Anyone ever been to the Norfolk Broads?going at the end of June,there are 26 of us going, just wondered if anyone had any thoughts/experiences/warnings about it?!

Amy xx

Careful you don't exceed the speed limits or the river police may impose a fine.

Watch out for Coypu, ( giant rats.) A mate once went and a ruddy great thing climbed in to his boat and scoffed all his bread. Apparantley there are loads of 'em.

Hi Dilly,
large groups of us used to go every summer, and have a fantastic time. Main tips I can think of is.
1)Always get an extra mud weight and a
2)dinghy for your boat, because then you can moor up in the middle of a lake at night and dinghy to the shore.
2)never go in the fishing season because it gets too busy and the fishermen get very p*ssed off if you drive through where they're fishing.
3)Those coppers in the boats on the water have real power and you can get fined and in serious trouble for speeding. They have radar speed guns, Get used to sticking to the speed limits, and make sure someone is farely sober when driving. Because when they board your boat they ask all sorts of questions etc..
4) Apart from Norwich, the south part of the broads is bland and not really worth going in. There are hardly any trees and it's cold because there is no shelter.
The whole system is 250 miles of waterways and you can only see a small part of it in a week.
5) Don't bother going under potter higham bridge, the tide changes and you can get stuck there for days.
6) Only attempt Yarmouth and Breydon water when you have got used to the boat, the water there is extremely fast flowing,and you need to be confident and sure of what you are doing or you could crash into the side or other boats. The trick is to go through this against the tide.
7) good boat maneuvering is a bit like riding a bike, the more you do it the better you get. It takes years (of visits) before you look like a real pro. Main things to remember is gently on throttle and BOATS DON'T STEER IN REVERSE. So if you want to do a U turn you turn the wheel all the way to the left or right, and gently go forwards and back on the throttle and the boat just spins around without moving the steering.

Hi dilly
Lived in Norfolk for nearly 10 years and know broads well.
There's some beautiful places, quiet pubs, plenty of open water etc and then there's the places that are like inland Blackpools. Nothing wrong with Blackpool but some of the larger centres have plenty of candy floss and amusement arcades.

Try and get to Hickling Broad, open sheet of water, take a look at Horning, really quaint village. Be careful if you go through Potter Heigham bridge, judge the tide time cos there's very little leeway.
Wroxham'a always busy.

You can go all the way into Norwich, beautiful city, crap football team mind!
Whittlingham Lane, just outside Norwich is on River Yare and where the local ladies of the night take their punters, so I was once told!

Southern broads, rivers Waveney and Yare tend to be not as hectic and as muddycoffeee says a bit bland.
You'll be there in the fishing season and yes agree with m/coffee be careful.



Have a great time.