Outboard Theft

A report has been received from a yachtie who keeps his Kingfisher on the River Stour near Holbrook Creek. It seems that his outboard was stolen recently which in its self is a problem but it highlighted. Whilst in this instance it had not been secured to the yacht as the owner felt it would have been an easy matter to cut the engine mount, he found out that only by using a "marine type lock" would his insurers consider a claim. Using a good bicycle lock is not sufficient

Never heard of it then you were not at the recent RYA forum held in Levington last month. Following a recent warning that UK yachts visiting the Inland waters of the EU will have to be fitted with holding tanks, comes further legislation requiring yachts going inland to be fitted with Automatic Transmitter Identification system (ATIS) capable VHF sets aboard. The aim of the scheme which is monitored from a centre in Brussels is to track interference and illegal use of VHF.

Olympic hero rounds off golden season for Waldringfield Sailing Club

The club recorded a great season in 2008, both at home and further afield, with notable successes by many of the club’s top helms at open meetings and national championships. The principal success of the year was Chris Fish and Beth Condie winning the Lark National Championships at the Royal Yorkshire Yacht Club. This is the third time in recent years that sailors from WSC have won this event. more >>>>

River Crossing gets go-ahead

A proposed £38m third crossing to be built across Lake Lothing, the upper part of Lowerstoft harbour has now been rubber stamped by the Govt. A report by the Highways Agency shows that a new bridge would stretch from Peto Way in the north of the town to Waveney Drive in the south. The plans show the bridge sited between two existing crossings , the bascule swing bridge and the Mutford Lock rail and railcrossing  at the entrance to Oulton Broad. Local yacht clubs and marinas are watching development with trepidation as no detailed plans have been released

Is Your EPIRB up to date ?

Offshore sailors who carry either an on-vessel EPIRB or a transportable Personal Locator Beacon (PLB) are reminded that from January 2009 the 121.2/243 MHz waveband ceases to be monitored as alert frequency. After this date, beacons transmitting on this frequency will only be used for localised homing, so for the most part they are redundant.

RYA Cruising Manager Stuart Carruthers explained: "Nowadays modern beacons transmitting on 406 MHz offer many advantages over analogue 121.5/243 MHz beacons. "With a 406 MHz beacon, the position of the distress can be relayed to rescue services more quickly, more reliably and with greater accuracy. These will not be affected by the change. "However, some of the older devices transmit on 121.5/243 MHz only and it is these that will become redundant as a means of emergency alert following the decision to discontinue monitoring this frequency. The important thing is that people check their beacons and make sure that they are not redundant. From a safety point of view, this is paramount,” he added. 


The frequency on which your EPIRB transmits should be clearly marked on the casing so it’s an easy matter to check. Cospas-Sarsat, the organization that runs the satellite system supporting these alert devices, has decided to cease satellite processing following recognition of the limitations of the 121.5/243 MHz beacons and the superior capabilities of the 406 MHz alerting system.

In addition, only about one alert out of every fifty on the analogue system was a genuine distress. This has a significant effect on search and rescue resources and was a major factor in the decision to discontinue the service. However, 121.5/243 will continue to provide a short-range homing signal once an initial call for assistance has been made and rescue services are in range of the casualty.

For further information the MCA's Marine Guidance Notice gives you a full overview of the changes.

Yachting Centre for the Fens

Fenland District Council is building a new £1/2M slipway with a winch, and a new boatbuilding and repair facility on the site of the old Wisbech slipway. The new slipway and winch will enable the council to offer a landing and repair facility for boats up to 100 tonnes. The Council claims it will be the biggest such facility between the Tyne and Gravesend. Work began in October on creating the slipway, installing a new winch and industrial units on the same site to stimulate marine activity. The yacht harbour, boat hoist and slipway are all key elements of an ambitious £47million Nene Waterfront Regeneration Project by the Council, in partnership with the East of England Development Agency (EEDA), English Partnerships and GO-East which administers European Regeneration Funding. The yacht harbour is already attracting sea-going yachts, despite being 11 miles inland from the Wash, at King’s Lynn.

Crown Buys Burnham Marina

The Crown Estate has bought Burnham on Crouch Yacht Harbour from East Coast Marinas Ltd. The 350-berth marina, which sits on the north bank of the River Crouch, outside the town of Burnham-on-Crouch, is home to the famous Burnham Week, the longest running annual yachting regatta on the UK mainland.
Burnham Yacht Harbour includes 350 pontoon berths, boatyard, chandlery, yacht brokers and The Swallow Tail bar and restaurant, which over-look the marina. A new company, Burnham Yacht Harbour Marina Limited has entered into a fifty-year lease with The Crown Estate to operate the marina.

Long Process nears End

The Broads Authority Bill has at last passed through the House of Lords. It is now expected on the Statute Book in the spring. The Bill gives the Broads Authority (BA) increased powers, including full implementation of the boat safety scheme, licensing of hire boats and making third party insurance for all boats compulsory.
In a brief statement Norfolk and Suffolk Boating Association (NSBA) chairman Mark Weller said: "There is considerable relief that this long drawn out process is almost at an end. Now it’s time to move on. We have some continuing points of difference with the Broads Authority (BA) – and some issues on which we are willing to continue working with them. We also intend to keep a close watch on how they use their new powers under what will soon be, we expect, the Broads Authority Act. We want to get back to concentrating the substantive issues."

NSBA, with support and help from the Royal Yachting Association (RYA) and the British Marine Federation (BMF), negotiated significant modifications to the earlier drafts of the Bill, culminating in the agreements reached between the boating organisations and the BA in January 2007.

"Their advice was invaluable to our case," commented Mark Wells. "We remain convinced that the line we took was both effective – in terms of the amendments achieved – and financially prudent."

He added the NSBA now looked to the future and was concentrating its efforts on supporting the BA members' scrutiny panel examining the Authority's stewardship of the toll income, encouraging efforts to redeem the backlog of dredging in key areas of the Broads and, continuing to represent the interests of all private boaters who use the Broads Navigation.

NSBA represents the majority of sailing clubs and the interests of some 9,000 private boaters on the Broads and surrounding waterways with bodies such as the Broads Authority, the Royal Yachting Association (RYA), the governing body of UK water sports and the British Marine Federation (BMF), which represents marine manufacturers.

Ipswich Wet dock lock closure

Following the installation of new higher (an additional 1.4m)  lock gates at the entrance to Ipswich Wet dock to reduce the risk of flooding to the lower section of the town, yachtsmen are being warned of the delays entering and leaving on extremely high tides. The new flood gates top out at 1.48m above the lock coping stones. They will be shut when the height of the tide reaches 4.5m above chart datum    

Fishing boat sinks

Yachts approaching Lowerstoft from the south via the Stanford channel  are being advised to keep a good lookout fro a yellow lit buoy in position 52.26.88N and 01.46.83E, marking the wreck of the 5.5m fishing boat "Kerry Louise" . The buoy is positioned close SE of the wreck and exhibits alternate blue and yellow flashing lights of one second with 0.5 second intervals. The buoy is a pillar with blue and yellow vertical stripes.

... Latest News