Looking over the Ray towards Mersea from the Strood - "an extensive marshy tract veined and flecked in every part with water. At high tide the appearance is that of a vast surface of moss or Sargasso weed with rents and patches of shining water traversing and dappling it in all directions (Mehalah).
From Essex Countryside September 1963 page 475.
The barge, used as a houseboat, is the VICTA.
Date: Before September 1963