Posted by Jock on May 31, 2019 at 05:57:47 user Jock.
In Reply to: Recreating moments from the books - Swallowdale posted by Magnus Smith on May 25, 2019 at 01:47:29:
During my schooldays, I dragged my unwitting parents on a sailing holiday on the Norfolk Broads. We hired an unpowered 3-berth yacht and a small fibre glass dinghy with a Seagull outboard which we used for shunting. (I'm sure there is a proper nautical term for such manoeuvres, 'tug-boating' perhaps?)
Towards the end of our voyaging we reached Wroxham. This had been a bit of a struggle because of the trees upstream of Horning. I was determined to reach Coltishall, the head of navigation, so after supper I set off in the dinghy.
All proceeded to plan and I reached the site of the burnt-out Coltishall Mill, but on my return the Seagull started to play up, and I had to restart it several times, and nurse it carefully at low revs to keep it going. It grew darker and darker and eventually it grew pitch black. There was no moon. Steering by the stars is all very well, but when there are lots of trees and the river does lots of "U" bends, it's not always possible to see the stars! It wasn't quite an action replay of John sailing in the dark, but close enough for me.
I did get back to Wroxham, but the rest of the crew were close to mutiny. The following day, it transpired that there was nothing wrong with the Seagull, but my father, not realising that two-strokes need a petrol/oil mixture, had filled the fuel tank with petrol instead.
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