Any body got news on Watchet ?

Latest info published in the West Somerset Free Press last Friday is that the gate is hoped to be fitted sometime April.

I would not hold your breath though. There is a dispute between the insurers, the absent leaseholder of the marina and West Somerset District Council who are the owners.

The cost, we are informed, will run into several tens of thousands of pounds and there is no certainty of who is going to pay for this.
 
Looks interesting.

Would be interested to know the capital and running cost though.

Still think an excavator would do a better job when the tide is out - bulk shifting mud onto a barge.
 
No idea of cost, but Bruces team in Faro built it in the yard as they did the Yacht boat lift.
 
peterhull said:
Looks interesting.

Would be interested to know the capital and running cost though.

Still think an excavator would do a better job when the tide is out - bulk shifting mud onto a barge.
Click to expand...

For many years there was a barge with a digger on it in the marina. As far as I know this did a good job of keeping the marina free of mud in the years up to the time time the new dredger arrived. Last time I visited the barge was there without the digger.
Allan
 
I think it needs to be coffer dammed and excavated now, in a manner like Porthcawl. You won't get the silt out by asking the tidal cycle to do the job with the gate off- all that will happen is the marina will deepen disproportionately near the entrance and a series of runnels, channels of the sort you can see on eg Newport flats south of the Severn bridges, will propagate back into the rest of the marina, with no net overall deepening but a worse surface to come down onto. It wants completely digging out and re-opening with dome sort of turbulent flow (ie the stream) redirected through it. I doubt there is any other long term solution now the silt has got beyond reasonable control. The only other future is another drying harbour in the channel, which of course is what it always was.

Cheers
 
There was a message posted at Cardiff Marina office, on 03/03/2015

"Engineers will be attending the site [Watchet] on 5th March to begin works.
They hope to have the gates in commission by mid-late April.
Visiting the marina is still possible before then if you call and check that the stop logs are out and advise them of your intention 01984631264"
 
We spent Saturday night at Watchet marina. They told us that the gate will be delivered and fitted by the end of this month.
Allan
 
Ages ago I remember reading that the refuge, if you miss the gate, is inside the east wall. There is a long vertical ladder to ascend, should you wish to head for the pub. I have always thought, if there is any west in the wind, I'd head for the inside of the west wall. Luckily I have yet to miss the gate.
Allan
 
Long before the marina was built, I kept boats in Watchet harbour.

If we wanted to catch the tide early, it was normal practice to moor between the West Pier head and the pier itself. In that way we could leave harbour about 3 hrs before HW. It was also quite normal for visiting boats to lay alongside the West Pier.

I don't think I would like to try and lay alongside a pontoon in the outer harbour in anything other the quietest of weather - there is (or was) always considerable movement in the harbour.

Paul Norton
Founding member of WBOA.
 
Have moored numerous times before the marina was built alongside the ladders on the west wall and once or twice alongside the pilot boat that used to be kept on the East wall.Both single keel boats and bilgekeelers.

Advice in those days was don't go there in a easterly .

Trouble is we are all spoilt now :-)
 
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