Nigbb
Member
Hi, i am contemplating taking a berth at Southsea marina and wondered if anyone has any experience re the cill gate there. I have never encountered this system, wondering hoe much water there is . It doesn't seem clear to me.
Cill at Southsea marina
- Thread starter Nigbb
- Start date
Sticky Fingers
Well-known member
Hi there.
Southsea has the cill to retain an adequate depth of water in the marina as the tide drops. That means that access is impossible some time either side of low water; the actual times depend on the height of tide of course. Once the height of tide is adequate, the cill drops automatically. A gauge shows the depth.
It's cheaper as a result of the inconvenience.
This is the cill at low water, shot taken from the waiting pontoon outside.
Southsea has the cill to retain an adequate depth of water in the marina as the tide drops. That means that access is impossible some time either side of low water; the actual times depend on the height of tide of course. Once the height of tide is adequate, the cill drops automatically. A gauge shows the depth.
It's cheaper as a result of the inconvenience.
This is the cill at low water, shot taken from the waiting pontoon outside.
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Sticky Fingers
Well-known member
For convenience, the access times are shown on the Premier Marinas website. This for today (28 Dec 2021). 'Free flow' means you can get in and out. A gauge shows the depth of water over the cill.
Nigbb
Member
Agh, now seeing the picture I understand , thanks for that. I think I will go for Chichester although the lock is small you can get in and out at all time.
Cheers Nigel
Cheers Nigel
xcw
Active member
Ah, no you can't. I was there for a number of years and the entrance channel at low water is very shallow and wouldn't float my yacht with lifting keel. Unless things have changed there recently you will be constrained by tide.
Martin_J
Well-known member
There are a series of better pictures on this website including photos of the channel leading up to the cill...
eoceanic.com - southsea_marina
The great thing about the automatic cill is that as soon as the rising tide reaches the top of it, water pressure each side equalises, the cill drops and you immediately have at least 1.5m of water over the top. Much better than having to wait for the tide to keep rising for another few metres as you would with a fixed cill.
As others have said, there is a waiting pontoon outside so quite easy to take the boat out when the cill is open, in case your crew is arriving later or if you plan to depart whilst it's closed.
The other option is to ask the the marina staff to take the boat out for you... and the same for when you return.
To be honest, it's quite easy to plan around the opening times and then you never actually have to lock in or out like you might have to do in either Chichester marina or Port Solent marina.
If you want to see how the cill actually works, talk to staff or visit just before the cill closes. It's easier to watch it actually close to get a better idea. The closing on a spring tide is the best to watch. It all works using just floats/weights, height of tide and water pressure.
eoceanic.com - southsea_marina
The great thing about the automatic cill is that as soon as the rising tide reaches the top of it, water pressure each side equalises, the cill drops and you immediately have at least 1.5m of water over the top. Much better than having to wait for the tide to keep rising for another few metres as you would with a fixed cill.
As others have said, there is a waiting pontoon outside so quite easy to take the boat out when the cill is open, in case your crew is arriving later or if you plan to depart whilst it's closed.
The other option is to ask the the marina staff to take the boat out for you... and the same for when you return.
To be honest, it's quite easy to plan around the opening times and then you never actually have to lock in or out like you might have to do in either Chichester marina or Port Solent marina.
If you want to see how the cill actually works, talk to staff or visit just before the cill closes. It's easier to watch it actually close to get a better idea. The closing on a spring tide is the best to watch. It all works using just floats/weights, height of tide and water pressure.
Sticky Fingers
Well-known member
Exactly so. But still a PITA. I’d take Chichester over Southsea any day.
ashtead
Well-known member
The other issue to be aware of is some seem to get stuck on a cill as unable to read the depth signs - I don’t know if this has ever happened at southsea(which is a slight misnomer in terms of location ) but it has happened elsewhere. When the cill sticks due to a boat being stuck on top it tends to impact boats in the marina. Have you considered Other locations in Chi ?
Sticky Fingers
Well-known member
Lol. That would be a bummer on a falling tide.
Southsea is in Langstone of course. In addition to the Premier marina, Chichester harbour has loads of other options including Birdham Pool (locked, completely inaccessible at low water); Itchenor (moorings); Emsworth and Bosham (drying); Northney Marina (OK at most states); and Sparkes Marina (ditto). Maybe forgotten one or two.
ashtead
Well-known member
Sparkes would be my initial choice to have a visit to for a reccy however as we found out many years ago on our handover even an experienced broker who must have used the marina many times can run into the mud there at low tide and have to be off by a rib - - Northney is fine though .
northwind
Well-known member
Northney... The approach channel is not that deep at low water, and I have seen many a yacht stuck on the mud around the entrance.
With chichester the lock waiting times can be a pain in the summer, so it's not perfect either.
wombat88
Well-known member
The run from Northney down to the harbour entrance is particularly boring, few moored yachts to criticise.
ashtead
Well-known member
Probably not as boring as the road from Fareham to Gosport I suspect but at least no chance of running aground when leaving Gosport afloat. ?
Ningaloo
Well-known member
You might also find that you will have a long wait for the lock at peak periods. The lock is quite old and was designed for the less beamy boats of the last century. Not being able to get boats side by side effectively halves its capacity. This can seriously cut down your sailing. During our 8 years in Chichester, we often anchored out on a Friday night and again when returning on Sunday (with an early start to get to work on Monday) to ensure full days sailing.
On the other hand Chichester is not a bad place to be anchored! I'd still go for Chichester over Southsea, but be aware of the limitations.
Having recently spent a couple is summers in the various Gosport marinas I think that they are worth the extra for almost instant access to open water.
ashtead
Well-known member
My heart sometimes likes the idea of Chi marina with its lovely countryside nearby even with the prospect of the road to the Witterings but my head keeps me in Gosport given the sea access - if you want a slightly cheaper location then Wicormarine at Fareham end might be an option to check out if you are searching for a more isolated location and wish to avoid Gosport drivers. You have the same issue with locks at port Solent - of all marina on Solent those at Lymington are hard to beat in terms of space and facilities but for us the road to Lym is a journey we like to avoid at least until retired.
Fantasie 19
Well-known member
If I was going to chose a marina (and I'm not) I think I would too, but, and a big but, Southsea would save you hours on a passage to the central Solent...
Sticky Fingers
Well-known member
It would. But IMHO they're not comparable; just too different in look, feel, position, size, facilities, social life, access... etc. Unlikely you'd be equally happy with either; more likely you'd find one or more characteristics of one of the marinas makes it the winner.
Mark-1
Well-known member
Do Southsea Marina allow visitors to overnight on the waiting pontoon? (Assuming the weather is right and you actually want to?) It would be very handy to me to leave long before the cill drops.
FairweatherDave
Well-known member
I've used the waiting pontoon briefly a couple of times to rendezvous with /drop off family. It worked fine but since I wasn't paying anything it was a bit of a charm offensive with the staff... we have also anchored in the channel on the other side, or did we pick up a vacant mooring, overnight. Might be a solution to your problem.
FairweatherDave
Well-known member
Sinah lake.