Kurrawong_Kid
Well-Known Member
Absolutely! No contest.
Falmouth Anchorages
- Thread starter derekgillard
- Start date
wotayottie
Well-Known Member
Its a long way out of your way. Mind you Milford is some distance north as a start point. My choice would be Penzance which is an interesting town and a locked harbour where you can safely leave the boat if necessary. That said if you get to Lands End and decide you need some boat work doing before you cross then either Falmouth or one of the French ports would be better facilities.
doug748
Well-Known Member
Aye, there would be another Revolution if the French were asked to pay for anchoring in a bay.
God knows what they make of it when they come over here.
Kelpie
Well-Known Member
I was just asking since, from a glance at the map, it looked like a reasonable place to wait. Have never been asked to pay to anchor though- that would certainly put me off! I'd be coming down the Irish Sea so another option would be to bash my way over to Cork, but it does add a chunk to the length of the Biscay crossing.
jdc
Well-Known Member
This pay for anchoring stuff has got humphing going to a ridiculous degree. Chances are that nobody will ask for anything, and it's at most £6 a night when they do (which is pretty much only in high season). It that breaks the bank you can go to Helford or any of the myriad anchorages on the Lizard and it'll be free.: try staying in the S of France or Italy (or Croatia, or Greece) for that!
A fantastic cruising area and it's very handy. The town is used to sailors of all nationalities preparing for an atlantic crossing and absolutely everything you might need is available in Falmouth, Penryn or Mylor, and the welcome is always warm. Boats ranging from dinghies to super-yachts are built here you know. Myriad restaurants but also seclusion and/or country pubs as you prefer. Ambience between the Chain locker and the Royal Cornwall YC according to what suits your mood.
I don't dismiss the Rade de Brest, and Chateaulin is a great little town, but is right at the far end of the Rade, and then miles upriver, and through a lock, so saying that it's somehow less out of you way is balls. Camaret is miles from anywhere else in France (maybe 50 miles by car from Brest) so more like Newlyn, whereas Falmouth is somewhere your children or friends can come and join you for a weekend, or if urgent business calls you away you can reasonably take a train or hire a car. The marina at Brest is actually bloody miles outside town, whereas in Falmouth the marinas and moorings are right in its midst. Not that I dislike anywhere, but we do as a nation like to believe our glass is half empty!
PS: On Biscay crossings, although it should be shorter if one goes via the Chenal du Four, this adds a tidal gate and it's really not easy to get there and on, past the Raz de Sein in one tide, so actually it has always worked out slower and with tighter timing constraints than just going outside Ushant. The offshore TSS is so far offshore (6 miles at least) that one can pass just inshore of it so without shipping around yet far enough off Ushant that one avoids rough water or a ferocious tidal gate. It's how I've always gone anyway.
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longjohnsilver
Well-Known Member
Last time I anchored in Falmouth I was charged about £16 iirc. That was 3 years ago. Slightly more than your £6. And I didn’t want to use any of their facilities apart from landing by dinghy. I have just checked, it’s now £1-45 pm per day, so over £21 per day for me. That seems very expensive when I want none of their facilities so I will be giving Falmouth a miss again this year.
robertj
Well-Known Member
longjohnsilver
Well-Known Member
I suppose I could, but I go boating to relax, and doing what you suggest would do the opposite for me. So I will give Falmouth a miss and anchor undisturbed in the Helford and enjoy spending the £21 saved , and more, in the yacht club there.