The Deben vs the Orwell or Suffolk Against the World? The Classic Boat Awards 2026

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Editors Introduction

Over the past few years the success of River Deben craft in the annual Classic Boat awards has been outstanding. This year two new categories have been introduced – for Yards & Harbours and for Rising Stars. We are proud to see the Woodbridge & Waldringfield Boatyard shortlisted. Matt Lis, who writes this article, is the General Manager of Woodbridge and Waldringfield Boatyards, but importantly, he also represents all River Businesses on the RDA Committee. We feel a collective pride in this success and ask all River Deben supporters to consider voting for Woodbridge & Waldringfield Boatyards as they offer increasing employment opportunities and develop the young craftspeople of tomorrow – as well as building and maintaining a wide range of boats and taking great care of the river environment.

Woodbridge & Waldringfield boatyard team 2025

By Matt Lis

The Awards

Now in their 19th year, the Classic Boat Awards are run by Classic Boat magazine a British publication nowadays owned by the Telegraph, Each year, the magazine’s editors choose a shortlist of boats which have caught their eyes over the previous 12 months, within the magazine, at boat shows or perhaps by accident, and then that shortlist is put to a public vote to decide the winners. This decade a Woodbridge-built or -restored boat has been shortlisted every year but one and every year that boat has finished on the podium in its category. This may be the strongest showing of any single river in recent years.

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So, who’s the oldest boat on the river? A report from the Boats Still Floating 2025 project

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By Julia Jones

The Boats Still Floating project was an attempt to list as many as possible of the boats on the Deben during 2025 (including houseboats) which had been built before 1950. We found 66. Click HERE to go straight to the list. 

Thank you to all who contributed.

I won’t keep you waiting for the answer: in 2025 the oldest boat, still floating on the Deben is TRY AGAIN, built in Guernsey by George le Maitre in 1861. Then, she was registered as an oyster fishing boat. These days she’s a thoroughly capable family yacht, moored at Ramsholt during the summer and owned by Matthew Longfellow. Many ‘owners’ of these historic vessels – Matthew may be one of them – prefer to describe themselves as custodians. They know that it takes unremitting vigilance, care, effort and expenditure of both time and money to ensure that the boat will continue floating even when the former owners are six feet under.

Try Again (1861).

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Deben Sea Walls, Salt Marshes, Cuttings and Tides

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Editors Note

One of the most striking exhibits at the Waldringfield Tidelines exhibition in August 2025 was a set of posters produced by Bob Crawley and summarising his research into the Deben sea walls. Although Bob admits that the work has raised more questions than it has answered — and therefore his findings are provisional — the beautifully presented posters will certainly open many people’s eyes to a feature we too easily take for granted. 

  • Poster 1 asks When and Where were the Sea Walls Built?
  • Poster 2 discusses The Tide Level Problem
  • Poster 3 offers a Salt Marshes and Sea Walls Briefing 
  • Poster 4 explains Dating Sea Walls by Salt Marsh Elevation
  • Poster 5 focusses on Sea Walls Near Waldringfield
  • Poster 5a Sea Walls in the Deben Estuary
  • Poster 6 explores Waldringfield’s Mystery Cuttings

There are references and suggestions for further reading. 

By Bob Crawley

This began in early 2025 as a survey of the relationship of clay levels to sea walls, but developed into a wider investigation of the Deben sea walls. Along the way, interesting findings were made. The work has raised more questions than it has answered, so findings are provisional. The results were presented as a slide presentation below or as set of posters for an exhibition held in August 2025, attached <here>.

[Show picture list]

Bob Crawley

With a background in Computing and Communications technology, Bob Crawley relocated from London to Suffolk in 1987. Being near the North Sea led to wreck diving on the East Coast and other water sports. Later, living in Waldringfield triggered a belated enthusiasm for yacht sailing. This fitted neatly with an interest in the history of our local waters and estuaries, especially the Deben.

Some Portable Magic: RDA Books for Christmas and the New Year

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Introduced by Julia Jones

‘Books are a uniquely portable magic,’ wrote Stephen King. Although Stephen King is not on my personal favourites list—and isn’t on this RDA list either—he is undeniably someone who understands about the relationship between words and readers and the ability of books to lift us away from our everyday preoccupations, fire our imaginations and extend or transform our understanding of the world. It doesn’t always happen, but when one finds a book that seems to speak directly to one, one has found a treasure. In this article, for Christmas and the New Year, some of the RDA Committee members and magazine contributors share their finds from 2025.

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Deben Estuary Water Quality Update – Woodbridge Outfall Safari

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By Colin Nicholson

Introduction

Water Quality is a fast moving, high interest area for the River Deben Association.  Since the  last RDA Journal Article (‘Water Quality Update’ January 2025), Waldringfield Bathing Water Designation Area has achieved (announced 25th October 2025) a second year of clear run 20/20 [Excellent] measurements across the May-September Environment Agency (EA) bathing season.

Two significant projects are now in their start-up phases, each with a major focus on water quality:

The Deben Climate Centre’s Four River’s initiative (link) across the Deben, Blyth, Alde and Ore and Waveney “A new three-year co-funding agreement between East Suffolk Council and Deben Climate Centre… The aim will be to restore degraded ecosystems, support nature recovery and test a range of different flood alleviation measures.”

The Essex and Suffolk Rivers Trust has initiated the ‘Recovering the Deben: Source to Sea’ (link) “an ambitious project that aims to restore the land, water, and nature throughout the River Deben catchment and estuary”

This latest journal article focusses on trying to resolve the debate on just how many outfalls there are between Martlesham Creek to Wilford Bridge.  The answer is Fourteen (caveated as usual as there is more to learn, and there is an extra one inland at the Deben Yacht Club (DYC) dinghy park).  Below for those interested is a little bit more detail of how they work.

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New Deben Walks

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By Jan Harber

OS Explorer 197 Ipswich, Felixstowe & Harwich

In September 2025 sections of the recently-created King Charles III England Coast Path were opened along both banks of the Deben: from Bawdsey to Wilford Bridge and Wilford Bridge to Felixstowe Ferry. See map with the whole route marked in blue. Much of the Coast Path route is along existing rights of way. However, there are three ‘new’ sections which Judy and I decided to investigate this autumn.

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Beyond the tides: how salt shaped Suffolk’s economy and coastline

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By Ned Biggs

The unassuming coastline of Suffolk holds a fascinating and ancient secret: it was once a hub for sea salt production, an industry that has ebbed and flowed with the tides of history. From prehistoric fires to Roman industrialisation, and from medieval monasteries to the Victorian era’s final curtain, the story of salt-making in Suffolk is a compelling one, and one that is now seeing a modest, modern revival.

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The Company of Dragonflies: Four Dragonflies in a Summer Season

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By Sally Westwood

I visited the slow flowing stream that runs parallel to the river Deben, on several occasions during the summer, looking for dragonflies. This is my first season of observing and photographing dragonflies and damselflies. I would like to share with you, my field notes. In my last article I discussed damselflies observed in the same location. My focus now turns to dragonflies. My knowledge and learning was obtained from observation, then I researched aspects of behaviour that I saw, such as mating and egg laying behaviour. The most interesting observations of the dragonflies were the different ovipositing behaviour  (laying of eggs), which could be alone or together with mate, and different locations for both mating, and ovipositing. I came across four dragonflies on the riverbank: The Emperor; Southern Hawker; Migrant Hawker, and Common Darter.

Emperor Dragonfly

I observed a fairly large dragonfly laying eggs in June. It was an Emperor (Anax imperator) dragonfly. The Emperor dragonfly is the largest species of dragonfly in the UK. It has an average length of 78mm and average wingspan of 106mm. This species has a mating and flight season between June and August (see the chart below of the flight and mating period of the dragonflies discussed here).

Emperor Dragonfly Ovipositing

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Go to the South Cerney Open!

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By Alice Thorogood

Alice Thorogood has been the parent of three children (Gwen, Hettie and Kemmel Thorogood) in the Waldringfield Cadet Squadron for the last eight years. She and her husband Frank have been fully involved with the practicalities of race management, regatta organisation and committee work as well as ferrying their own children and their dinghies to innumerable events at home and abroad (including world championships as far away as Australia). Cadet sailors must retire at 17. Suddenly it’s all over.

Alice used the lyrics of the Baz Luhrman song ‘everybody’s free (to wear sunscreen)’ to reflect on the friendships she’s made and the experience gained.

Hettie as a junior sailor (left) and at the 2024 World Championships (right).

Ladies and gentlemen of the cadet class of 25:

Go to the South Cerney open.

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, camping at the SC open would be it.
The long-term benefits of attending this open have been proved by the existence of enduring friendships beyond the class, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable
Than my own meandering cadet experience. I will dispense this advice now.

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