Back on Broadland Mars

As we were staying at Ludham Bridge it was a very short drive to Richardson’s yard and we were there way ahead of the boys.  Mike and I strolled into Stalham for a bit of shopping and when we got back I checked in. 

Mars was ready for us so I began loading all our stuff aboard and then the boys arrived.  The trial run chap was quite happy that Jamie knew what he was doing and allowed us to leave when we were ready. 

At the end of our holiday last April I’d made a note of the total hours on the dashboard of Mars and so before we set off I wrote down what it was currently showing.  The first reading was 11298.4 and the latest reading was 12096.0 which meant that over the year Mars had clocked up 797.6 hours on the water.  Hopefully I’ll remember to take a another reading at the end of our week!

We set off at two o’clock in brilliant sunshine and after crossing Barton Broad with Simon at the helm we made our way down the River Ant towards Ludham Bridge.  Jamie was busy sorting out his room, I was busy sorting out ours and Phill was putting all the food away and getting the galley to his liking!  Hamish was being Hamish and enjoying the sun!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

We moored as close to the electric point as we could as the boys had brought their hook-up with them.  Overnight we had to move on to the water mooring but we moved off it again first thing the next morning.  Of course the annual photo of the boys by the mill had to be taken …

and then we enjoyed a beautiful evening in the sun and were treated to a lovely sunset …

Arrival in Norfolk

Having set off from Burford with the Sat Nav (Jasmine) set for Ludham I suddenly found myself on the M40 and heading towards London!  The last thing I wanted was to be driving via the M25 and M11 but Jasmine was determined to send me that way.  I did the obvious thing and exited at the first opportunity and found my way to Aylesbury and Milton Keynes and then I was back on track.  Jamie had been in touch with the Peugeot garage Busseys in Norwich and so long as I arrived before 3.30pm they would try and sort out my speedo problem.  I normally drive very economically but I needed to get there and so I put my foot down!!  I found Busseys, parked up and they were brilliant.  We had plenty of coffee while we waited and it was fantastic news - my speedo was working again!  It was then a short hop to Ludham Bridge and the newly named Norfolk Broads Caravan Club Site.  It was previously known as Broadlands.

After sorting out our pitch and having a well earned glass of red wine, I took Hamish for a walk to the River Ant to see what boats were moored for the night.  It was a beautiful evening …

Broads Puzzles

It all began with the purchase of a Hunsett Mill puzzle from Lathams at the end of our holiday in April.

Having done one puzzle I wanted to do another and the search began for Broads related puzzles.  I happened to look on eBay and found an Upton Dyke puzzle with about ten minutes left to run.  Well …. what would you have done?  Of course – I bid for it and got it!

This one was really interesting because i could check on Craig’s website and find the names of the yachts from their numbers. 

Left to right:  S578 = Cresta Maria, Z422 = Seven Seas, M816 = Typhoon and J917 = Tempest.

I was hunting on eBay every day now and soon spotted my next one.  There were several days to wait and I was sure that someone else would put in a high bid and get it.  I was lucky again and The Swan Inn, Horning was soon completed.  This was special to me as a Southgate relative was licensee here back in the mid 1800’s …

My last Broads jigsaw was a windmill on the River Ant …

It wasn’t until I started to do it that I realised it was How Hill in the distance!  Of course I now recognise the picture which was taken before all the new moorings were done.

I’ve no idea if there are any more Broads puzzles but I will keep hunting!

They’ve Been in Touch!

I was so excited when I found messages from Sally’s owners on my two previous posts.  We’ve now emailed a couple of times and I’ve learnt about their experiences in the 3RR and how they came to own Sally. 

All I can say is that I’m thrilled they bought her and restored her.  They had their problems in the race with a broken boom which needed to be repaired with a paddle and duck tape! However they persevered and managed to complete the race despite the challenge of no wind and a broken boom!

Well done the Burtons and Sally146!

Sally Finishes the 3 Rivers Race

I kept an eye on the 3RR website today checking the positions of the boats.  Firstly the info said that Sally was between Thurne Mouth and Horning and later on it stated that she was between Ant Mouth and Horning.  It was pure luck that I happened to look when a River Cruiser was approaching the mooring and I had a feeling it was Sally …

I was right – her name was there for all to see …

When I next looked she had been tucked up for the night …

I hope the owners had a good time – such a shame I can’t find out.

Maybe one day they’ll find my blog and get in touch!

Our Old Friend Sally

It’s the weekend of the Three Rivers Race and this morning when I checked the Horning Sailing Club webcam I spotted an old friend!  Moored up and waiting for the race was Sally …

In all the times we’ve been back to the Broads since the 1970’s when we hired Sally we’ve never seen her on the water.  She is now privately owned and after checking Craig Slawson’s website I found this lovely photo of her …

The weather has delayed the start of the race but we wish her the best of luck.

Check here to see our holiday photos on Sally.

Last Day in Norfolk

We were up, packed and off the boat nice and early this morning.  Before I left Mars I made a note of the total hours she had cruised as we thought it would be interesting to see how many she managed in a year   The total read 11298.4.  A couple of spaniels made friends with Hamish while we were loading the vehicles …

We checked out in the office and surprise, surprise we booked our 2013 holiday on Mars for the same dates as this year.  Must remember to take a reading of hours cruised before we set off next year.

We left the yard just before 9am and drove to Ludham Bridge for breakfast at the Wayfarers Cafe.  We then moved on to Potter Heigham for one last look around Lathams where I bought myself a 1000 piece jigsaw of Hunsett Mill before waving the boys off as they were returning to Luton today.

We were spending the night at Broadlands Caravan Club site again tonight and as we couldn’t check in until midday we had some time to kill.  I took Hamish for a walk through Herbert Woods yard to the river …

then we drove to the site and set up camp.  Our last night in Norfolk – very sad – but we’ll be back next year!