Aberdeen

[Guest]

Possibly in a near future I will have to move to Averdeen in Scotland.
Could somebody give information about living an sailing in Averdeen?

Thanks

 

[vyv_cox]

I lived in Aberdeen 1985 - 1988, so this is not exactly current information. Active dinghy sailing/racing Aberdeen and Stonehaven YC, some cruising members. Stonehaven harbour dries and is almost certainly full. Aberdeen harbour does not encourage yachts. I believe there is now a marina at Peterhead but limited cruising possibilities from there. Further south Dundee is very active.

My own choice would be to look at the Moray Firth coast. Attractive and many possibilities, plus superb scenery and cruising area. Findhorn is very pleasant, deep water moorings, about 100 miles from Aberdeen. Several other harbours, although possibly drying, further east. Lossiemouth looks good but I have never taken a boat in there.

 

[Guest]

Aberdeen definitely discourages anything other than commercial shipping so you have to look elsewhere.

Nearest marina is Peterhead - about £75 per metre per year.

Moor my own boat is in Whitehills on the Moray Firth - £90 per metre per year. (It's worth it for me as I live nearer to Whitehills than Peterhead.)

Other ports to consider are Fraserburgh, Macduff and Banff but they are mainly fishing ports. Further inland is Lossiemouth if you decide to live north of Aberdeen.

Cannot recommend Stonehaven as most berths dry out and those that don't are alonside a quay used by fishing boats and other commercial enterprises.

There are other marinas further afield but personally I think that if you live north or west of Aberdeen then Peterhead or Whitehills are the only two options.

If you live south of Aberdeen apart from Stonehaven there is Arbroath, Montrose and Dundee. Again they are mainly commercial ports with very little "marina" type moorings.

If you need any more information or any assistance in the area give me a shout with a personal email and I will let you have telephone numbers etc.

Best regards )

Ian D

 

[Twister_Ken]

Used to work with a papermaker that had a couple of plants near Dyce (just north of Aberdeen). Couple of the managers there were sailors, but they kept their boats on the Clyde because of lack of facilities on E. Coast. But this was back in the mid-70s.

 

[Guest]

I've just registered and came across your post. I kept my yacht Strolla in Lossiemouth Harbour until I sold her in 1994. The first set of marina pontoons had just been insytalled and the cost was £800 per year for my 31 footer. I was there in August this year and there are now more pontoon berths, but I don't know the cost. I found Lossie an excellent place as a base, but a Northeast wind can blow very hard and make the entrance completely untenable. The depth is OK for most yachts, although the river exits across the harbour entrance and deposits sand there and so a slight reduction in depth can occur. East of Lossie you have Buckie (busy fishing port), Findochty (pronounced "Fenekty") is more amenable to yachts but you're alongside the harbour wall (if I remember rightly), Banff (fishing), Whitehills (better for yachts), and Fraserburgh (rather unfriendly towards yachts). West of Lossie (but getting a long way from Aberdeen) Burghead is a small busy commercial and fishing port. Findhorn is indeed a good spot and, once inside, is very sheltered. But you're on a mooring - no pontoons. Nairn dries (I think) and then you're into Inverness and the entrance to the Caledonian Canal.

I too would strongly recommend that you keep a boat on the Moray Firth - it really is worth the drive from Aberdeen and the area enjoys a unique climate shielded significantly from the wet westerlies experienced by the West Coast. The 60-mile long Caledonian Canal (that includes Loch Ness) is expensive to transit, but gets you safely and quickly to that beautiful cruising ground of the Western Highlands.

I am biased but I'd go for Lossiemouth. Where else have you a choice of two 18 hole golf courses with a clubhouse with one of the finest views in the UK, and a yacht marina. Needs an enterprising individual to start a chandlery business there though.

 

[ponapay]

There are new pontoons at Whitehills, cost not known. Findochty dries , Buckie does'nt really welcome yachts but at least you stay afloat. Macduff ditto, Banff dries.

Many Aberdonian sailors keep boats on west coast (or in the Baltic).

There is a 'Yotties' dinner in Aberdeen on 5th December, if you want to attend let me know by e-mail. £33 per head
all inclusive.

Ian