Salerno - Day two

After a lovely sleep it was up early and I was gutted to find it was raining lightly.  Today was going to be spent cruising into Wroxham, getting a few bits and bobs from Roys and then going ‘live at twelve’ and then cruise all the way to Potter Heigham with a bunch of people watching me.

Every time I want to put cameras outside (which are not meant to be outside) it has to rain. And so it was today and 20 minutes of wrapping up webcams in layers of PVC tape later I was ready to figure out where they should go.  I also had bought a new toy along – a PTZ (Pan Tilt Zoom) camera akin to the ones you can watch from Barnes Brinkcraft – only mine was smaller and far far cheaper I wanted to give it a go none the less.  I also had purchased a suction cup camera mount that would enable a full 180 degrees panning from just above the water – this was all scuppered when I broke the arm of the camera mount just getting it out of my bag!  Next time...

As it happened I had three cameras out – two forward and one to the rear once all that was done, cables run and plugged in it was time to leave Le Boat before the rush of returning holiday makers came back for 9:00am.  I left a drizzly chilly Le Boat boatyard at getting on for 8:00am and headed for Wroxham.

Not long after turning on to the main river the heater which I had put on to take the chill off suddenly went from its usual humming sound to a completely different tone – also far less air was coming out from the floor vent right next to the helm.  I actually punched the air and laughed – as if on cue something had happened to me again on a boat.

I got concerned rapidly though as the rev counter began to do funny things and then the whole dashboard and throttle arm began getting warmer and warmer.  Off with the heater and thankfully into a recently vacated space outside the Ferry Inn.  On the phone to Richardson’s and then I began to think what could make the heater change its usual noise, less air come out and then the dashboard all get so hot?  Not long after making the call (I’d guess at 15 minutes) a Richardson’s van arrived, and I cringed thinking it would be the same chap who fixed the heater on San Julian back in April – For surely he would think I was a serial heater messer-upper.

It was not and in fact a chap who once took the panel off under the dashboard had the problem solved in about 20 seconds.  The ducting that leaves the heater and then goes the length of the boat had half popped off the outlet of the heater unit, once this happened half of the hot air would have had nowhere to go but in the small void behind the panel, thus heating up the metal throttle body, and causing the rev counter to behave erratically through it getting hot too.  Back on, clip that held in place tightened we had a chat.  He had worked on Far Horizon and the Broadsman class boats and asked what I thought of those, together with the fact he liked Broad Ambition which got me talking about the cameras and what I was doing and how such had been used on Broad Ambition during the Thames Pageant.

It is nice to come across people who do a job but also have a passion for what it is they do – be it a man who works on boats in a yard to a train lover who drives trains. 

Time to leave the moorings at the Ferry Inn and head into Wroxham – along it seemed with everyone else who had moored over night at the Ferry Inn.  Despite the fact it was early in the morning there seemed already to be a mass of day boats coming up river from Wroxham but very few cruisers, this worried me as I really needed to go to Roys and so began to consider I may have to go under the Bridge to moor – looking on the webcam at Barnes Brinkcraft showed a full yard too.  Damn!

As I came into Wroxham I suddenly remembered the moorings at MC Marine Leisure – the day boat operators next to the Café just past Barnes Brinkcraft on the right hand side.   They had a space and so a quick turn and I was coming in to stern moor – the reversing camera meaning everything was so much easier.  The chap took my ropes and as I came out the rear door said:

“You expecting trouble?”

I was taken aback and had to ask him to explain

“You’ve got more cameras on this boat that my house!”

Ahh, I the penny dropped and I explained again what they were for and what I was going to do.  Came into the office and gave them the web address to go to and watch proceedings from and then rushed off to Roys.  I had also been tasked by my girlfriend to get a Norfolk inspired mug, fridge magnets and pens together with a selection of postcards so she can send these home to her family. 

What with going to Roys and trying to figure out what postcard scenes looked the best to get took more time that I had hoped and it was now 11:45am – blimey had to get back to the boat and upon doing so set up the live stream and depart for 12:00pm.  Upon getting back, everything went smoothly the stream began and even my mum was watching and in the chat room – I was waived the mooring fee and off I went – Dave Flames (a member of this forum) somehow had control of the webcam at Barnes Brinkcraft and took a series of snap shots as I left the moorings and went live.

I know this is all not very holiday like, I know too it is very much geeky and frankly a right pain to set up – but when it was all going, people are tweeting, chatting and watching the show it seems proper worth it. 

Along the Bure we went but I had been having problems all morning with getting a decent mobile signal on the usually very reliable Three MiFi unit – even in Wroxham I was only able to get 3G and by the time we left Wroxham broad (being turned around because of the racing that was going on) signal was lost completely.  Once I got it back we were well past Horning – and I had suffered a problem with the USB hub which powers and connects all the webcams.  The power pack for it had stopped working.  Some on the fly changing of cables meant we had at least got 2  cameras back up and running.

It was then along the Thurne and to Potter Heigham.  Not much to report, most of the afternoon was taken up with just cruising along.  When I arrived at Herbert Woods it was my intention of getting some water (I’d forgotten to use the hose right behind the boat in Le Boats boatyard) and was surprised to see Herbert Woods so completely full.  I slowly went around looking for hoses and a space to moor.  The only thing I could find was a stern on mooring partially blocked by a dinghy.  After two attempts it was plain to see a 12 foot wide boat was not going to fit in a 10 foot wide space. 

Time to leave – DRL Marine had water and so just shortly after leaving Herbert Woods   to head to Womack Water I ended the live stream.  Phew.  I could relax now, for when I am doing that I ma always more on edge – aware people can both hear and see everything I do from cock ups to exemplary manoeuvres.

Once in Womack Dyke, it was as I expected full.  My favourite ‘wild mooring’ was more overgrown than ever – but the other ‘back up one’ past the corner on the left was free.  Down past Hunters yard, over Womack Water and moored at DRL where a very helpful guy asked ‘what can we do for you’ and actually got the hose and put it in the filler.  It seemed to take an age to fill up – surely I had not used that much water?  Then I began to see what seemed to be happening.  There are two tanks, both have a small hole which will spurt water out to let  you know when it is full, but while the right hand one was dribbling out the left hand one was positively spurting out.  I wonder if in fact this was a siphon effect, where once the water had began to come out it carried on and on – anyway – they certainly were full and it was time to head off and see if the mooring I had spied on my way was free.  Incidentally the public staithe was full.

And so as I came down the dyke the mooring was indeed free, and I took my time to prepare and moor.  This time I did not get off the boat with it in gear, and this time I was much more confident with the rhonde anchor/rope dance routine.  Before long I was settled, a cold beer on the go and the sun setting with nobody around.  Lovely.

I put everything away, tidied the boat and while Salerno is not very big, she has everything you could wish for aboard.  I am still amazed at the price and despite it being one of the cheapest boats you can hire its inventory included 3 saucepans and a frying pan, a colander, a sharp pearing knife, bread knife - hell even egg cups! I also like the pack Richardson’s give you, toilet roll, black bin bag, little bottle of washing up liquid, tea towels and jay cloth together with a scouring pad. 

I wonder if it is just me but when you are moored for the evening, I do like a bit of Classic FM on really relaxes you.  It was not a very eventful day I grant you, but I had tomorrow to look forward to as far as doing what I pleased and no rushing.  I also did not need to worry about cameras and cables and the like.  It had been a great day, and the evening was treating me to a wonderful light show with the setting sun and nature was all coming to rest around me.  This is what boating is all about – complete mind reset from daily rush of life.