Yachting, Vol. 2Dufferin and Ava, Frederick Temple Blackwood, Marquis of
History
Yachting, Vol. 2
Dufferin and Ava, Frederick Temple Blackwood, Marquis of
Yacht racing; Yachting; Yachts
So by wood and mere and sighing reed we pass with many a twist and
turn until we reach the hostelry of Horning Ferry. Here, as night
draws on, many vessels arrive. Strolling along the bank we can note
what is after all the great fun of Broad yachting--the camping and
living on board a floating house, however small. The big wherries and
barges are of course floating houseboats, comparatively luxurious; but
at the other extreme here are three or four open boats covered in with
canvas tents or awnings luminous with the lamps within, and with
myriads of dazzled night insects pattering against the shining canvas.
The evening meal is being discussed, then there is the clatter of
washing-up, the cleaning of knives by thrusting them into the soft
bank, the washing of plates with tufts of paper, and the general
tidying-up which is part of the fun to young men, but which ceases to
possess any charm to older ones. These rivers are capital places for
the man fond of single-handed sailing. One well-known and elderly
amateur sails a lugsail boat alone, but at a proper distance behind
him comes his man in another single-handed boat. The latter pitches
his master's tent and relieves him of household troubles, and retires
to his own boat tent when not wanted. This is really a capital
arrangement.
[Illustration: Wroxham Broad.]
When the stars come out, the herons settle in the shallow pools; the
wild duck fly from the sheltered decoys and preserved sanctuaries to
more open feeding-grounds; a shot rings out on the August night from
some reed-hidden gunner who has been patiently awaiting the evening
flight. In contrast come the notes of a piano and song from a barge;
along the bank is a row of lights from cosy cabins; the inn is
thronged with boat-sailers eagerly discussing their common sport; then
the last cheery good-nights, and silence falls over the lone marsh and
winding river.
In the morning there is the splash of swimmers, blankets and bedding
are put out to air on the cabin-tops, spirit and paraffin stoves
mingle their scent with that of frying bacon and the wild thyme on the
banks. About ten o'clock the little yachts spread their sails to the
freshening breeze, and off they go. If we have ladies on board, they
will probably wish to go to Horning Church in the morning, and can
then sail in the afternoon with a clear conscience--a compromise
approved by the strictest sabbatarian, who finds in the peace and
quiet of Norfolk waters an assurance that neither the wind nor he is a
sinner in the gentle movement.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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