Bembridge - especially depths

[prv]

I've been to Bembridge before, but only in a shallow-draft boat that we dried out on the beach to port of the entrance. I've not been further up the harbour to the long visitors' pontoon, and I wasn't really paying attention to depths.

I'd like to go back, but now I have 1.8m of keel under me and drying out would be a minor disaster. How much rise of tide do I realistically need to get into and out of the visitors' berths?

Obviously I could go and look at a chart for myself, but I doubt Bembridge is a priority for the UKHO and I know there are new owners who might have dredged etc. So I'm looking for info from someone who's been recently.

Cheers

Pete

 

[Ammonite]

There's plenty of depth along the visitors pontoon now its been dredged by the new owners so your only concern is the approach channel. A couple of hours either side and you should be fine but give the office a shout if you want to confirm. They are really helpful

 

[Ruffles]

HW +-2.5 hours.

Check the tide gauge. Though someone seems to have clobbered it again. You need to get close to read it.

And call Ch80 and ask the staff.

The shallowest bit appears to be by the outer channel markers this year.

Son reports crabs are bigger than ever this year.

 

[stevebrassett]

Son reports crabs are bigger than ever this year.

You can get a cream for that.

 

[l'escargot]

As already said a couple of hours either side of HW. If you get over the bar inside 1 and 2 buoy going in, then you have at least that depth in the channel the rest of the way.

 

[nikc]

As already said a couple of hours either side of HW.

would that be Spring HW?

so not advisable at Neap?

 

[prv]

would that be Spring HW?

so not advisable at Neap?

In theory with these "x hours either side" rules, the lower height is offset by a slower rate so the actual amount of water works out about the same.

However, it's all a bit rough-and-ready - according to the curve I'm using, the two hours mentioned above results in a difference of about half a metre between the "before" height and the "after" one. I haven't checked springs versus neaps. They also tend not to make much allowance for differing draught.

Really I'd rather work with a known depth or drying height that I need to clear, and make my own judgements about how much water I need. But before electronic tide curves this was laborious to calculate (a staple of RYA exams ) so it's not surprising that an "x hours either side" rule of thumb is more common.

Pete

 

[l'escargot]

would that be Spring HW?

so not advisable at Neap?

I draw 1.5m and have been in comfortably on neaps. When I enquired with the HM just after the dredging they told me up to 2 metres would be fine.

 

[Ruffles]

Important thing is to know where the shallow bit is. As I said I think it's near the outer buoys this year. Once over that you can breathe freely.

I assume they adjust the tide gauge each year? I've not found it to be wrong.

There used to be an island in the middle of the the narrow channel which has caught me out before. Now it's surprisingly deep. I measured 4m the other day compared to 1.4m further out. We stop at 1.1m (transducer depth).

Which reminds me. Our Stowe depth was flashing the other day. Assume the cable ends needs cleaning

 

[prv]

Important thing is to know where the shallow bit is. As I said I think it's near the outer buoys this year. Once over that you can breathe freely.

My main issue, if we decide to visit this weekend, is how early we will have to clear out on Saturday morning to get away before we're trapped inside. Since we're just bimbling around the Solent rather than passagemaking, I object to having to get up too early .

It's looking a bit tight really.

Pete

 

[jac]

Only really go at springs for exactly that reason. In and out at sensible times. We had least depth of 3m in May about 2 hours before. Sorry can't remember predicted height of tide though.

At least if you do go aground in the channel it's fairly sheltered but you do get some fairly fast fishing cats in and out in fairly shallow water which can create some waves

 

[ripvan1]

"Torrential rain" forecast this w/end so there will be plenty of water :encouragement:

 

[PurpleKate]

Ive been twice in the past month (on Springs) with 2m of keel, shallowest part is between the first 2 buoys as you approach, once you are past that you are fine up to the long visitors pontoon. Harbour staff are very very helpful, call on VHF80 and they will advice you where to berth, probably rafted on the weekends.
The website says the channel dries , which I take to be CD= 0m. In reality both times I have been in or out there was more water than I expected according to the Bembridge tidal curve - and last weekend tides were 20cm below predictions.
I went in at a time where the predicted 2m of water (rising tide) and the shallowest was still 0.4m under my keel - hence I think the CD=0m is possibly a bit cautious.
There is a new Navionics chart on the Bembridge website.
Lovely Spot

 

[Angele]

Ive been twice in the past month (on Springs) with 2m of keel, shallowest part is between the first 2 buoys as you approach, once you are past that you are fine up to the long visitors pontoon. Harbour staff are very very helpful, call on VHF80 and they will advice you where to berth, probably rafted on the weekends.
The website says the channel dries , which I take to be CD= 0m. In reality both times I have been in or out there was more water than I expected according to the Bembridge tidal curve - and last weekend tides were 20cm below predictions.
I went in at a time where the predicted 2m of water (rising tide) and the shallowest was still 0.4m under my keel - hence I think the CD=0m is possibly a bit cautious.
There is a new Navionics chart on the Bembridge website.
Lovely Spot

I've also been in recently with a 2.1m draft. The weekend of the RTIR, which was roughly 25% of the way from Neaps to Springs. The entrance was fine for me at HW-2. Shallow by the first pair of buoys, as already mentioned, but a couple of other spots were also shallower than I was expecting - both in the entrance channel and within the harbour itself. The deepest water once inside is to starboard, but don't go too far right because it started to shallow again. As it was nearish neaps, there was no likelihood of drying out. I was told, though, by the harbourmaster that it is really just soft mud.

Like PRV, I think the tidal curve suggests at least an extra 30 mins (possibly an hour) is ok after HW as compared with before. So, if HW-2 is fine, HW+ 2 1/2 or HW+3 should still be ok. I didn't get the chance to test my theory, though, a the boat to which we were rafted wanted to leave bang on HW.

 

[l'escargot]

...I think the tidal curve suggests at least an extra 30 mins (possibly an hour) is ok after HW as compared with before. So, if HW-2 is fine, HW+ 2 1/2 or HW+3 should still be ok. I didn't get the chance to test my theory, though, a the boat to which we were rafted wanted to leave bang on HW.

That is fairly standard in the Solent (and a few other places nearby such as Christchurch) due to the mid channel tidal stand or second high water.

 

[Greenheart]

I read an interesting description of Bembridge's depths having grown much shallower in recent years, but I can't remember what the reason was.

Looks like the locals take the necessity to keep deep keels afloat, seriously: http://littleshipclub.co.uk/content/dredging-deeper-bembridge

 

[l'escargot]

I read an interesting description of Bembridge's depths having grown much shallower in recent years, but I can't remember what the reason was...

The depths at the entrance do tend to move about year by year. A few years ago it looked as if there was going to be more depth to the east of the fort for a while.

 

[Greenheart]

Amazing to think what can be done by dredging if the authority chooses and can afford the work. Obviously it'd need the approach doing as well as the harbour. It'd be interesting to see Bembridge as a brand new all-tide haven with deep-water marina and dozens of 3m datum swinging moorings, and all the facilities ashore which service such places.

I was never clear quite why the harbour silts up to such a degree, periodically? Lovely place either way.

 

[lustyd]

Amazing to think what can be done by dredging if the authority chooses and can afford the work. Obviously it'd need the approach doing as well as the harbour. It'd be interesting to see Bembridge as a brand new all-tide haven with deep-water marina and dozens of 3m datum swinging moorings, and all the facilities ashore which service such places.

I was never clear quite why the harbour silts up to such a degree, periodically? Lovely place either way.

View attachment 44040

I think I read on here that it's a river dumping silt in at the back although I never checked. Swinging moorings wouldn't last long if it were properly dredged, Yarmouth is evidence of the fact that pontoons win every time in the end so any real development will inevitably lead to one or two massive marinas and some chain pubs. This will increase capacity in the Solent, but won't really add anything to the experience. I'm not voting either way, just observing that this is what tends to happen.

 

[Greenheart]

Yup, I think you're right on every point there. I've read since posting the other day, that as you say the river Yar (the Eastern, not the Western Yar which meets the sea at Yarmouth) dumps layers of silt on hard underlying rock which can't be dredged...so there'll never be a deep harbour there anyway.

Apparently there'd been a sill at the entrance until the 'seventies, when dredging work reduced the harbour's level by a couple of feet. Or did I read that on this thread? Sorry.

Either way, if Bembridge were afflicted with big corporate yachting facilities and if the harbour's geography were modified to suit that industry, it'd lose the charm it boasts now.