Goldcliff Pill

[graham]

Anyone know if Goldcliff Pill near the River Usk is navigable? Also the river that joins the Usk on the west side just downstream from Newport Dock (Is it the Ebbw?) Has anyone sailed into there.From memory i think there are some boats moored in the river.

 

[mrbloto]

hi gra now you are really creek crawling, i went fishing on the shore by goldcliffe, and there was a inlet that used to go all the way up to llanwern.and gently float back down the mighty atom would be ideal for the upper reaches of the cleddau or the fowey or even the tamar where you can go up with the tide and gently float back down.

 

[Bosun Higgs]

Anyone know if Goldcliff Pill near the River Usk is navigable? Also the river that joins the Usk on the west side just downstream from Newport Dock (Is it the Ebbw?) Has anyone sailed into there.From memory i think there are some boats moored in the river.

Yes been up the Ebbw a bit of the way in a bilge keeler. Nothing much there and cant get too far up if I remember right.

 

[graham]

Cheers

Thanks for the replies.Will have a nose into both of them when the weather warms up a bit.Then maybe see how far up the Usk I can get.

The airdraft is only about 18 ft and the mast can be lowered in a minute if need be. Combined with only about a foot of water draft should be ideal for creek crawling.

 

[Bosun Higgs]

Dont know what the air clearance is at the two Usk bridges - the ne foot bridge and the old town bridge, but if you can drop your mast you can go through both and quite a long way up the river. I believe there are boats at Caerleon.

Why not try the Wye too. There are boats up as far as Llandogo for sure.

 

[Pigpen]

Anyone know if Goldcliff Pill near the River Usk is navigable? Also the river that joins the Usk on the west side just downstream from Newport Dock (Is it the Ebbw?) Has anyone sailed into there.From memory i think there are some boats moored in the river.

Goldcliff Pill -Rather you than me and I used to explore the larger reens in a long tin bath in the late 40s/early 50s. IIRC there is a wier at the road
bridge and another just downstream of Lanwern Station.

River Ebbw - There are wiers in the vincinity of Maesglas "Tip". I went
there in the 80s looking for a mooring for a 19 footer when there were
just a few fishermen in "New" Gout (into which run several drains!).

River Usk - I went up as far as "just below" Gypsy Falls in said 19 footer (bilge keels) with the mast down, of course, but hit several snags (dead trees?). No apparent damage on a draught of 27/28 inches.
You need a tide near Springs to get to Newbridge but again, Gypsy Falls
can be tricky. In a big (heavy) Inflatable we found 'no bottom' at 18 inches (mud paddle marked) and the tide was still flooding hard at one hour after HW Newport. Above Caerleon there was a lot of wood in the centre of
the river.
Maybe its an Urban Myth but in the 50s I was told that the Publican would give a free drink to anyone arriving by boat. We didn't hang around and went straight back down river to avoid being stranded at the Falls.
Doug/Jekeeda II

 

[graham]

Thanks

Thanks for tha detailed reply Doug. At 13 ft 4 and about 14 inches draft my little boat isnt much bigger than your old tin bath