Brittany/Normandy recommendations - draft 2.3m

R

RJJ

Well-Known Member
Joined
14 Aug 2009
Messages
3,159
Visit site
Hi

We draw 2.3m and are off to France this weekend. First trip with the family and happily the wind looks like giving us a screaming beam reach all the way across.

Grateful for tips on harbours (given draft). St Vaas says...2.3m. should I chance it, assuming they left a bit of grace? Would I enter at HW and expect to touch the bottom once the tide is below the sill?

Any other recommendations beyond Cherbourg and Alderney? I am more interested in France than the other channel Islands.

Many thanks indeed!
 
St. Vaast has over 3m. I've been in there many times with a boat drawing 2.5m.

Dielette and Carteret will also be fine, but you'll want to get there within 2 hours of HW.

Granville is lovely and plenty of depth there too (they have a digital depth guage outside the harbour, showing you the depth over the sill
 
St Vaast does have berths with less depth. I've touched bottom on an inner berth and my boat only draws 1.8. You will be fine on a hammerhead or one of the outer berths. I was in on a boat drawing 3m and it leant heavily on the pontoon by the Capitainery at LW, despite the gates being shut but that was a long time ago. Ouistram is dire and not worth a visit IMO but you would get in. Catching the tide right, you might get up to Caan but I've not tried. Honfleur, Deauville and Le Havre are also possible but watch the tides for Honfleur, it's got a sea lock and last time I was in there, there was a shallow part opposite the entrance to the lock. Possibly one for later when you have a bit more experience. St Vaast is difficult at night, keep well offshore until you can see the harbour clearly. the gates open around 2 hours before HW depending on the tide height. Do NOT be tempted inshore of the Ile de Tatihou.
 
Last edited:
For the record, we went to St Vaas and happily moored on the third hammerhead down at around high tide.

When we came to leave just as the gate opened, we touched as we reversed off the pontoon. Waited twenty minutes then all was well.

Probably a matter of drawing 2.35 once we added a few boxes of the obvious!
 
Last time we were in St Vaast, they opened the gates about 30mins early as the fishermen wanted to leave, the water level dropped 40cm and we were left high and dry.

Still a great place to go though.
 
We were in St Vaast at the end of September and they were dredging the centre of the harbour and down between the pontoons. I'm not sure which way they were going but the visitor berths were fine for us drawing 1.8m.
Allan
 
A bit further to the west but I really liked Roscoff. I also enjoyed Perros, you can get a buoy a bit too far out for most people's taste or you can anchor on the island in front of it.

In Roscoff the marina is great and deep and in my opinion the town is pretty
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top