Page published 24 September 2025
Monday 25 August 2025 - To Barton Broad
We're still living in a house packed up, surrounded by boxes and ready to move. We're both getting fed up so, with an excellent forecast for the August Bank Holiday, it's on a Monday morning, rather than a Sunday afternoon that we head for the boat.
It's unusual for us to start a cruise in the morning. This time I wait till almost the end of Long Dyke before taking my first photograph at 10:42.
Twelve minutes later I take my next picture. I didn't realise it at the time, but the fact we were following two boats before we'd even got as far as Hunsett Mill should have alerted us to the traffic to be expected later.
Entering Barton Broad
By 11:18 we're entering Barton Broad. I'd completely forgotten that the Bank Holiday means that the Broad will be swamped with sailing boats, their support craft and those of the spectators.
As we get closer to the Norfolk Punt Club pontoons we can see that they are swamped with assorted craft.
I have vague memories of seeing the yacht thats passing by the pontoons in a 1960s Hoseasons Boating Brochure. I think it was one of the "Cresta" class, distinctive at the time because of its modern non-traditional lines.
Away from the Punt Club pontoons a number of boats are clustered around a wherry. There was no chance of seeing which one.
As we approach Pleasure Hill, as the small island near the east bank of the broad we appeared to pass through the a set of buoys that define the course for some of the races. Although none of half deckers appear to be racing at the time.
There are clusters of moored boats all along the east bank of the broad.
As we leave the Broad I manage to leave the helm for a few moments go into the forward well to take a picture of the full run of boats we passed through.
Water Depth Board north of Irstead.
I mentioned, in my previous report, how I sometimes get frustrated with my main camera, a Lumix FZ2000. It's not rated the best in the world by any online review site but it certainly has one great advantage over the camera on my cheap phone. It's zoom lens works admirably, successfully taking reasonable close-ups of things as small as a kingfisher from 100 yards away.
However, either it's me not using it properly or it's own processor struggles with white balance and exposure in some circumstances, and the collection of photos taken as we crossed Barton Broads is an excellent illustration of that.
What you see here is a selection of photos that I've played with. It's mainly contrast that I adjusted in the final two, although there was some playing with the white balance, as it evidenced by the sky colour not being similar. It was the earlier shots the camera really struggled with, most of the which are views to the south or generally towards the sun. The unprocessed files had a massive red tinge to them and appeared heavily under exposed.
I am not happy with the results I have achieved in attempting to improve the poor quality images. I'd have preferred to have got the sky and water in each shot a little more uniform. Maybe I'll try to improve them at some point, but then what would write to fill the space here!
Passing Through Irstead
As we passed through Irstead I was at pains to avoid taking views that I'd taken previously. Here we see a very rustic looking bench that appears to be made from very bleached ancient timber that you see on the river bank at the first property in the village that you pass.
Facing astern, I hold the camera through the open roof hatch and rather hope for the best that I'll get a reasonable shot. You can just make our the often photographed "Ice House" to the left.
It was a surprise to see Hathor moored on the private bank by the southern-most house in the village.
By midday we were south of Irstead.The traffic on the river became ever heavier and we found ourselves constantly passing boats making their way upstream.
Moored at Ludham Bridge
We arrived at the moorings at Ludham Bridge, moored and had a light lunch, then at 13:36 went to explore the Bridge Stores as Diana wanted to pick up some more of David Blake's murder mystery novels set on the Norfolk Broads.
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Once again I for got to take any pictures of the old stores, but the site had been completely cleared. The Stores are now in these buildings, the ones next door that used to be the Angling Shop.
The benches that used to be outside the old shop have moved to the premises next door. Inside the clearly uninsulated shop felt like an oven. After the drinks we both had an ice cream.
Techniques for Leaving a Mooring
Once back aboard Singing the Blues we settled down to watch the passing boats, waiting until it was time to make our way to The Dog Inn to have an early evening meal. The picture below is one I sent to Herbert Woods and The Broads Authority to allow them to identify the craft as it spent nearly 10 minutes going backwards and forwards trying the leave its mooring without hitting either the boat in front or behind it.
I reckon it's probably as many of a quarter of all hire boat skippers do not appreciate that a boat steers differently to a car. They expect to turn the steering wheel to the right and see the front of the boat to go right. Normally, it doesn't! Rather the back goes to the left, thus pointing you towards the right. A boat must be steered in a similar way to the shopping trolleys you often find at garden centres. The ones that have fixed wheels at the front and swivelling castors at the back. If you prefer you can think of steering a boat as being a bit like reversing a car.
Actually, it's slightly more complicated that that, because, on a boat, there are no fixed wheels at the front. Instead the boat will pivot on a point that is the underwater centre of mass and that depends on a number of factors, such as the shape of the hull and how the weight is distributed and that can depend on where the heavy things like the engine, fuel tank, water tank and sewage holding tank are located, not to mention the crew and where they are on the boat.
So much for the theory! This crew had untied the ropes. Everyone was aboard. Forward was engaged and power applied. They went forward, but the bows did not leave the bank , because the stern had nowhere to go and just scraped along the bank. Inevitably, as they approached the boat in front reverse was applied and they soon found themselves back at their starting point. They must have repeated that manoeuvre half a dozen times with no more success than the first time. At each attempt still more throttle was used with the result that on one occasion they failed to stop and hit the outboard motor on the yacht with quite some force.
The obvious solution, in such circumstances, is to push the bows off, wait until the bows are pointing at open water and then engage power. That's not always possible. I accept that this may not have been that easy as the bank is quite low and the bows of this boat quite high. But in this case, a good shove on the bows and a walk to the stern, where the deck is almost level with the quay heading, getting aboard should have been easy.
Sometimes a push of the bows won't work. Wind or current may push the boat back against the bank. In that case a different approach is needed. Keep the bows secured to the bank. In many cases you can do this from on board by passing the mooring line around a post. Then untie the stern rope, apply gentle forward power and steer towards the bank. This pushes the stern out into the river. Release the bow, reverse until well clear of the bank and any nearby boat. You can then engage forward and turn steer to the right and proceed on your way.
I took this picture at 14:48, after the crash. I wasn't watching when the hire boat finally managed to leave its mooring so don't know how it achieved its departure.
Next: Watching the traffic through Ludham Bridge and Overnight on Barton Broad.