Assist with navigation; forage and fish for your meals; visit special places that can only be accessed by sea and creek.
Create a memory that will last a lifetime with an indulgent charter with friends and family on the Norfolk coast.
Blue sky thinking takes on real meaning when you're at sea. Re-energise the team with an away day aboard one of our boats.
“We create fun, relaxing, sometimes challenging, but undoubtedly life-enriching adventures on traditional wooden sailing boats, based in Wells-next-the-Sea, on the beautiful North Norfolk coast.
Run by a small, local team of professional adventurers, we skipper and host trips ranging from four hours to three days, through creeks, marshes and open sea. Get involved with the sailing and cooking, or sit back and connect with nature – the pace is yours to choose.
We only use locally sourced high-quality food and drink on our sails, ensuring a full Norfolk experience. Our philosophy is to run a sustainable business by investing in slow food, community engagement projects and the movement of cargo under sail.”
WEEKLY SAILS Friday 16th August 2019
Friday 16th August – depart Wells 0700 arrive Cley 1030
Sail with us out of Wells along our heritage coast to Cley, mooring up alongside its iconic windmill
Crab boat max 6 persons – exclusive charter £495 or £95 per person
Saturday 17th August – depart Cley 0730 arrive Wells 1130
Sail away from Cley with us through creeks channels saltmarsh and open sea back into Wells harbour
Crab boat max 6 persons – exclusive charter £495 or £95 per person
Sunday 18th August – depart Wells 0800 return 1200
Destination Holkham Bay on this adventurous sail out of the harbour and along our famous coastline
Whelk boat max 10 persons – exclusive charter £695 or £95 per person
Monday 19th August – depart Wells 0830 return 1200
Head out to open sea today as we sail along the coast taking in the expanse of Holkham bay as we go
Whelk boat max 10 persons – exclusive charter £695 or £95 per person
Tuesday 20th August – depart Wells 0900 return 1230
Sail with us on the crab boat out of Wells harbour through the marsh and on over to East Hills
Crab boat max 6 persons – exclusive charter £495 or £95 per person
Wednesday 21st August – depart Wells 0930 return 1300
Join us as we set sail for Stiffkey looking out for wildlife as we explore creeks channels and saltmarsh
Mussel Flat max 4 persons – exclusive charter £295 or £85 per person
Thursday 22nd August – depart Wells 1000 return 1330
Our shallow draft means we are able to explore the myriad of channels that make up Stiffkey marsh
Mussel Flat max 4 persons – exclusive charter £295 or £85 per person
Friday 23rd August – depart Wells 0950 return 1330
East Hills beckons as we cross Wells Harbour and enter a world of wildlife solitude and saltmarsh
Mussel Flat max 4 persons – exclusive charter £295 or £85 per person
Saturday 24th August – depart Wells 1130 return 1430
Warham Marsh is our destination today our Mussel Flat harnessing the power of the wind and tide
Mussel Flat max 4 persons – exclusive charter £295 or £85 per person
Sunday 25th August – depart Wells 1230 return 1530
Explore the creeks and channels of Wells Marsh with us today watching for wildlife as we go
Mussel Flat max 4 persons – exclusive charter £295 or £85 per person
James Boyd's Wilderness concerts reflect James’ love for adventure and wild spaces. They are immersive experiences – thought-provoking, uplifting and unforgettable.
Each Wilderness Concert is a world-class experience aboard our beautiful wooden boats in the heart of the salt marshes. Locally sourced artisan food, roaring wood burning stove, remote anchorages set the scene.
Immerse yourself in the cry of wading birds, wide skies, the trickle of the tide and a concert experience that will become a lifetime memory.
Concert Programme -
The Age of Discovery
26th October 1630 - 1900 James Laing Countertenor and James Boyd Guitar
"Deservedly huge cheers at the end of the night went to Joshua Ellicott
...musical distinction, emotional precision and a keen dramatic urgency…”
The Boston Globe
'Each note falls like a teardrop such is the beauty of Boyd's tone and deeply expressive phrasing
International record review
What most impresses is Boyd's sense of naturalness, of ebb and flow, recalling both Bream's and Segovia's willingness to savour the moment
Gramophone Magazine
“FOLLOW THE WITHIES,” advises Henry, as I tug on the wooden tiller of his clinker-built, 1950s crab boat My Girls with trepidation, watching the narrow, marshy creek zig-zag before her prow.
“Swallows and Amazons, remember? Secret Water? Withies are the sticks that mark the channel, so you know where it is at high tide,” he explains. I spot them, a reassuring line of thin willows, standing upright above swirling eddies of muddy water, steadfastly marking deep water and our safe passage.
Top 10 Norfolk and Suffolk experiences
Learn to sail with the RYA-accredited Norfolk etc (01263 740704; norfolketc.co.uk) or book a sailing expedition in a traditional Norfolk fishing boat through the newly launched Coastal Exploration Company for an adventurous trip along the coast and along the atmospheric creeks and backwaters between Thornham and Cley in North Norfolk. Spot wildlife, catch mackerel, learn about navigation and enjoy delicious homemade food.
We’re sailing across a sandy-coloured sea. Seals pop up around our little crab boat and then vanish, like a game of Whac-A-Mole. Further ahead, a group lie motionless on the water, as if levitating. It takes me a moment to realise that the sea is so shallow they are resting on a submerged sand bank.
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