren't the only ones running the engine for a short while.

So that was it, another day done. Tea, the rest of the DVD to watch wrapped in the very nice fleecy blankets that were provided and then to bed.

P1090042.jpeg

P1090052.jpeg

  • Like 8
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great write and pictures Jean :-)

I am a bit surprised about the heating though. As you know we were out in December with Swancraft for many years (including the snow of 2010). Swancraft boats didn't have a hook up facility but the heating was really good and always started up fine without having to run the engine. We never had a flat battery. I know Swancraft never cut corners and I'm beginning to wonder if Ferry are a bit more economical with their batteries? You've certainly done plenty of cruising so that shouldn't be a problem. Incidentally Herbert Woods yard is good for mooring if you can get in. I'm sure they have electric too. 

Loving your tale, please keep it coming! :-)

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

There are certainly a lot of the Swan boats out at the moment.  Having hired a number in the past prior to buying into MS they are certainly great boats.  Here's hoping they stay that way.

SueH

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

We are looking forward to getting out on Swan Reflection ourselves later in the year and have never hired from Richardson's before so starting from Stalham will be something new for us. In fact although we've been to Sutton before we haven't ever taken the branch of the Ant to Stalham so it will be new territory. :)

As for the heating ... it is a strange one. The lad at the yard thought that Rose Emblem had been a private boat that Ferry Marina bought when it came up for sale - it certainly isn't one they have built themselves as it's an Alpha35. Given that the Skipper's Manual says not to use the heating for more than two hours without running the engine it's perhaps not as ideal for early season as it seems. They had put some lovely soft fleecy blankets on board which we used a couple of evenings given you can't help but get some draughts in the forward cabin of a "bathtub". The aft cabin and galley area in the middle of the boat did seem to keep much warmer. Just one of those things. The one night we did plug in at Ranworth, there was £1.07 on the post but by the morning this was more than used up as it showed -13p! When we plugged in Fair Prince 2 last year it only used 18p all night. But Rose Emblem seems to have an immersion heater as well - whether that's needed to heat the radiators and sucks up all the battery power I don't know. But you always had boiling hot water any time of the day or night.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

That's very interesting Jean. According to Craigs database Rose Emblem was built in 2011 with Ferry being the only recorded owner. The thing about running the heating for 2 hours is a bit odd. The main hit on the battery is the few minutes on start up when the glow plug fires up the system. After that it is pretty self sufficient apart from the fan which wouldn't use much current. It does sound as if the batteries and/or charging system are maybe not as they could be. 

It will be good to get on Reflection, I'm very jealous! I just wish Richardsons would hire in winter :cry

Having said that we were treated regally by Bridgecraft in December so will certainly be knocking on their door again. :-)

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Enjoying your tale and pictures Jean.

having been with Richardsons a number of times, we have always been happy and the boats are well maintained. The staff have always been very friendly and helpful. So I'm sure you'll be happy with hem 

I fully agree with Howard about Bridgecraft, they are a great yard as well

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks Iain and David. 

We did have the shore power cable, there just aren't many moorings with electric hook-up available.

As has been said many times by many people it is a boating holiday so we shouldn't expect it to be like a hotel room! ;)

Working on the next instalment to post probably tomorrow. And hopefully a little video to go with it. Stay tuned ... :)

  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, NorfolkNog said:

Like the sound of a video too - looking forward to it :party:

Calm down, Howard, its not Gracie in her high heels doing the "Hucklebuck" :norty:......is it Jean?:naughty: Seriously, like Howard I also look forward to the video.:dance

cheersIain

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Day Four - Thursday 17th March

So let me think, where were we ... oh yes, Fleet Dyke. Beautiful. Thursday dawned bright and sunny and frosty but not feeling quite as cold as the wind had dropped. It wasn't long before the sun had melted the frost on the quay heading and we were able to leave our mooring without it being too slippy underfoot. Rose Emblem has got a rear view camera which was handy on occasion as the inside layout of this boat means that you can't see straight down from the front driving seat to the rear door. The doors were great as they were full size doors back and front, much easier to open and get through than the small double doors you tend to find on this style of boat. However Rose Emblem has a galley area in the middle which is also where the door to the bathroom is, so your view through the boat is compromised slightly - I do like to be sure that I'm not leaving my hubby on the bank when leaving the mooring.

Anyway, a nice slow cruise up Fleet Dyke and then we turned left and headed back along the Bure. With no-one much about we turned across towards Ranworth for no other reason than to have a leisurely cruise around Malthouse Broad. Only a handful of boats were moored at the staithe and in fact several of them got underway while we were there so we followed a short procession back out. Turning left again we carried on to Horning with the intention of going as far in that direction as we felt inclined to do before mooring up late morning for a spot of lunch. As it happened we went as far as Salhouse Broad, had a little cruise around there, in one end and out the other, then it was decision time again ... to carry on towards Wroxham or back towards Horning. We were curious to see whether perchance we might be able to moor at the staithe in Horning given it was so early in the season. Rounding the corner by the Swan Inn we could see that there was one space but it was right by the car park. Was that where we wanted to moor on our final day? No, not really. So we carried on through and returned to Cockshoot Dyke. There were a couple of other boats there and we moored without too much problem. After that obligatory cup of coffee we took a walk down to Cockshoot Broad, always a favourite place since we discovered this mooring from watching one of Robin's videos a few years ago now. 

The plan for the rest of the day was to return to Ferry Marina to moor in their yard for our last night. I know that some people would call this a waste especially when we were only on a short break but it had several advantages. Firstly we would be able to plug into the electric, secondly we could go the Ferry Inn for a meal later and thirdly we could pack up that evening and have a much more relaxed start to Friday morning. We took a walk around to see whether it looked as if there were any spaces. At this point I should say that the boardwalk from Cockshoot Broad round to the moorings opposite the Ferry Inn appeared to be open as did the moorings both here and further along at Percy's Island. I seem to recall there was talk last year of them being closed and access lost but everything looked open to us.

Anyhow ... there were no free spaces outside Ferry Marina so we returned to the boat and I made a phone call to them to ask for help.  They happily sent their young lad outside to stand on the corner to wait for us and a few minutes later we were moored in the entrance to the dyke at the side but facing outwards to the river. A lovely view to watch anything that went by for the rest of the afternoon. At this point I should also say that I had very good reception on my mobile phone on O2 almost everywhere this trip. Amazing! Later we went to the Ferry Inn and ate from the carvery there but this isn't somewhere that we would stop during busier times. Still not sure about what they have done inside this pub, the decor, the branding ... they have targeted the family market and that's no bad thing if you are out on the river with children. As a couple it wouldn't be our first choice but the food was fine and it was very convenient on this occasion.

Here's a couple of photos - the first one is at Fleet Dyke (and look which boat happened to be moored in front of us!) and the second one is Cockshoot Dyke. I will be back with a final day to add, a little summary of how everything went and what we thought of the boat ... plus a video of some photos and a few little clips but who knew it could take four hours to upload something on YouTube. I live and learn ... :)

 

P1090068.JPG

P1090100.JPG

  • Like 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Day Five - Friday 18th March

Well that was it then, time to pack everything away and hand the boat back. Friday dawned gloomy and drizzly and we were glad we were already moored up at the yard. 

Given Ferry Marina's all inclusive prices you don't have to wait around for your diesel to be sorted out or anything. So we popped into the office to sign the necessary form and had a chat with a lovely friendly lady who I think had arrived to start work on the housekeeping side of things. She asked us how our week had been and had we had a good time. That's what I like, friendly people who make you feel valued as a customer.

How would I sum up our few days away? Beautiful, so lovely to be out with so few other boats around. And interesting to see the landscape at another different time of year and season.

Best mooring? Fleet Dyke, so quiet and peaceful, very scenic and a lot of different birds to watch. I think I forgot to mention the twelve white birds that flew in at dusk and settled in the trees. They looked like herons, perhaps egrets? I'm not sure but they were a lovely sight.

Best experience? Seeing the kingfishers while cruising completely on our own up near Wayford Bridge.

Best meal? Without doubt it was our lunch at Wayford Bridge Inn.

Would we hire this boat again? Yes, it ticked everything on our list of wants. 

Would we go back in March? Yes, you always take a chance with the weather at any time of year. The bright sunny days more than made up for the cold nights. If anything we just learnt one or two lessons about what you need out of the boat.

I hope you've enjoyed my holiday tale. Finally, to round things off, here's a little video I've put together of photos and short clips taken over our wonderful mad March hire. Can't remember how to embed it properly so here's a link, perhaps some nice forum person could embed it for me:)

https://youtu.be/OjEv1YYqmbs

  • Like 10
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Sponsors

    Norfolk Broads Network is run by volunteers - You can help us run it by making a donation

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

For details of our Guidelines, please take a look at the Terms of Use here.