Tuesday, 5 April 2011

Horning to South Walsham

We'd heard a little rain in the night and so it was a damp start to the day. I took Hamish for a walk and made my way up to the village sign which I've always wanted to photograph but when we're driving past there's nowhere to stop. The villages have such lovely signs around Broadland and this one is no exception ...


Then it was back to the boat passing the Swan Inn where relatives of mine had been in residence many, many years ago. I wonder if they lived in this part of the Inn?


We were heading back downnriver today and the first job was to go to a boatyard for a pump-out. We went to Ferry Marina and moored up but were told they couldn't do it and to try the small yard up the next dyke. So somewhat wary of a narrow dyke on a windy day and not knowing if we could turn at the end, Jamie took us up to Freedom Boats. The men onshore were great and helped to moor us and we got our pump-out plus a fill up of water. While the work was being done I asked if the owner was around as one of the locals I'd been chatting to at Ranworth was his wife. He appeared and he said his wife had mentioned me as I'd enquired about the webcam they were supposed to be setting up. We got talking about how this part of the Broads had looked in the 1980's when we visited with the boys and stayed in houseboats. He'd not seen it then and so I naturally said I had a blog with photos from back then! Before I knew it I was on their pc and finding the blog for him to see! I also mentioned that we used to hire yachts from Colin Facey and he told me that Colin's brother was the chap in a blue top doing our pump-out! Small world eh? After a couple of photos ...


they helped us get back out again and after a short stop at St Benet's Abbey for the dogs to stretch their legs we were on the move again and making for Potter Heigham. Mike decided to try out our shower while we were under way and all was going well until water was spotted seeping out from under the door! The yard had fitted a curtain for this year but unfortunately when pulled it hid the button that had to be pressed to make the drain function so Mike hadn't realised that it was filling up as he thought it was draining automatically. Panic!! I took over the wheel while Jamie helped his dad out of the shower and tried to turn it off. The cold tap refused to budge and needed a cloth for grip to make it turn. Meanwhile water was still flowing and had to be mopped up and all I could do was laugh at Mike standing there with his towel clutched in front of him but hardly covering anything!! It all got sorted but there was no way I was going to shower on the boat and so when we stopped at Potter I walked round to the ones at Herbert Woods yard. After lunch we set off again in the rain but we now had a handy window cleaner as the boat had no windscreen wipers ...
We moored at South Walsham for the night and the boys went for a walk. There was a nice sunset now that the rain had stopped ...

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