| ABOUT THE WHERRIES OF THE NORFOLK BROADS |
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The Wherry is a shallow single sail boat indigenous to the Norfolk Broads. The hull of a wherry is generally clinker built (overlapping planks) out of oak. Its rarity nowadays is attributed to the design. Only in the unique calm and shallow broads were wherries produced and used. The remarkable low depth of the waterways required the hull to be similarly shallow, and the single mast was tall, holding one edge of its vast sail to catch the breeze above the trees. To enable the wherries to pass under tight bridges, the mast is counterweighted and can be gently lowered. No sailing vessels can be found like them in the world, the closest being the colourful Dutch boats built to sail the dykes on the flat reclaimed land, which can be found on rare occasions on the Norfolk Broads themselves, brought over from the Netherlands. The wherry, however, is the only sailing vessel of its size or carrying capacity that can cover almost all the waterways on the Broads, including the odd secluded dyke.
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| WHERRY WEIGHTS AND MEASURES |
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Wherries' sizes are often quoted by several weights and measurements. Length: the length of the wherry from bow to stern. Beam: the width of the wherry at its widest point. Draught: the depth of the wherry below the water line (this will obviously vary depending on the contents of the wherry - trading wherries often went very low in the water when fully laden). Gross Tonnage: the weight of the wherry and all the interior fittings.
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Registered Charity: No. 1096073
http://www.wherry.34sp.com/wherries.html
Updated 09/01/2006 by the
WYC Webmaster
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Norfolk's Seven Wherries |
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There are seven wherries, pleasure wherries or wherry yachts in sailing order. Besides our fleet of three, there are other wherries on the Broads. |
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