Eastern Diversions

Using the five main rivers of Essex as a framework, it dives into many aspects of the maritime world and its history, taking the reader on an unpredictable and fascinating journey from the lost world of Doggerland and the development of modern humans, to yacht building on the River Colne. With stories from the age-old tradition of smuggling to the secret building and mysterious disappearance of a pocket submarine at Wivenhoe. Essex is edged with mudflats and saltmarsh, marginal spaces tht are neither sea nor land. That sense of an unclear boundary is a recurring theme in this exploration of maritime history, in which creatures half-fish and half-animal were thought to haunt the oceans and the bed of the North Sea was once an inhabited country. This unusual book takes you on a glorious and unpredictable journey from prehistory through to the end of the great days of sail, when the railways and the diesel engine changed the world forever. The author lives in Norfolk and has a fascination with the North Sea coast. her lifelong passion for traditional sail, her love of sketching and her abiding interest in history have combined to produce this delightful and engaging book.

Have you ever wondered how to tell a brig from a barque? Or a sprat from a sardine? How salt is made and when Trinity House was founded? The answers to these and much more will be found within these pages. Shortlisted for the Amberley Press Publishing Prize. Curlew Coast is the author's second book about East Anglia's maritime past. Using the coastal towns of Suffolk as a framework, the book explores a diversity of subjects from rope making to ship burials and from coastal erosion to the early navigators. Illustrated throughout with the author's sketches, Curlew Coast covers the period from when the Anglo-Saxons first sailed up the East Anglian rivers, to the age of the railway when the engine began to take over from sail. The author lives in Norfolk with memories of many happy hours sailing off the Suffolk coast and its rivers. A lifelong interest in traditional boats, sailing and maritime history has resulted in this unusual and engaging book.

Have you ever wondered just what was the Hanseatic League?, How malt was made, or how eels get to the Sargasso Sea? The answers to these and many other questions will be found in this book. Spanning the period from the Anglo-Saxons to the coming of the railway, two Points East is about the boats, the fishing and some of the lives lived on the North sea coast of Norfolk, from the once world-famous herring fishery in Great Yarmouth to the extraordinary rescues of Cromer's famous lifeboatman Henry Blogg. Judith Ellis lives in Norfolk with an insatiable curiosity and some very fine memories of sailing off the East Anglian coast. A lifelong interest in traditional boats combined with a love of history and sketching has found expression in this book.