Graham_Wright
Well-known member
Lydney harbour and about time too!
Wow! A dredger's turned up!
- Thread starter Graham_Wright
- Start date
TwoHooter
Well-known member
Potentially good news. Is there any progress on the "marina" scheme? I would live to be able to make Lydney our winter berth but there would need to be improvements.
Graham_Wright
Well-known member
Access is VERY tide dependent!
TwoHooter
Well-known member
Well, yes. But we're used to that. Previous berths with definite tidal windows have included (north to south) Beccles, Shotley, Gillingham, Dover, Birdham Pool, Chichester, Guernsey (Victoria and St. Sampson), Penzance, Padstow, the upper part of Neyland, Penarth, Portishead, Bristol.... None of these have quite as short a tidal window as Lydney but all require planning and situational awareness. I assume the Slime Road is still available as an anchorage if one does miss the tide on arrival?
But dredging and getting the gates working properly is only half the battle. Security is vital to us. Couldn't possibly keep our boat at Lydney under the current arrangements.
Graham_Wright
Well-known member
What would you propose for security?
TwoHooter
Well-known member
A safe footpath right round the upper pool where the permanent berths are, with good fences, and gates operated by fobs. Low-level low-intensity footpath lighting operated by PIR or movement sensors to provide safe access at night for berth holders without causing light pollution or being an annoyance to those sleeping on board. CCTV system with intelligent movement activation covering all entrances and approaches to the area, and the berths, with live images accessible to berth holders (not the general public) via the internet and off-site recording to provide evidence in any case of damage or theft. No need for any of this to be obtrusive or unsightly if care is taken in the design.
There is no such thing as perfect security outside a militarised environment, it's all about deterrence, which in practice means giving thieves and trouble-makers an incentive to choose a softer target. At the moment Lydney is a very soft target. An ideal arrangement would include 24hr staffing but somehow I can't see that ever happening!
I now anticipate howls of outrage from those who like Lydney just as it is.
Graham_Wright
Well-known member
Dream on!?
Birdseye
Well-known member
Been into every one you mention plus Lydney - take it from me, Lydney is an altogether different kettle of fish. You need to use the lower reaches round the old bridge to anchor as a way of timing your arrival at Lydney. Too late and you wont get there. Too early and you can have serious problems. The window is short - memory tells me that the tisdes arent 6hr / 6hr but 9hr/ 3hr split. And the fun bit is aiming directly at the harbour wall at full throttle relying in the tide to sweep you round the wall and into the harbour, water being a couple of feet higher on one side of the wall than the other thanks to the flow. Sailing into Lydney gives you a new respect for the skippers of the old sailing trows that used the harbour.
oldmanofthehills
Well-known member
The slack window is 20 minutes before HT till HT. You time yourself from Slime Rd /old Severn Bridge. Pretty predictable tides but without an engine its tricky. Get behind pier then flat out motor round to gate, band into reverse before you hit next gate or boat. They used to rope boats round before they had engines and even Ive seen a large freighter need that to get into Sharpness fairly recently.
Crossing Saniger sands is something also, as is failing to cross them by twitching too early by Black Rock and hitting the high bits. I like Lydney, just wish the gates were reliable.
If you want security you pay £3000 pa for a marina. Even if thieves stripped my electronics on a yearly basis it wouldnt cost anything like that. I did lose a radio and flares from a River Avon mooring about 7 years ago - about £250 cost and the insurance paid out anyway. A bit of a bother but thats all.
Crossing Saniger sands is something also, as is failing to cross them by twitching too early by Black Rock and hitting the high bits. I like Lydney, just wish the gates were reliable.
If you want security you pay £3000 pa for a marina. Even if thieves stripped my electronics on a yearly basis it wouldnt cost anything like that. I did lose a radio and flares from a River Avon mooring about 7 years ago - about £250 cost and the insurance paid out anyway. A bit of a bother but thats all.
david_bagshaw
Well-known member
re they dredging the harbour, or the outer gate area to get them working again?, or the inner gates. post pictures !
Graham_Wright
Well-known member
The work is scheduled to last 5 days and involves the lock and the land side approaches to it. The process is water agitation and liquified mud extraction into the basin through a six inch hose. I thought it was illegal to lift spoil from the water but it is only a brief spell above water and a small drop into the basin.
Further works involve removal of the "tidal exclusion" gates (otherwise known as flood gates) for maintenance and possibly the basin gates also.
We may soon be able to escape!
david_bagshaw
Well-known member
good to hear something is being done. how silted is the outer basin now?
Graham_Wright
Well-known member
Bit worse than the day before I guess!
38mess
Well-known member
Sad to see the sharpness webcams have been decommissioned. I used to love looking at the shipping coming and going.
Graham_Wright
Well-known member
It's gone (to Sharpness).
