Who remembers the Ryton houseboats?

AT the end of the 1940s to early 1950s Tynemouth Sailing Club arranged a programme of winter racing at Ryton using the boathouse as a base.
At high tide during these races there was sufficient depth of water to be able to sail further up river than the dredged stretch opposite the ferry ramp. On these adventures we could see a few dozen yards upstream a collection of houseboats moored among the trees on the south side.
Can anyone remember these boats and how many there were? I believe they were residential because we met a family of youngsters who crewed for us and must have lived in one of those houseboats.
- Dalton Linkleter, West Farm, Kirkheaton.