She's 106 and still going strong. Wells-next-the-Sea in north Norfolk is now the number one port for the old Dutch clipper Albatros, where she's moored almost permanently. When she does leave home - either on a day trip or bound for the Dutch coast now and then - it feels like something is missing from the quayside. Outside broadcast That's what local people told presenter Chris Goreham and I when we took BBC Radio Norfolk's breakfast programme to the deck of the Albatros as part of the BBC Coast project.  | | A tranquil start to the day at Wells |
During her chequered history, she's carried Jews to safety, used disaffected youngsters as part of her crew and played a major part in a Greenpeace education project. Her captain, Ton Brouwer, is in love with his ship, which he bought in 1980. The day we broadcast from the Albatros, the high tide was shimmering in the early morning sun, with just a light wind tickling our arms and faces. There are other ways of experiencing heaven, but that seemed perfection at the time. Music nights But don't be fooled by her quaint and tranquil facade. Beneath that old-fashioned wooden exterior is a girl who loves to boogie. The hold, which used to carry grain from the Continent to the UK, is now a fully equipped bar, seating 40 people, and on summer nights, I can report, the old girl rocks. A few weeks ago I was invited to join an old friend, Pippa, for a night out on the Albatros. We were offered some German firewater as we arrived, and polished off a bottle of wine or two after that.  | | Producer Lyn with her running order |
The music was provided by the Rocking Johnnies - a pair of talented musicians who can play anything on guitar from blues to tracks by The Beatles to reggae and rock, and believe me, we rocked. In fact, I can't remember a night I enjoyed so much for a long time - and it wasn't just the booze! The Albatros recently sailed back to Dutch waters for a few days to have a bit of a re-fit, but she's back in Wells harbour for the rest of the season. My friend Pippa has experienced one of Capt Brouwer's day trips up the east coast, and says it was a class day out - though she had to take some of her sea sickness pills, as the boat rolls a bit, being flat bottomed. (Didn't Queen write a song about them?) There are more such journeys planned on Saturday 6 August and Saturday 20 August. Pippa's poem God bless the Albatros, she's in my heart now, and seemingly in Pippa's too, because she summed it all up for me in her poem. Our Albatros
Has only one S
And no wings to fly
Though she can skim
Across the sea
We like it best of all
When she is primly
Tethered
To the harbour wall
Upon her mast
Two weathered flags
Sometimes when the moon
And tide are right
She solemnly zig-zags
Out to sea
Voyaging far
Gone for a day
Or a mysterious fortnight
Then the heart of Wells sags
Until looking up
We suddenly see
Her eager bow thrusting
Over Wells Bar
Muscling in on a cunning tide
Heading to her anchorage
Beside the quay
The old treasure is 106 this year
Looking good considering her age
Still giving pleasure
To everyone who knows her
Long may she stay
Happily roosting
At Wells-next-the-Sea. (c) Pippa King, 2005 | 
