Maintaining a moorin in Exmouth area

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Wandering Star

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I’m thinking of buying a boat in Exmouth. Can’t be too specific about exactly where she is because I don’t know myself yet! But the present owner will also sell the mooring she’s on which belongs to him. I understand there’s an annual charge to some authority or other of approx £10 a foot but no other charges which for such a beautiful area seems just perfect and affordable.

My question is, how would I go about having the ground tackle inspected & maintained each year? what sort of costs should I budget for?

TIA.
 
Long John Silver is the man for that information. I guess that Starcross will also have a list of contractors.
 
There used to be (decades ago) an outfit in Starcross that serviced moorings, IIRC.

Called something like Starcross Garage, perhaps, even though I don't remember a garage as such? They were on a corner in Starcross very near the old Brunel Pump House (one of the Starcross Fishing and Cruising Club premises)?

That club would be worth joining, or at least investigating, if your mooring is anywhere near there.
 
Radio Tanganyika said:
Will you have to pay FUNDUS to the Duchy of Cornwall? HRH owns the river bed I seem to remember.
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There's an interesting history to the question. When Brunel was building the South Devon Railway along the west bank of the Exe in the 1840s there was an ongoing dispute between the Crown (or maybe it was the Duchy of Cornwall) and the Duke of Devon as to who owned the river and its banks (at least in the vicinity of the Duke of Devon's Powderham Castle). As it looked like the resolution of the dispute would delay completion of the railway, the railway company paid both the Duke and the Crown for the right to run the railway along the river. It turned out that was a wise decision, as the ownership dispute wasn't finally settled (in favour of the Duke of Devon, IIRC) until the 1990s!

There was a lot of upset at that time among owners of moorings, who suddenly found themselves having to pay an annual charge to the Powderham Estate, whereas the previous legal uncertainty meant that neither of those claiming ownership of the river owner had been able to enforce such charges for generations, so mooring owners had (often unknowingly) previously 'got away with it' free.

I'm not clear how much of the river was affected by this, but I have a vague recollection it wasn't the whole of it.
 
Contact any of the local sailing clubs and they will have a list of local contractors. When I kept my boat at Starcross I was on a Powderham mooring. The Lower Exe Mooring Authority will cover Exmouth and have their own rules about inspection.

Personally, I like the eyes of somebody who is experienced in laying moorings checking mine annually. Cost really depends on size of tackle.
 
Unfortunately the best man for the job, Tony Smith on CanDo, retired a few years back and sold the boat and the business to Exeter City Council. They still run it as a mooring service, but knowing some of what they do, I’d be reluctant to use them. And the chap from Starcross garage also retired a few years back. I don’t know if anyone else took over then.

The only other person I know who’s got many years experience is Simon Turl from Exmouth. He runs his own boat and also, like me, dives on moorings when necessary. You’ll find his contact details if you Google him. Just make sure you agree a price beforehand.
As has already been stated, the Lower Exe Mooring Authority (LEMA) control the mornings up to just above Cockwood, and then it’s Powderham Estate beyond that. I have a 45’ deep water mooring off Dawlish Warren (LEMA area) and pay about £250pa. Drying mooring charges are less. I believe the Powderham charges are a little higher.

As for how much to budget for mooring inspection and work, it depends on type of mooring, most have a block, but a few others, like mine, have a heavy ground chain with an anchor at each end. As a guess, I’d be surprised if costs were much more than £300 including shackles, maybe more if a long length of chain was required. Decent riser chain should be good for a few years, but best to change shackles annually.

Hope that helps. Feel free to contact me if you want any advice about a specific mooring area, some are better than others.
 
As mentioned above, LEMA administers the moorings generally below Starcross on behalf of the recently formalised Exeter Port Authority (EPA). Above that is Powderham estate.

There are two main mooring services in Exmouth - Simon Turl and what was Tony Smith, who sold his outfit to EPA.

EPA haven't imposed any harbour dues yet, but there is talk of it, mainly to finance removal of abandoned hulks.

In addition, if you plan to use the water taxi, they offer a membership scheme whereby you get discount tickets and a boat watch service.
 
MikeCC said:
As mentioned above, LEMA administers the moorings generally below Starcross on behalf of the recently formalised Exeter Port Authority (EPA). Above that is Powderham estate.

There are two main mooring services in Exmouth - Simon Turl and what was Tony Smith, who sold his outfit to EPA.

EPA haven't imposed any harbour dues yet, but there is talk of it, mainly to finance removal of abandoned hulks.

In addition, if you plan to use the water taxi, they offer a membership scheme whereby you get discount tickets and a boat watch service.
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Dave, who runs Explorer water taxis, is a good guy and very helpful. Getting to and from your boat can be a problem outside of his operating times, as there are very few places to store tenders, the local sailing clubs being the obvious choices, and for parking too, which otherwise can also be difficult and expensive.
 
Thanks for all the advice, the boat I was after is no longer in the running but I shall still be looking for a mooring in the area once I find another boat I can afford to buy! So still useful information. Thanks.
 
Wandering Star said:
Thanks for all the advice, the boat I was after is no longer in the running but I shall still be looking for a mooring in the area once I find another boat I can afford to buy! So still useful information. Thanks.
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Turns out the boat I was interested in, is still in the running and I’m meeting the owner, to hopefully seal a deal, tomorrow. The boats ashore (needs a good wash & polish) so I’ll arrange to have the mooring, which is in the Starcross area of the Exe, inspected & maintained in the next couple of weeks if I can.
 
Simon Turl has looked after our mooring on the Exe for years. Superb and friendly service. I would recommend you contact him.
 
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