Watchet or Portishead?

[Straightman21]

I have to relocate my Westerly Oceanranger [38ft / 1.6m draft] to one of the two marinas mentioned above [moving to Wiltshire from Pembrokeshire].
I gather Watchet had / has some dredging needs / issues? Any info and views would be most welcome.

 

[bitbaltic]

You are going to Portishead. There’s many a long thread on watchet’s woes here.

although, tbh, if I was moving to Wiltshire I’d either relocate the boat to the south coast or drive back to Pembrokeshire.

 

[RobWard]

I have to relocate my Westerly Oceanranger [38ft / 1.6m draft] to one of the two marinas mentioned above [moving to Wiltshire from Pembrokeshire].
I gather Watchet had / has some dredging needs / issues? Any info and views would be most welcome.

Watchet has issues but Portishead is a long way up the Channel, you've got a whole day sail just to reach blue water beyond Swansea.

 

[rgsmg53]

Depending where you are in Wiltshire, the M4 is a pretty fast way to reach the Bristol Channel. M4 then M5 Jct 19 for Portishead (unless you try it at peak holiday traffic times). I know a couple of people who live in Swindon with boats at Portishead.

If you are relocating to south Wiltshire then surely Solent, Poole, etc is a no brainer as already said?

 

[Graham_Wright]

There's a few ports on the other side! My preference is Barry. The facilities there (hoist, electricity, under-cover) and the friendships are something difficult to find elsewhere.
It's cheap as well!

 

[Allan]

I live in central Bristol, previously I lived in Trowbridge, Wiltshire. The drive to Portishead from both places was approximately 10 minutes shorter than my drive to Cardiff. Watchet, a place I used to love to visit, is an awful drive from both of the places I've lived. The mud and management problems at Watchet are well documented on threads below this one.
Cardiff was £640/year for my Westerly 33, I think Portishead is a little more. It is also half a tide further down the channel. This is important as you can easily get out passed the worst/best of the tide in one cycle.
Allan

 

[Gwylan]

Pucker up to going to be a compromise.

The south coast sort of excludes itself on price grounds.
Weymouth?

Watchet, mud and management, indifferent access

Portishead, we were there for 2 or 3 years. It is the end of the world, constrained by tides.
Leaving or returning has to be planned.
Have they sorted the gate challenges.

Ilfracombe, it's tidal. Great if you can get a place and are bilge keel.

Cardiff, Penarth looks dog earred. Other better options there. Do have the lock, but a large puddle to play in for an hour or so.

Barry, 10 years since I was there. But the club were welcoming.

Swansea, there's the Tawe lock to contend with. Is it still a municipal enterprise? That did seem to encourage the high vis and clipboard approach.
Long way from Wiltshire, but a nice place to keep a boat.

Padstow? Only ever been there by sea. What's road access like?
Are there vacancies or is it visitors only?

 

[38mess]

The best move I ever made with the boat was to get as far west from Cardiff as I possibly could. It can take forever to get to decent cruising grounds, if you ever can. It once took me two weeks to get to Ilfracombe

 

[Allan]

The best move I ever made with the boat was to get as far west from Cardiff as I possibly could. It can take forever to get to decent cruising grounds, if you ever can. It once took me two weeks to get to Ilfracombe

Each to their own, I used to enjoy heading for Ireland, southern Brittany or the Channel Islands. The trip from Cardiff to Newlyn was always a great start to the French trips. Shorter trips to Lydney, Gloucester, Bristol, Newport, Uphill, Watchet, Swansea. Burryport, , Lundy and the Haven at Milford just added to the attraction.
Allan

 

[38mess]

Each to their own, I used to enjoy heading for Ireland, southern Brittany or the Channel Islands. The trip from Cardiff to Newlyn was always a great start to the French trips. Shorter trips to Lydney, Gloucester, Bristol, Newport, Uphill, Watchet, Swansea. Burryport, , Lundy and the Haven at Milford just added to the attraction.
Allan

Yes, each to their own indeed, I was a two hour drive from blue water cruising, as I said in my earlier post, we had to get somewhere in our two week summer holiday, some years we couldn't leave Cardiff because of the weather.
Far better to be already there in my opinion.
Enjoy your sailing .

 

[Birdseye]

I keep a deep fin in Cardiff bay and have been sailing the channel for 30 years in a variety of boats. My advice would be to think south coast.

A deep fin in the bristol channel is a PITA. Getting out of the channel is a 24 hr grit your teath slog because there is no where to park except in a westerly when you can anchor off Lundy after a long wind over tide beat. Combe outer harbour means you will be so far out of harbour to avoid drying that you will almost be in the channel. I used to have a summer mooring in Falmouth so I did that trip dozens of times and rapidly came to the conclusion that it was a 2 man job not stopping - 24/27 hours cardiff to Falmouth. Endurance not fun and very much subject to weather

You can stop off in Padstow after 12/14 hours but I always ended up thinking "why bother" and just carrying on round the corner

So why do I have a deep fin? The idea was racing which I enjoyed but which has come to an end.

If you still insist on mooring in the channel, I wouldnt go near Watchet. Its not their fault but the conversion to marina was cocked up with the resuklt that there is a huge silt build up needing dredging but not enough income to dredge as regularly as needed. Sad but most of the time I cant even get my boat in there for a visit. Portishead is so far up channel that the issue I have getting out of the channel is even worse.

 

[oldmanofthehills]

Wiltshire is a large landlocked county. In the right place you are nearer Poole or Portland than the BC. There are moorings in Castle Cove at Portland, and in Poole Harbour.

Its also quicker to go to the Starcross on Exe than to Swansea. I am only think of moorings not Marinas. Portishead is where boats go to die and Weymouth and the Poole Marinas are where your wallet goes to get exsanguinated

 

[bitbaltic]

Pucker up to going to be a compromise.

The south coast sort of excludes itself on price grounds.
Weymouth?

Watchet, mud and management, indifferent access

Portishead, we were there for 2 or 3 years. It is the end of the world, constrained by tides.
Leaving or returning has to be planned.
Have they sorted the gate challenges.

Ilfracombe, it's tidal. Great if you can get a place and are bilge keel.

Cardiff, Penarth looks dog earred. Other better options there. Do have the lock, but a large puddle to play in for an hour or so.

Barry, 10 years since I was there. But the club were welcoming.

Swansea, there's the Tawe lock to contend with. Is it still a municipal enterprise? That did seem to encourage the high vis and clipboard approach.
Long way from Wiltshire, but a nice place to keep a boat.

Padstow? Only ever been there by sea. What's road access like?
Are there vacancies or is it visitors only?

Tawe lock is not the problem in Swansea, it’s the tiny lock into the marina itself which adds infuriating time and is the only lock in which I’ve ever got our (30ft) boat sideways. Very difficult. We are there for one season and there were issues with noise, drunks and tramps all round the basin too

 

[PCUK]

With the news of the take-over, Watchet is now your best bet.

 

[Allan]

With the news of the take-over, Watchet is now your best bet.

So, you've never driven from Wiltshire to Watchet! It almost quicker to sail from Portishead! In summer it's even worse!
Allan

 

[oldmanofthehills]

So, you've never driven from Wiltshire to Watchet! It almost quicker to sail from Portishead! In summer it's even worse!
Allan

Sadly true. An hour and 40 even from Frome. As a walker and climber originally based in Bath it was always noticeable how inaccessible the Quantocks and Exmoor was.

However distance to boat affect one differently depending on what sailing one wants to do. Long travel wont suit day sailing or a trip round the bay

I accept 2 and half hours to our new boat Cornwall as we want to cruise the Cornish coast. Sailing wise its 3 days nearer France and particularly Brittany than from Weston Super Mare

 

[PCUK]

So, you've never driven from Wiltshire to Watchet! It almost quicker to sail from Portishead! In summer it's even worse!
Allan

I was thinking more of the being there rather than the getting there.

 

[Allan]

Sadly true. An hour and 40 even from Frome. As a walker and climber originally based in Bath it was always noticeable how inaccessible the Quantocks and Exmoor was.

However distance to boat affect one differently depending on what sailing one wants to do. Long travel wont suit day sailing or a trip round the bay

I accept 2 and half hours to our new boat Cornwall as we want to cruise the Cornish coast. Sailing wise its 3 days nearer France and particularly Brittany than from Weston Super Mare

That's exactly my point, my guess is that Frome is about 50miles from Watchet. I used to drive from Bristol to Barnstaple, about twice the distance, in the same time. It really is a pain of a journey.
Bristol to Cardiff yacht club is one hour.
Allan

 

[Allan]

If the OP is still considering, maybe he might be interested in Southampton water, for the cost of the Bristol channel? Matchwood yacht club has moorings and is no more expensive than lots of places in the BC.
Allan

 

[Dellquay13]

The best move I ever made with the boat was to get as far west from Cardiff as I possibly could. It can take forever to get to decent cruising grounds, if you ever can. It once took me two weeks to get to Ilfracombe

Its a shame to leave Pembrokeshire, I've spent nearly 20 years putting up with a 5 hour journey from Sheffield to Milford Haven for weekends in the cruising grounds outside the harbour gates