Britain's best estuaries

[AngusMcDoon]

Britain\'s best estuaries

What do you think are the most picturesque estuaries in the UK for sailors?

My top 3 would be those the estuaries leading to Kippford, Porthmadog and Padstow.

 

[hlb]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

Clyde, Strangford, Helford, Fal, Yelm. Not in that order!

 

[ccscott49]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

Clyde, clyde, clyde are there anymore?

 

[Malcb]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

Helford. Rowing out to a deep mooring on a misty morning with no-one else about - magic.

 

[Mirelle]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

Not the Deben. It's an absolute dump. Hideous. And the natives are hostile. Don't come anywhere near it. In fact, keep away! /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[ChrisE]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

Still trying to keep the East Coast to yourself, I see.

 

[claymore]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

Lune, Wyre and Ribble ....oh - did you say the three best?

 

[Mirelle]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

I suppose I could make a claim for the Thames Estuary as Britain's best estuary!

On a smaller scale I would vote:

Helford

Yealm

Fal

but aren't they all technically rias, rather than estuaries?

 

[ChrisE]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

I hadn't rially noticed.

I'd add the Dart, specially the bits upstream of Dartmouth and Keyhaven River 'cos it is my home base and no one can get in there anyway

 

[AngusMcDoon]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

[ QUOTE ]
but aren't they all technically rias, rather than estuaries?

[/ QUOTE ]

What's the difference?

 

[jhr]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

[ QUOTE ]
What's the difference?

[/ QUOTE ]

An estuary is where a river meets the sea, a ria is an inlet, usually caused by coastal erosion or some such. Salcombe (which would get my vote) is actually a ria. Dunno about the others but surely, for example, there's a Helford River?

 

[ccscott49]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

You could hardly call the ribble estuary pretty!!! Unless you were a mudlark!

 

[Andrew_Fanner]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

Ria = drowned river valley, the river is not always in "old age" where it now meets the sea, so someone might bocker about estuaries being applicable. Certainly pretty (and pretty crowded too!).

Thames/Medway has plenty of places to go in a few hours, usually enough room to muck about at the speed of your choice and SWMBO parks at Lakeside/Bluewater if need be. But pretty it's not!

 

[PeteMcK]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

I read last week that the proper definition of the Clyde estuary is only from the weir at Glasgow Green down to Port-Glasgow-sur-mer ...

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

Yealm, Dart, Pin Mill part of the Orwell....

 

[Cornishman]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

How interesting that nobody has mentioned the Tamar Valley whose upper reaches form part of an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB status).

I do agree with many of the others mentioned here, but wonder how many of you ever venture upstream to, say, as far as the tide shall flow? The Helford River is marvellous, but have you ever rowed into Frenchman's Creek just after sunrise on a perfect summer morning? Or anchored in Dandy Hole for the night on the River Lynher? Magic.
And if it's picturesque you are after there are two in Devon not mentioned yet, the Erme and the Avon.

 

[Lakesailor]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

How interesting that nobody has mentioned the River Humber. I wonder why that is?

 

[snowleopard]

Shhh nm

nm

 

[ashanta]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

I'm suprised nobody has mentioned the beautiful river Exe so far.

Regards.

Peter.

 

[ashanta]

Re: Britain\'s best estuaries

Just like they haven't mentioned the River Mersey!