A walk alongside Hardley Freeze

LEADEN skies, a biting wind and snow flurries hurling themselves across the marshes, why wouldn't you want to go for a long Wherryman's Way walk today? Early this morning, I tramped one of my favourite stretches, the narrow isthmus of a footpath between the River Chet and Hardley Flood (pictured). Most of the Flood was a Freeze while the Chet stayed liquid apart from a small stretch near Loddon Staithe. People might be getting fed up with this weather now, but I still find it strangely magical. This is a once in a decade job, once in a generation perhaps. Get out there, go walking, start sledging. What did you do during the great freeze of 2010 Grandad? Do you know what kids? I had a bloody good time.

Cardboard ice explained

THE BIG freeze continues and now even the Chet has copped it. A thick layer of ice covers just about all of the river ..in the Loddon area at least. Cardboard ice is back on the dykes and the mystery of its different layers has been explained to me (see previous post). It is due to the tide, which - I've learnt - affects even these tiny tributaries. The water freezes at high tide, then the running water beneath retreats. Sometimes this leaves a high tide layer hanging half way up the reeds. On other occasions you break a high tide layer to find a low tide layer beneath. Elementary to old Broads hands, but not alas, to me!

Loddon's new Ice Age

SNOW descended on Loddon almost a week ago now. But since then a continuous deep freeze has led to a steady ice invasion too. Head down to the marshy meadows next to the Chet and you start to understand how the eskimoes could have so many words for something as simple as frozen water. The River Chet remains overwhelmingly liquid of course. But for the field-draining dykes it's a different story. There's transparent thin ice. There's thick frosty stuff tesselated into irregular triangles, (pictured). But my eye is constantly drawn to a gravity-defying layer of what my kids call "cardboard ice" because of its thickness and the way that it bends undulatingly across and through the reeds. It often exists half-way up a reed - with fresh air both above and below. There is no doubt a simple scientific explanation - enlighten me someone please. For cardboard ice pictures and more visit this set on flickr.

The Yule Blog: Happy Christmas

OVERNIGHT snow has left at least the Loddon section of the Wherryman's Way under three inches of beautiful powdery snow this morning. The meadows next to the River Chet (pictured) are covered with a mixture of white stuff and frozen floodwater. Birds are noisily everywhere, no doubt desperately hunting for sustenance and Loddon's resident harnser* was on patrol as ever. Meanwhile I've just had an early Christmas present from the publishers Halsgrove. It's official! My book on the Wherryman's Way will be published in May - the truly keen can see the schedule here.All in all it seems the right time to say Happy Christmas to you select band of readers out there - whoever and wherever. Thanks for collectively racking up more than 3000 hits since the blog kicked off in March. I'll be back posting in 2010.
* harnser - the Norfolk word for a heron

Hathor on tour

ROLL UP for the Hathor farewell tour, about to enter its second week on the Yare.
The restored pleasure wherry has been doing the rounds of the Broads this summer prior to an extensive re-fit which will see her confined to quarters for some years. She spends this weekend at Yarmouth before sailing down to Loddon and then returning via Reedham and Berney Arms. (Full itinerary below.) This picture shows a wherryman engaged in the back-breaking work of quanting at Loddon Staithe during a previous visit in 2006. It is amazing that such a huge vessel can make it down such a narrow and winding river like the Chet. Wherrymen - ancient and modern - earned their keep.

Monday 7th YARMOUTH YACHT STATION 10am - 6pm
Tuesday 8th LODDON 1pm - 6pm
Wednesday 9th LODDON 10am - 6pm
Thursday 10th REEDHAM FERRY 11am - 7.30pm
Friday 11th REEDHAM QUAY 11.30am - 6pm
Saturday 12th BERNEY ARMS 11am - 5pm
Sunday 13th BERNEY ARMS 11am - 5.30pm