The Wash (Boston) to Norfolk Broads anyone done it?

[moonraker 36]

Nowhere suitable to moor at Asda GY Breydon water is very shallow there and I have seen lots of people cut the corner and go aground. It's a long trek across deep mud when the tide is out.

HMM...that's why i said find somewere suitable to moor..
can'nt you moor against the wall before the bridge's?
maybe have a fold away barrow sack trolly to help with the jerry can's?

 

[moonraker 36]

can'nt you get near the asda in a dingy/outboard on slack h/w?
i was stood talking to the fishermen their a couple of week's ago and the mud is soild nearer the top,did it with trainer's on.
but then again is it worth all the assell to save a few quid?

and a least they now know were the cheap beer is!

 

[Greg2]

I would suggest the Lowestoft route for entry. The yacht club (on the left as you enter the bridge channel) is a pleasant destination with a superb clubhouse, excellent food and right next to the beachfront and town centre (I moor there so I do have a biased view)! They don't do petrol but there is a petrol station about five minutes walk away and you can re-fuel as long as you do it on the fuel pontoon. Plenty of taxis about or you might even be able to sweet talk someone into giving you a lift in the club runabout.

Access to the southern broads easy via Mutford Lock into Oulton Broad and then on to the northern rivers if that is your preference.

 

[larson250]

I can see nearer the time i will have to do some serious grovelling on here to see if i can scrounge a lift or something.

I would be seriously unimpressed to have to pay £1.67 a litre, I'll get the by then wife a new trolley for christmas and a local map that should go down well.

It all sounds do-able so I will look towards new charts in Jan/Feb and try to refresh myself on how to read them.

I'm unlikely to be able to afford a chart plotter so i will have to stick with my trusty garmin 12. If i break up the journey re: waypoints should be ok i think.

It was alright for Lowestoft to Yarmouth but I only used 6 or 7 waypoints.

The planning continues,

Cheers,
Dean

 

[larson250]

I can see nearer the time i will have to do some serious grovelling on here to see if i can scrounge a lift or something.

I would be seriously unimpressed to have to pay £1.67 a litre, I'll get the by then wife a new trolley for christmas and a local map that should go down well.

It all sounds do-able so I will look towards new charts in Jan/Feb and try to refresh myself on how to read them.

I'm unlikely to be able to afford a chart plotter so i will have to stick with my trusty garmin 12. If i break up the journey re: waypoints should be ok, i think.

It was alright for Lowestoft to Yarmouth but I only used 6 or 7 waypoints.

The planning continues,

Cheers,
Dean

 

[DAKA]

I want to navigate from Lincoln down to Boston and around to the Norfolk Broads as a main holiday next year.


Any thoughts?

Dean

Hi Dean,
for many years I shared your dream with a holiday in our Bayliner from the Humber, more or less the same trip give or take 20 nm.

You may get lucky with the weather but its unlikely your family will ever share the same dream again.

It is more likely you will get knocked about and end the holiday early or get stuck away from work.

If its your main holiday to the broads then organise a trailer and crane , you know when and where your holiday starts regardless of weather.

Once there , if the weather suits you can cruise home after you have enjoyed your main holiday.

Enjoy boating with your family and dont treat it as a challenge.

 

[CX54WEK]

You make it sound so relaxing

 

[PaulGooch]

I can see nearer the time i will have to do some serious grovelling on here to see if i can scrounge a lift or something.

I would be seriously unimpressed to have to pay £1.67 a litre, I'll get the by then wife a new trolley for christmas and a local map that should go down well.

It all sounds do-able so I will look towards new charts in Jan/Feb and try to refresh myself on how to read them.

I'm unlikely to be able to afford a chart plotter so i will have to stick with my trusty garmin 12. If i break up the journey re: waypoints should be ok, i think.

It was alright for Lowestoft to Yarmouth but I only used 6 or 7 waypoints.

The planning continues,

Cheers,
Dean

Without adequate navigation equipment/skills it is highly unlikely you'll make it from Boston to Wells without running aground. Might be worth looking at something like a Standard Horizon CP180i. You do have a depth sounder too ?

Whilst totally do-able, a sea trip from Boston to Lowestoft is a serious undertaking that should not be undertaken lightly, or without the correct navigation and safety equipment. This is an area of coast that can change in a breath, i've entered the Wash at 09:00, flat as a mirror, then been trapped on a waiting buoy, waiting for enough water to re-enter the channel, in waves up to 8 feet high, at 12:00.

This stretch of water is often underestimated, most of the bodies are found.

 

[CX54WEK]

I can see nearer the time i will have to do some serious grovelling on here to see if i can scrounge a lift or something.

I would be seriously unimpressed to have to pay £1.67 a litre, I'll get the by then wife a new trolley for christmas and a local map that should go down well.

It all sounds do-able so I will look towards new charts in Jan/Feb and try to refresh myself on how to read them.

I'm unlikely to be able to afford a chart plotter so i will have to stick with my trusty garmin 12. If i break up the journey re: waypoints should be ok, i think.

It was alright for Lowestoft to Yarmouth but I only used 6 or 7 waypoints.

The planning continues,

Cheers,
Dean

It would be advisable for you to do a course which includes navigation prior to even thinking about doing this trip.

Whilst a chart plotter isnt the be all and end all of navigation it certainly is helpful. Trying to chart your course on a paper chart whilst being thrown around in your little Fairline isnt going to be funny.

 

[fergie_mac66]

would agree

Without adequate navigation equipment/skills it is highly unlikely you'll make it from Boston to Wells without running aground. Might be worth looking at something like a Standard Horizon CP180i. You do have a depth sounder too ?

Whilst totally do-able, a sea trip from Boston to Lowestoft is a serious undertaking that should not be undertaken lightly, or without the correct navigation and safety equipment. This is an area of coast that can change in a breath, i've entered the Wash at 09:00, flat as a mirror, then been trapped on a waiting buoy, waiting for enough water to re-enter the channel, in waves up to 8 feet high, at 12:00.

This stretch of water is often underestimated, most of the bodies are found.

we have been out in similar condition changes. we had flat calm no wind wells to winterton then got a urgent S F8 warning which hit us 20 mins after announced .Had us going down 'tween the sandbanks off Caister with 2/3 meter flat fronted waves . They had a regatta off Hunstanton and there were hundred odd boats turned over with 7 lifeboats called out it was headlines in the local rags. we are rggie and carry fuel for 48 hours. could have turned round and gone back to wells if we had wanted .. would be worth getting a couple/3 of those 6 gall tanks from chandlers about £20 each to get a bit more range

 

[moonraker 36]

i most have been lucky when i did the trip from boston to g/y.
only in mi twenty's at the time.
my navigation skill consisted of keep the land on your right going to g/y and on the left coming back!! or was it the other way round?

 

[larson250]

I hear what you are all saying, but where's the fun in that.

You can't beat a challenge. If I wanted to tow it there I would have bought a caravan.

I spent £28.75 in an RNLI shop earlier this year, and should I have cause to contact them, that will be the first thing I will be saying.

Sorry, the above is a little tongue in cheek and I am only joking.

On a serious note I deal with idiots on a regular basis and don't intentionally intend to join there number.

If I didn't think that either my my boat or my skills were up to the journey I would never put my family at undue risk, £28.75 or not.

Thanks again,

Dean

 

[CX54WEK]

Bearing in mind that your boat has most likely spent a lot of its later years on the canal/river (which is likely with it being bought from Burton Waters) you would do well to take is out on some trips down the Trent, Humber and Ouse to give it a good shake down and check all is in order before even considering taking it to sea. It will also give your family a chance to decide if they want to take the boat out to sea. There is no point in scaring the family half to death at the beginning of a family holiday. If they dont like going down the Humber then they wont like going out to sea. There are a lot more considerations when taking the family to sea. For us there are just the two of us, with a family there are more of you to keep safe and happy.

Another option of course is going down to Boston (but bear in mind the water levels below Bardney lock are lowered at the beginning of October and the moorings in Boston will be closed) and going out onto the Wash on a four or eight hour tide to get a feel for the boat at sea. Check the weather first though. The lockie at the Grand Sluice is a very knowledgable chap and he will warn you if the weather will be too bad, take his advice he knows his stuff.

All that said we love taking our boat out to the coast and all of our holidays next year are planned for the coast, but we are not taking it lightly. We know our boat pretty well now after 2 years and 550 hours of use. We wouldnt consider these trips in a boat we hardly know. Yes some people do manage to just jump in their boats and pull off these trips but we prefer to be prepared and to kow that we could fix our boat should the need arose without needing to trouble the RNLI. We donate money to them on a monthly basis but would never call them unless absolutely necessary. Wasting their time because you are not prepared is never acceptable.

 

[moonraker 36]

seem's to me larson250.
get your fuel worked out.
make sure the boat is a1
make sure you've got a good weather window.

you dont sound like an idiot...
use your nogging and you wont go far wrong..!

you never said how long you've been boating or your boat skill's.
people seem to think your a novice at this?
going with compy of other boats is always best if in any dowt.

what engine you running the fairline?

 

[larson250]

seem's to me larson250.
get your fuel worked out.
make sure the boat is a1
make sure you've got a good weather window.

you dont sound like an idiot...
use your nogging and you wont go far wrong..!

you never said how long you've been boating or your boat skill's.
people seem to think your a novice at this?
going with compy of other boats is always best if in any dowt.

what engine you running the fairline?

I completely agree Moonraker.

I have just got back into boats following a 5yr break due to a divorce, prior to that I had a 25ft Larson (similar to Bayliner) on the Norfolk Broads for 4yrs.
During that time I did Lowestoft to Great Yarmouth by sea (short trip I know) three times.

I aslo have an RYA level 2 powerboat qualification through work, and yes I know this is at the lower end of the qualification scale.

I would love to travel in the company of other boaters to gain more experience but I fully understand the problems of organising such a trip with annual leave and weather etc.

The engine in the Fairline is a Volvo Penta 4.3GS (petrol) with a 290 Duoprop drive.

 

[PaulGooch]

seem's to me larson250.
get your fuel worked out.
make sure the boat is a1
make sure you've got a good weather window.

you dont sound like an idiot...
use your nogging and you wont go far wrong..!

you never said how long you've been boating or your boat skill's.
people seem to think your a novice at this?
going with compy of other boats is always best if in any dowt.

what engine you running the fairline?

Posts #1 and #9 give a good feeling of Deans current experience with sea trips. He's not familiar with his current boat and he states his previous sea experience has been a couple of trips from Lowestoft to Gt Yarmouth, wow! 6 nautical miles! So, yeah, some of us could maybe be thinking he's a bit of a novice and in need of some sound advice. That's what it seems most of us have tried to give, IMO.

As for your last couple of posts, well, IMO, totally ridiculous. To encourage someone to undertake such a trip under the impression that "Keeping the land on the right" is all he needs to do isn't exactly helpful. Plenty of opportunities to run aground or run over pot markers in The Wash, along the coast and on entry into Wells or any other shelter along that stretch of coast. Cromer is a pot marker minefield. A mere 4 miles offshore the waves can easily get to 20 feet high in the wrong winds.

As i said earlier, a perfectly do-able trip, but not to be taken lightly.

 

[fergie_mac66]

flats of north norfolk

Posts #1 and #9 give a good feeling of Deans current experience with sea trips. He's not familiar with his current boat and he states his previous sea experience has been a couple of trips from Lowestoft to Gt Yarmouth, wow! 6 nautical miles! So, yeah, some of us could maybe be thinking he's a bit of a novice and in need of some sound advice. That's what it seems most of us have tried to give, IMO.

As for your last couple of posts, well, IMO, totally ridiculous. To encourage someone to undertake such a trip under the impression that "Keeping the land on the right" is all he needs to do isn't exactly helpful. Plenty of opportunities to run aground or run over pot markers in The Wash, along the coast and on entry into Wells or any other shelter along that stretch of coast. Cromer is a pot marker minefield. A mere 4 miles offshore the waves can easily get to 20 feet high in the wrong winds.

As i said earlier, a perfectly do-able trip, but not to be taken lightly.

agree.. but never mind 4 miles offshore if the wind moves round east of north you can get 20 foot breakers within sight of the shore in an hour of change of tide.

 

[CX54WEK]

I completely agree Moonraker.

I have just got back into boats following a 5yr break due to a divorce, prior to that I had a 25ft Larson (similar to Bayliner) on the Norfolk Broads for 4yrs.
During that time I did Lowestoft to Great Yarmouth by sea (short trip I know) three times.

I aslo have an RYA level 2 powerboat qualification through work, and yes I know this is at the lower end of the qualification scale.

I would love to travel in the company of other boaters to gain more experience but I fully understand the problems of organising such a trip with annual leave and weather etc.

The engine in the Fairline is a Volvo Penta 4.3GS (petrol) with a 290 Duoprop drive.

As i said before you are welcome to pop around at some point over the winter and we can discuss our intended route and a list of places you can run for shelter if need be. We have not yet set a time when we will be going as we have all got to sit down together and pick a fortnight when we can all get time off work when the tides are in our favour.

The group are always willing to have new members join us on our cruises, but it would be better if you knew your boat better, knew its and your crews limitations, knew its fuel range and just a few more things about it in general like how well it has been maintained and how reliable it is.

It is nice to have ambitions of where you want to take your boat but maybe for your first year of owning the Fairline you should concentrate on more local trips like York and Hull neither of which are journeys to be taken lightly. Both the Ouse and the Humber need to be given some respect in much the saem way as the sea. If you feel confident after these trips that the sea is for you, your boat and your family then try a few four and eight hour windows out in the Wash to get a feel for it. Setting out on a trip from Boston to Great Yarmouth/Lowestfoft then discovering you, your crew or your boat are not up to the job would not be a great experience.

 

[moonraker 36]

Posts #1 and #9 give a good feeling of Deans current experience with sea trips. He's not familiar with his current boat and he states his previous sea experience has been a couple of trips from Lowestoft to Gt Yarmouth, wow! 6 nautical miles! So, yeah, some of us could maybe be thinking he's a bit of a novice and in need of some sound advice. That's what it seems most of us have tried to give, IMO.

As for your last couple of posts, well, IMO, totally ridiculous. To encourage someone to undertake such a trip under the impression that "Keeping the land on the right" is all he needs to do isn't exactly helpful. Plenty of opportunities to run aground or run over pot markers in The Wash, along the coast and on entry into Wells or any other shelter along that stretch of coast. Cromer is a pot marker minefield. A mere 4 miles offshore the waves can easily get to 20 feet high in the wrong winds.

As i said earlier, a perfectly do-able trip, but not to be taken lightly.

you all just asumed he was a novice..!! you never actually asked..!!
you have no idea what is boat condition is as you never asked.. it could be the best one around..
i never advised him to go following my navigatioal skill's.only stated how i did it (3 times)..
you all seem to be assuming that he as no skill's.is boat is a reck and he as a deathwish..!!.. all i'm saying dont crush the man's dream's before he start's..if he can go with cwx then of cause that would be everyone's best approach.

 

[DAKA]

you all just asumed he was a novice..!!

I didnt.
If I was speaking to Sir Robin Knox-Johnston or Sir Richard Branson , my advice stands.....

If you want your family to enjoy the MAIN annual holiday on the Broads then take the A16