East Coast - advice please!

[LORDNELSON]

The plan is to leave from Hamble in the middle of July and sail round to the East Coast for about a months/six weeks cruise. We will have to leave the boat from time to time to attend to things back home, usually for about 2 or 3 days. I would be most grateful for advice on good places to moor the boat whilst we are away. We hope to cruise in the area between the Crouch and the Wash. The boat has a swing keel and draws 0.9 metre with it raised, she is 11.5 metres long. It would be nice to be economical about mooring fees, if that is possible!

 

[asj1]

Swinging Moorings at Pin Mill perhaps, but not very convenient for getting ashore or shore side transport.
Tide Mill Marina at Woodbridge, less economical but you can walk to the branch line station and thence to Ipswich for mainline train - very pretty place too.

 

[davidwf]

Woolverstone tends to have spare swinging moorings with free lift ashore. Not too far from ipswich and main line either taxi or bus ride away.

 

[wragges]

If you are going as far as the wash and able to take the ground then you simply must check in to Wells Harbour (north Norfolk coast).

Get details and webcam view from here
http://www.wellsharbour.co.uk/

Its one of our favorite places between Scarborough and the Thames.

 

[Stork_III]

Try Brightlingsea, £8/day for up to 10m probably less for longer stay, very helpful harbourmaster staff, great chipshop and Colne Yacht club + chandlers. Shotley marina in Harwich Harbour, about £18/night, less for longer + pubbs & all services, Deben river, Ramsholt Arms moorings, free, or Waldringfield or Woodbridge Tidemill, further up the river, or River Ore great place, peaceful, Orford Quay and Aldeburgh moorings.

Make sure you get the up to date entrance charts for both from debenentrance.com

 

[Gunfleet]

This thread might be useful. Bring a dinghy!

 

[Greenwichman]

You have chosen to come to the finest, least spoiled cruising ground in England. Welcome! Must-sees will include Maldon, Tollesbury (always a warm welcome), West Mersea, Bradwell, Brightlingsea, Wivenhoe and Pyefleet. And we haven't gone north of the Colne yet. You have the draft and the keel form to make the most of it, and with a little prior study and some charm you will find low-cost and no-cost places to hole-up. I keep a swingkeeler in Tollesbury - PM me if you wish some local advice. Good luck! /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[Althorne]

Bridgemarsh Marine has pontoons that you can use at fairly reasonable cost for the occassional stopover. River Crouch just inland from Burnham, nicely protected and safe from vandals with 24hr on site security. Nothing fancy but new showers and toilets, no food or bar but most marine repair services. Very easy walk to railway station 200m away at the end of Bridgemarsh Lane straight to Liverpool Street station in London which is connected to all underground lines and mainline stations in London (Paddington presumably). Enjoy our East Coast you will find a warm welcome and some great food. Make sure you 'phone them first and as early as possible.

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

Hear Hear....

We look forward to you espousing on this very forum the joys and virtues of our little corner of England....

Loads of lovely places to visit and stop, many mentioned above.... don't miss Walton Backwaters.... several perfect anchorages.... complete peace and quiet in Hamford Water, or a lovely beach at Stone Point.... and take a copy of Ransome's Secret Water with you!

 

[hmm]

GO TO TOLLESBURY BEFORE THE CROUCH

It's at the River Blackwater.

I delivered a boat there last year.

Like stepping back in time but without the bad bits.

Lots of facilities in the village - shops, pubs, cruising club with restaraunt and with pool, sailing club, old sail lofts, seawall walks, friendly locals, bus service, even found a taxi (local to village apparently - he was chea too.)

- marina promised to be the cheapest on east coast (I wasn't paying so didn't check)

get over the sill 2 hrs before and after or they had visiter moorings.

 

[isandell]

Consider West Wick. We really like this off-the-beaten track, small marina. It is inexpensive and it is near the station with good rail links to London.

Ian

 

[tillergirl]

Just a minute boys what are we doing!!!! This could be the start of an invasion of asylum seekers from the Hamble. Just think what will happen when Lord Nelson goes back and tells everybody of the charm, space, interest, freedom from hassel of these waters, the opportunity to see Curlews, Whimbrels, Snipe, Egrets, Oyster Catchers etc etc in their natural habitat ---- whoops. Sorry

Now Lord Nelson, these waters are very dangerous. All the shoals move substantially in anything over a Force 3 so you never know where the channels are. In a Force 2 wind over tide you will find yourself knocked about by dark muddy water that will stain your topsides. The harbours are crudely assembled pieces of girders without fendering; pontoons where found occasionally float on the tide; sometimes don't. The fees for mooring are huge and there are no public transport links whatsoever. And us locals are 'orrid. And the coast is sinking and the sea level rising....... Umm what else should you know......?

In all seriousness, invest a modest amount in two books East Coast Rivers, a YM publication, and East Coast Pilot, from Imray (ok I'm biased about the last I must admit to knowing one of the authors). The reality is that you can leave your boat almost anywhere here and bus and train it back to the smoke.

 

[FullCircle]

Well be careful your boat is well marked, or you might step onto someone elses Southerly by mistake. They are kinda prevalent round here. 3 in the same creek anchorage last weekend. To be fair, they were a 95,105 and 115. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Do as tillergirl suggest and get a copy of East Coast summat. 2nd hand would do, as not too much changes really.
Beware though, once you have been here and saved that amount of money, you wont want to go back /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[LORDNELSON]

Now you have convinced me to come to the East Coast, I cannot resist a challenge! I have already obtained a copy of "East Coast Rivers" and since reading your post a copy of the "East Coast Pilot" is winging it's way to me courtesy of Amazon. I have been much impressed once again by the response to my query, this is a jolly good forum and I thank everyone for their very helpful advice. I am looking forward to the East Coast

 

[Mirelle]

Leaving the boat for 2-3 days and getting back to London...

Basically, the following marinas are within walking distance of a railway station if carrying bags:


Ipswich Wet Dock (choice of two marinas!) / Ipswich (main line) station)

Woodbridge Tide Mill / Woodbridge station (East Suffolk Line)

Burnham Yacht Harbour / Burnham station (Southminster branch)

Lowestoft / Lowestoft station (East Suffolk line)


The following are a short taxi ride (say 10 minutes):

Titchmarsh Marina / Walton on Naze station (Walton branch)

Fox's marina, Ipswich (Ipswich main line station)

Suffolk Yacht Harbour / Felixstowe


The following marinas have a reasonable bus service to a main line station:

Shotley / a bit of a walk to the pub / bus / Ipswich

Woolverstone / walk / bus / Ipswich


The following are a longer taxi ride (say 30 minutes)

Bradwell / Southminster

Maldon (no marina but lie in a mud berth) / Witham (blame Dr Beeching!)

Heybridge Basin (canal basin, with sea lock) / Witham (blame Dr Beeching!)


The following places may have a mooring available:

Pin Mill (ask Jack Ward) - Travel as Woolverstone.

Orford (ask George Collins) - Long taxi ride to Woodbridge.


One last thing - don't go anywhere on the East Coast without:

1. A dinghy

2. Boots that you don't mind getting muddy.

 

[tillergirl]

Nobody done a plug for West Mersea so I might as well. All swinging moorings but if Jeff the Yacht Club launchman can find you a mooring its free as is the lift ashore. We even have a bus service to Colchester where I'm told some people catch soemthing called a train if you want to do that sort of thing.

Frankly you can lose a few days in the Blackwater - Bradwell Marina on the way up (try the Green Man PH), take the tide right up to the head of navigation at Maldon, stop at the Town Quay pontoon (a modest affair by South Coast Standards) and have a beer at one of several pubs next to several in commission Thames Barges - can even take the mud overnight or lock in to the Chelmer Canal for overnight at Heybridge (Ship Inn with 40ft) and a water taxi to Tescos up the Canal, West Mersea on the way back (several dining spots; Yacht Club Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Coast Inn every day, The Company Shed or the other new one by West Mersea Marine for local seafood or Tollesbury if you want a pontoon but you are hampered by the sills (ie high waterish only to get in and out), several spots to anchor, then round the Island to the Colne and Brightlingsea Harbour (pontoons but water taxi it or dinghy ashore) - lovely people running the harbour, tide up the Colne to Colchester (not the prettiest but the pub at Rowhedge is a top fo the tide stopover). Then of course as has been mentioned you got to do the Crouch, Walton Backwaters, Stour (Constable country), the Orwell, Deben, Ore, Southwold. And of course the Kent Rivers are worth thinking about.

Only one condition: tell everybody how awful it was.....

 

[samwise]

Take him for a white knuckle ride through the Deben entrance as it is this year. That'll put him off!
Seriously, I think we East Coasters are very lucky and I'm happy to share our good fortune with visitors -- provided they don't stay too long!

 

[moondancer]

Re: East Coast - advice please! - BEST SOLUTION!

Dear Horatio,

Do what I did a few years ago.

1) Buy the classic book 'Magic of the Swatchways' by Maurice Griffiths.

2) During your and Emma Hamilton's holiday follow the route chapter by chapter. He covers the best bits of the East Coast.

3) Leave out his South Coast and Dutch forays.

4) Write up your adventures here!


Brian

 

[LORDNELSON]

Re: East Coast - advice please! - BEST SOLUTION!

Many thanks to everyone again. My wife is boning up on "Magic of the Swatchways" right now; I have not read it for about two years so I will have to re-read and enjoy again. I wish I had the time to write up the cruise whilst there but I know time will press at the end of six weeks!

 

[Mudplugger]

Re: East Coast - advice please! - BEST SOLUTION!

You can even moor @ Wivenhoe (on the Pontoons by the S.C.) and walk to the station for the train to Lunnon. Liverpool St. 50mins. Good Chippie, Great Pubs (3) and as long as you are not going to stay more than a couple of day's its almost free. PM if you are going to visit and we'll open the bar! Showers & Water as well!