Passage time Morbihan entrance to Vannes

Distance is 7.9 nm to Vanne entrance plus approx another 1 nm to the marina. I wouldn’t want to do it at anywhere near maximum flow and you need to plan your arrival at the Vannes lifting bridge near to HW. Take it easy and enjoy the fantastic views. It’s also a zig zag course, so you will not want to rush it, best estimate 1.5 to 2 hours, for a first visit, locals could probably do it in an hour.
 
It depends on when you leave in relation to high water Port Navalo, what speed you want to use and whether sailing or motoring. The important thing is to arrive when the lock/swing bridge is open.(info on the Crouesty Capitainery notice board). Another consideration is what the boat's draft is. I would allow 2 hours.
 
TonyS said:
It depends on when you leave in relation to high water Port Navalo, what speed you want to use and whether sailing or motoring. The important thing is to arrive when the lock/swing bridge is open.(info on the Crouesty Capitainery notice board). Another consideration is what the boat's draft is. I would allow 2 hours.
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Plan to motor all the way. 1.8m draft.

HW Port Navalo tomorrow is at 0854 and 2115, local time. HW at Vannes is said to be at HW Port Navalo + 2:30. So leaving at 0900 should make it. Leaving at 2100 would mean arriving at 2300 outside the Vannes gate operating hours. Or maybe wait a day and start one hour later if SWMBO is not interested in too early a start !!!!!

TonyS said:
The important thing is to arrive when the lock/swing bridge is open.(info on the Crouesty Capitainery notice board). /QUOTE]

Didn´t know about that. Will go look at it.
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Have only been in and out once, and recall its about an hour, if motoring all the way. However, you could also spend a week in each direction, if you wanted to pass the time. We went in as soon as the tide turned at the entrance, then dropped the hook for lunch until it was time for the bridge to open. Arrived 15minutes early, and it was a bit of a scrum to get through, with some people quite happy to 'barge' their way through to the front :(
 
Being impecunious we used to take a leisurely sail up with the tide to just off Conleau where there were some white visitor buoys on port side. Overnight on those for free and through into Vannes on the first opening in the morning. Same routine on the way out, leave on the last and stay on the buoys for free then down next morning. Navigation after dark is not possible. That way saves several, nay multiple wine tokens whilst maximising time in Vannes and eases a lot of timing hassles. Last time we did it on the way out, we were floodlit from the shore, circled by a candlelit boat procession and serenaded by a Jazz band (we were dancing on the foredeck) and finally had a nice firework display. Turned out it was a wooden boat festival or rally, hence we were floodlit on the buoys, sandwiched between two old gaffers with girt great prodders, shame we had a plastic fantastic!:)
 
Plomong said:
Plan to motor all the way. 1.8m draft.

HW Port Navalo tomorrow is at 0854 and 2115, local time. HW at Vannes is said to be at HW Port Navalo + 2:30. So leaving at 0900 should make it. Leaving at 2100 would mean arriving at 2300 outside the Vannes gate operating hours. Or maybe wait a day and start one hour later if SWMBO is not interested in too early a start !!!!!

TonyS said:
The important thing is to arrive when the lock/swing bridge is open.(info on the Crouesty Capitainery notice board). /QUOTE]

Didn´t know about that. Will go look at it.
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HW at Port Navalo may be at 0854, but the flow doesn't stop for about 90 minutes and it's still quite quick. HW Vannes is 1h55mins after HW Port Navalo at that coefficient of tide - I'm looking at a a copy of the local tide tables. If you get off your mark at 0900 you should be able to dawdle up to Vannes in an hour. ie before the tide turns. If you're too early there is a waiting pontoon just outside the entrance to Vannes. With 1.8m draft would recommend that you do not go on the RHS of it as you approach - it's deep mud. You can meander up from Port Navalo going anti clockwise round Ile au Moines which will take you about 2 hours with no strong currents against you at that stage of the tide.
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Plomong said:
Plan to motor all the way. 1.8m draft.

HW Port Navalo tomorrow is at 0854 and 2115, local time. HW at Vannes is said to be at HW Port Navalo + 2:30. So leaving at 0900 should make it. Leaving at 2100 would mean arriving at 2300 outside the Vannes gate operating hours. Or maybe wait a day and start one hour later if SWMBO is not interested in too early a start !!!!!

TonyS said:
The important thing is to arrive when the lock/swing bridge is open.(info on the Crouesty Capitainery notice board). /QUOTE]

Didn´t know about that. Will go look at it.
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If you leave Port Navalo at HW (springs) you are likely to encounter adverse tides on the way in. You need to factor that in.
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Sybarite said:
If you leave Port Navalo at HW (springs) you are likely to encounter adverse tides on the way in. You need to factor that in.
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You'll be heading for Vannes with about 5 knots of current helping you for the first 1.5 miles. You can still make Vannes easily before the tide turns.

The flow runs for about 1.5 hours after HW Port Navalo and the ebb runs for 2 to 2.5 hours after LW Port Navalo. Wacky, but there you have it. :)
 
MoodyNick said:
and it was a bit of a scrum to get through
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+1

Vannes03.jpg


The trouble is the canal above the bridge is very narrow and once through people slow down, the ones at the front start looking for berths, and the queue rapidly backs up through the bridge. The locals tell me this causes traffic chaos around the town and the operator has been know to get fed up and close the bridge again to clear the traffic queues! All good fun.
 
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Plomong said:
Have had a look at the bridge opening times. Only one tomorrow night at 2100, but 7 or so in the morning. SWMBO has advised a days delay would be appreciated, so will wait until Friday and go up on the mornings tide.


Thanks all for your data and advice.

Plomong
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Have arrived in Vannes safe and sound.

Departed Port de Creusty at 0910 and reached the Vannes swing bridge at 11:15 having lost a lot of time because of:

A) two plonkers that insisted on taking in fenders and mooring lines and setting the mainsail while stopped and adrift in the innner entrance to Creusty, right between the two walls !!!! Caused a traffic jam and much frayed nerves in the 10 knots of wind, luckily almost dead ahead.

B) By mistake went south of Er Lannig and Ile de la Jument. Took me a while to get my bearings.

C) Had to contend with four ferries and 6 or more oncoming boats in the narrows at Pointe des Réchauds, as well as the three boats ahead of us that just sat there, going nowhere -- they seemed lost. Once we overtook them they accelerated and followed us for some time..

The rest was without incident, though it rained steadily through the first hour of the trip.

One last point: Don't use the waiting pontoon below the Vannes swing bridge when wet -- it is covered in guano (bird s**t) and very slippery. I would not use it if ever coming this way again.

Plomong
 
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Good to know you made it, Plomong!

When we went, we avoided the waiting pontoon because there was only 15minutes to the bridge opening at 1500. Several other boats were gilling around (hence my reference to a scrum) and at 1459 one chap in a Westerly Fulmar timed his move from the back of the pack to get to the front just as the bridge opened. Trouble was that the bridge opening man was late coming back after his post lunch nap. Westerly man or woman (can't tell the difference as they all have beards, regardless) found themselves almost pinned to the bridge by his rigging.

We didnt laugh at him (too much!) :)
 
MoodyNick said:
Good to know you made it, Plomong!

When we went, we avoided the waiting pontoon because there was only 15minutes to the bridge opening at 1500. Several other boats were gilling around (hence my reference to a scrum) and at 1459 one chap in a Westerly Fulmar timed his move from the back of the pack to get to the front just as the bridge opened. Trouble was that the bridge opening man was late coming back after his post lunch nap. Westerly man or woman (can't tell the difference as they all have beards, regardless) found themselves almost pinned to the bridge by his rigging.

We didnt laugh at him (too much!) :)
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I was first in the queue so cast off from the pontoon with 10 minutes to spare and held position about 50m short of the bridge and a little to one side, with an Irish boat behind that was good-mannered. The others maintained a reasonable semblance of a queue in single file, so no real problems. Likewise, up the channel to the pontoons everyone seemed to be keeping a reasonable distance so that the boat ahead could manoeuver into their assigned berth without problems. Absolutely no sign of a scrum or bad behaviour.
 
Plomong said:
I was first in the queue so cast off from the pontoon with 10 minutes to spare and held position about 50m short of the bridge and a little to one side, with an Irish boat behind that was good-mannered. The others maintained a reasonable semblance of a queue in single file, so no real problems. Likewise, up the channel to the pontoons everyone seemed to be keeping a reasonable distance so that the boat ahead could manoeuver into their assigned berth without problems. Absolutely no sign of a scrum or bad behaviour.
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OK now you have been shown the easy one it is time to move up a notch in difficulty to the Arzal Dam and lock through into the Villaine Rivere and up to La Roche Bernard. In order to gain the tee shirt you must go through on the last lock opening of the day on a Sunday evening in August. :)
 
Robin said:
OK now you have been shown the easy one it is time to move up a notch in difficulty to the Arzal Dam and lock through into the Villaine Rivere and up to La Roche Bernard. In order to gain the tee shirt you must go through on the last lock opening of the day on a Sunday evening in August. :)
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Better still, similar day and time, but on an old wooden barge on the Thames above Reading, with strong SW wind and a novice crew more interested in other activities !!!! Almost lost a MOB on the upper reaches, but managed to turn round downstream and back upstream again later to recover the MOB. She had been knocked overboard by a low-hanging tree branch whilst snuggling atop the wheelhouse.

No more details appropriate for this forum.

Date: Early 70s.

Plomong
 
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