Please help with finding a mooring

EugeneR

EugeneR

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Hi all,

SWMBO and I are considering an offer for a Bavaria 32.

Problem is, she's got a fin keel and, as our original plans were to get a small bilge keeler, we only have a mud berth reserved. Getting an affordable mooring is therefore a requirement before I want to make an offer.

Can anyone suggest where we can get a reasonably priced deep water mooring around the Solent and/or Chichester, without having to wait many months on a waiting list?

Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

Many thanks!
 
Portsmouth Harbour; try Gosport Boatyard, their moorings are in the middle of nowhere ( Spider Lake ) but they run a good launch service, when I used them for a deep water mooring years ago their rates were good, though I didn't winter with them before selling the boat.

Chichester Harbour; try Hayling Yacht Co, deep water moorings at reasonable rates, and drying alongside a pontoon in soft mud ( my Carter 30 fin was happy ) if you're lucky, for the winter.

Chichester Harbour; try Wilsons Boatyard, Hayling island. Not many deep moorings but you may get lucky, a friendly well run outfit with good rates.

Chichester Harbour; try Thornham Marina - may be a mooring, may be drying in soft mud alongside a pontoon, relatively good rates.

Beware with Hayling Yacht Co and most other places, just because the boat is afloat doesn't mean you can get to her !

The access from the shore is often tidally restricted, and places to safely leave a rigid tender are gold dust.

Using an inflatable is really only a temporary measure, any example small enough to stow on the Bavaria will probably have low freeboard, you'll be surprised how lumpy it gets in the middle of harbours, though Hayling Yacht Co's moorings are sheltered

I also tried a deep water mooring off Hayling Island Sailing Club, but these are seriously rough in any weather, there was nowhere to keep a tender, and the advertised launch service refused to pick me and my elderly mother up as he was tired, leaving us stranded !

These problems with HISC may have been ironed out, this was years ago, but I'd try the other options first anyway.

See my PM,

seajet
 
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If considering Gosport Boatyard, I would be wary of Spider Lake, when I was moored there some years ago security was an issue and my boat was broken into twice. They also have some moorings close to the Hardway Sailing Club which were then rather moor secure and a much shorter trip in a dinghy.
 
One to add

Sparkes Marina has a series of swinging moorings on the right hand channel as you enter their estuary. Sparkes is an MDL marina, meaning that they are NOT CHEAP, but they are usually available for that same reason. We had our boat there for a year and it was about £2400 for a fairly deepwater swinging mooring for a 32'er. By fairly I mean our fullkeel, 1.7m draft usually settled into mud slightly for an hour, a bit more on the springs. Usually the angle wasn't too severe to sleep on comfortably. But you may have an hour or two of tidal restriction, depending upon your draft - but then again, you would have that same restriction on the Chichester Bar most likely anyway.

While that is expensive, you DO get fuel at cost, half-price boatyard work, and 20+ days at other MDL marinas, including berths at Sparks.

Tender storage is good, but do NOT use your inflatable. We did, and it turned my SWMBO off swinging moorings for good - it got a bit hairy at times. Make the investment in a proper hard tender, which they have space to tie up on a pontoon.
 
I agree re. Spider Lake, I always felt security would be a problem but didn't have any trouble myself, I knew someone else who kept a boat there without problems, but that was a tiny old boat which may not have attracted thieves.

I found most deep water moorings a worry for both security and personal safety by dinghy, as by nature they're usually a long way out; unless things have changed the moorings by Hardway were like hens' teeth ! Even then the traffic onto Gosport was no fun at all, all this is why I was very happy to sell the fin keel Carter and buy my Anderson 22 lift keeler back, with her lovely sheltered half tide mooring 5 minutes row from 2 good pubs and the club ! :)
 
Thanks for the responses and PM's so far, please keep them coming :-)

It seems that for £2500-ish there is availability in a few places. It's a bit higher than expected but I'm still working through the options identified so far.

Another option is Beaulieu rivier, does anyone have experience with keeping a boat there?

Thanks again!
 
Did you try Tucker and Munday at Hamble, or perhap the Hamble/Warsash ferry people at Hamble; probably still in that cost ballpark if available though.
I think that there are some vacancies at Hythe side of Southampton Water, possibly owned by the Hythe Sailing club who will have more details/possible sources available if not theirs.

ianat182
 
EugeneR said:
Another option is Beaulieu rivier, does anyone have experience with keeping a boat there?

Thanks again!
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My boat is on a swinging mooring on the river, above Buckler's Hard. The annual rental, for a 22 footer, is currently in the region of £1,900 so I think the cost for a 32 footer will exceed your budget, though perhaps not by much. A number of the moorings are a long way from anywhere, by dinghy, and although it's mostly well sheltered, some of the moorings at the foot of the river are quite exposed and a dinghy trip might sometimes be a bit of a challenge.

The mooring cost is just that. Any lift-out, storage ashore and labour is an additional expense (the Boatyard are an entirely separate entity to the Beaulieu Estate, who manage the moorings) and there are no preferential rates for mooring holders.

Traditionally, the waiting lists are long, particularly for a boat of the size you are getting, but it's possible that the current economic situation has shortened them. At least one forumite on here managed to get a pile mooring for a while, and at short notice, by using the mooring of an acquaintance who was boatless for a while.

I love the river, and am prepared to pay the cost, but "reasonably priced" isn't generally an epithet I'd apply to keeping your boat there :)
 
Langstone harbour used to be the cheapest place to get a deep water swinging mooring.

We had a mooring there several years ago and liked it, although it is a bit short on convenience but some recent postings suggest that there may be some problems now
 
Boreades said:
Seconded, you'd a get much better sailing area, and it might be cheaper as well. :)
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Thirded???? We have a lovely deepwater mooring on the lower Tamar for about £1400 pa. Not as busy as the Solent so every weekend is like a holiday!! And we drive 3 hours each way to get there and it's still worth it!!
 
ianat182 said:
Did you try Tucker and Munday at Hamble, or perhap the Hamble/Warsash ferry people at Hamble; probably still in that cost ballpark if available though.
I think that there are some vacancies at Hythe side of Southampton Water, possibly owned by the Hythe Sailing club who will have more details/possible sources available if not theirs.

ianat182
Click to expand...

Yes, for Hamble speak to Derek Munday - helpful guy, either might have something, or if not might know what's coming up or get you a temp mooring. Problem is at 32ft, you're just touching the higher demand end of the market.

The alternative is to try Deacon's boatyard at the top of the Hamble: they have deep-water pontoons, and basic marina-type facilities (ie loo+shower) although might be over your budget.
 
Babylon said:
The alternative is to try Deacon's boatyard at the top of the Hamble: they have deep-water pontoons, and basic marina-type facilities (ie loo+shower) although might be over your budget.
Click to expand...

Probably will be, we were there before we moved to Chi harbour and they wanted £3800pa for an outer pontoon with water but no power and you had to use a chain ferry to get to and from the boat, still cheap for the Hamble.
 
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