Best place in the UK to learn and build experience?

[Passerine]

Hi folks - this is a great forum, have learned so much already by browsing all the great topics - now have a question of my own and would be very interested in everyone's viewpoints and experience.

Partner and I want to move house - both work remote so have the whole UK to look at. We're both getting in to sailing and loving it; she wants to race small things and I want to build cruising experience and eventually travel long distances.

Any recommendations for good places to live if we want to spend the next couple of years getting as much time in on the water as possible? Considerations included but not limited to: friendly and vibrant local sailing club, access to training (potentially at the same club), good local-ish moorings and maintenance facilities, easy access to the sea for day and longer voyages?

I'm sure there's no single perfect location, especially when you take cost into consideration! If it helps, at the moment we're peering at the area around Plymouth, which I know a bit and love; but maybe that's a terrible mistake?

Would be very interested to know all your thoughts!

 

[ryanroberts]

West Scotland if you are truly remote and won't need to commute much at all?

 

[flaming]

Hi folks - this is a great forum, have learned so much already by browsing all the great topics - now have a question of my own and would be very interested in everyone's viewpoints and experience.

Partner and I want to move house - both work remote so have the whole UK to look at. We're both getting in to sailing and loving it; she wants to race small things and I want to build cruising experience and eventually travel long distances.

Any recommendations for good places to live if we want to spend the next couple of years getting as much time in on the water as possible? Considerations included but not limited to: friendly and vibrant local sailing club, access to training (potentially at the same club), good local-ish moorings and maintenance facilities, easy access to the sea for day and longer voyages?

I'm sure there's no single perfect location, especially when you take cost into consideration! If it helps, at the moment we're peering at the area around Plymouth, which I know a bit and love; but maybe that's a terrible mistake?

Would be very interested to know all your thoughts!

If you want to race small things then remote places like Scotland aren't going to cut the mustard.

Plymouth is a good shout, plenty of racing going on down there, but if it's your priority then the area between Hayling Island and Weymouth has to be top of your list. Exactly where you then choose would come down to exactly how small you want these things you're racing to be, and your budget for housing.

 

[doug748]

Depends a bit on the sort of property you are looking for. If you are buying a modest house or flat there is a wide range within Plymouth, if you want something larger or more rural then Devon and Cornwall are in the outer London price range. Renting similar.
There is still affordable stuff to the north but it tends to be out of the way. You are probably aware of all this but it may be worth extra consideration, rather than exclusive thoughts about the sailing.

.

 

[coveman]

If you don't mind being further west I don't think you can beat the Falmouth area. Beautiful scenery, estuaries and sailing clubs - that personally would be my choice!

 

[wonkywinch]

the area between Hayling Island and Weymouth has to be top of your list. Exactly where you then choose would come down to exactly how small you want these things you're racing to be, and your budget for housing.

I'm in the process of selling up in the home counties and have a wide search area similar to your suggestion from south of Winchester to Chichester to Weymouth and back up to Romsey and back to the start pin.

One thing that experienced sailing friends have convinced me of is the access to sheltered waters so that you can still get out on days when it might be just too rough. Even the Solent can be divided up. Poke your nose out of Lymington on an F6+ day and, with prevailing SWesterlies, you get hammered in the Solent. Chichester access suffers with the bar in strong winds from certain directions which leaves the Hamble and Southampton Water. Enjoyed some sailing there a couple of days ago when it was otherwise too breezy to venture out further and so my house search is now centred on somewhere nice that's within 30 mins of the Hamble.

 

[flaming]

I'm in the process of selling up in the home counties and have a wide search area similar to your suggestion from south of Winchester to Chichester to Weymouth and back up to Romsey and back to the start pin.

One thing that experienced sailing friends have convinced me of is the access to sheltered waters so that you can still get out on days when it might be just too rough. Even the Solent can be divided up. Poke your nose out of Lymington on an F6+ day and, with prevailing SWesterlies, you get hammered in the Solent. Chichester access suffers with the bar in strong winds from certain directions which leaves the Hamble and Southampton Water. Enjoyed some sailing there a couple of days ago when it was otherwise too breezy to venture out further and so my house search is now centred on somewhere nice that's within 30 mins of the Hamble.

If it wasn't for work interfering I'd live in Hamble.

 

[Frogmogman]

Post cancelled. Didn't read the thread title properly.

 

[wonkywinch]

If it wasn't for work interfering I'd live in Hamble.

The big problem is the huge amount of housing being thrown up along Hamble Lane and the bottleneck at the top by Tesco. Getting in an out during rush/school hours can be a pain but I've just taken a boat at Swanwick which is much easier to get to than the MDL marinas down the Hamble and I'd rather spend 10 mins on a boat on the river than I would in my car crawling down Hamble Lane.

Premier seem nicer than MDL too.

 

[beermonkey]

Hi folks - this is a great forum, have learned so much already by browsing all the great topics - now have a question of my own and would be very interested in everyone's viewpoints and experience.

Partner and I want to move house - both work remote so have the whole UK to look at. We're both getting in to sailing and loving it; she wants to race small things and I want to build cruising experience and eventually travel long distances.

Any recommendations for good places to live if we want to spend the next couple of years getting as much time in on the water as possible? Considerations included but not limited to: friendly and vibrant local sailing club, access to training (potentially at the same club), good local-ish moorings and maintenance facilities, easy access to the sea for day and longer voyages?

I'm sure there's no single perfect location, especially when you take cost into consideration! If it helps, at the moment we're peering at the area around Plymouth, which I know a bit and love; but maybe that's a terrible mistake?

Would be very interested to know all your thoughts!

If budget is no object - why settle for the UK?

To be fair, you'll not do badly no matter where you end up. The sailing community is fantastic and welcoming, as well as competitive (spend any time on this forum and you'll see for yourself!)

There is great sailing to be had pretty much everywhere - so my advice would be - buy the house you like in the place you like and make it and the local sailing community your home.

 

[Sandy]

Hello and welcome

I'm a Scot based in Devon with a boat in Plymouth. I don't race.

Plymouth would be a good choice, but personally, I'd go for the Clyde.

 

[flaming]

The big problem is the huge amount of housing being thrown up along Hamble Lane and the bottleneck at the top by Tesco. Getting in an out during rush/school hours can be a pain but I've just taken a boat at Swanwick which is much easier to get to than the MDL marinas down the Hamble and I'd rather spend 10 mins on a boat on the river than I would in my car crawling down Hamble Lane.

Premier seem nicer than MDL too.

We were based in Swanwick and then Universal for years. Used to think the same re rather being on the boat, but after we got evicted from Universal we're in HYS now, and it makes race mornings so much more pleasant. Boat call can be 20 min later and there's not a mad scramble to get in the car and get round to the club for prizegiving etc.
Appreciate for pure cruising use this equation might change, but I did get rather bored of chugging up that river.

And in my dream scenario I'd be working from home so the bottleneck at rush hour wouldn't really bother me...

 

[Praxinoscope]

I would also look at the East Coast, obviously an active area as it has its own forum on ybw.

 

[SaltyC]

Name your priorities.
ALL areas of the UK have advantages, the Solent sheltered water and near destinations, the West Country - nice area and all weather ports, the East Coast - interesting navigation and lots of places to visit, The Clyde, sheltered water (ish) lots of places to visit (any direction) without tidal restrictions. ALL of these have active small boat racing if location chosen carefully.
The rest of the UK has different advantages and challenges, it depends on the time you can sail - days or weeks, and the cost of moorings and property - both probably directly proportional.

 

[KompetentKrew]

Deleted.

 

[FlyingGoose]

Scotland, West coast, more beautiful places to sail, easy access to any part of the coast and marinas, sail in all challenges , can sail and not see a soul, lots of whiskey tours around the islands, friendlier people , better attitude, and a decent goverment to look after you .
Great cites in Glasgow and Edinburgh for great culture and leisure , and you will be most welcome

 

[JumbleDuck]

I would also look at the East Coast, obviously an active area as it has its own forum on ybw.

I always assumed that's because everyone there spends 12 hours every day grounded on mud and therefore has extra time for the forums. See also: Bristol Channel.

 

[JumbleDuck]

If you want to race small things then remote places like Scotland aren't going to cut the mustard.

Not all of Scotland is remote, you know. I bow to your knowledge of racing, but there seem to be quite a few fleets of small thing on both the Forth and Clyde.

 

[TernVI]

There are plenty of local clubs all around the coast which offer dinghy racing and yacht cruising, but beware that some places the dinghy racing almost shuts down half the year, because the dinghy park is full of yachts laid up.
Some places can only muster a decent fleet when the second home owners come 'down from London'.
Some places are tidal and racing is only at odd times each week and sailing on the 'real sea' as opposed to estuaries, harbours etc tends to shut for winter anyway. If you want to spend maximum time on the water, it may be worth thinking about Winter, I even know a few 'big boat' owners who sail dinghies in the harbours or inland in Winter. When I lived inland, the Autumn and Winter were really the main part of the season.

Working remotely is great, but unless you are close to retirement, ask where your next job might be. Moving West of Lyme is a big step.
In many ways, it's hard to beat the Solent, people moan about it being busy, but there is a huge choice of clubs and places to go, and reasonable drive times to much of the UK.
I've considered Weymouth and Exmouth, personally.

 

[TernVI]

Not all of Scotland is remote, you know. ...

It is if you start from here!