Poole Harbour Anchoring.

[tt65]

Not got charts or pilot books with me, and my people seem to think Poole is quiet and tranquil.

Are there any good anchorages within Poole Harbour, without getting hassled with seahorses?

Thanks

 

[jhr]

South Deep.

Have a look here.

 

[Skysail]

Pottery Pier off Brownsea.
.

 

[Tranona]

Of course there are - otherwise it would not be so popular. Recent guide in PBO or any of the charts or pilots will tell you where they are.

 

[DJE]

Blood Alley or Shipstal Point if you've got a Poole-draft boat.

 

[prv]

I too am considering visiting Poole soon for the first time. I'll probably be on my own, in which case what I look for is generally the most isolated / empty anchorage for the night. A few weeks ago in the middle of Langstone Harbour with no other boat (even moored and deserted) within half a mile was brill.

Any less-travelled parts of Poole recommended?

KS draws 3 feet and taking the ground is no problem.

Pete

 

[DJE]

KS draws 3 feet and taking the ground is no problem.

Now that's a Poole Harbour boat! From Pottery Pier take the Upper Wych Channel to the West turn South past Shipstal Point and the Round Island jetty and keep going as far as you dare. See how close you can get to Corfe Castle! Probably best attempted on a rising tide! Or try and get to the old quay at Redhorn Point, I did it once in a Wayfarer Dinghy. See here.

 

[Ruffles]

Goathorn point. Not far from the entrance.

Beware if anchoring just off a channel. If you drag a bit the hook can fall into the deeper water and end up dangling. You won't go far in Poole though!

 

[Robin]

Now that's a Poole Harbour boat! From Pottery Pier take the Upper Wych Channel to the West turn South past Shipstal Point and the Round Island jetty and keep going as far as you dare. See how close you can get to Corfe Castle! Probably best attempted on a rising tide! Or try and get to the old quay at Redhorn Point, I did it once in a Wayfarer Dinghy. See here.

It has been 30 years of too deep a draft for Redhorn Creek but that used to be our regular Friday night bolthole to escape Truckline's wash on our mooring back then. Unless it has changed, the way in is shallow but OK with 3ft draft between HWs and there was more water inside by the point anyway. We used to sneak in there even in the dark with a spotlight to pick up the post markers. Best (huge) cockles in Poole in the mud round there unless they have all been snaffled.

Arne or Shipstal Point is also good. South Deep and Goathorn are OK except when wind against tide sets the dancing off, try to avoid that and or get in out of the channel more away from the tide.

 

[aslabend]

Goathorn point. Not far from the entrance.

Was there a month ago, lovely spot well sheltered with anything southerly but very busy (it was a Thursday as well). For me it was spoiled by the yacht next to me running a generator so they could watch TV but if you dodge the idiots it'd be very nice.

 

[prv]

KS draws 3 feet and taking the ground is no problem.

Now that's a Poole Harbour boat!

Nah, she's a West Country boat, for getting into all those little drying Cornish fishing harbours!

See here.

Cheers, that looks useful.

Pete

 

[prv]

Was there a month ago, lovely spot well sheltered with anything southerly but very busy (it was a Thursday as well). For me it was spoiled by the yacht next to me

That's no good!

This might be a little Too Much Information, but one of the nicest parts of being all on my own in Langstone the other week was being able to stand and have a shower on deck, under one of those solar bags hanging from the boom. It's true that there's no longer such a thing as Indecent Exposure in English Law, but this still isn't something I'd wish to inflict on neighbours anchored close by

Going down the channel past Round Island (as suggested by DJE) looks like it could provide a bit of isolation, if only I can get far enough. According to the visitmyharbour chart (mine are on the boat) it all dries 1m and more, and the rise of tide in Poole doesn't seem to be all that great. Google Maps shows what looks like it could be a narrow deeper channel, but it's hard to tell.

Pete

 

[Sundowner Portofino]

Shipstall Point mid week = heaven

As you come down towards it there is a fairly deep hole just before the first mooring bouy. Gives plenty of room to swing around and not more than a few boats can anchor in it meaning you should always be quite quite.

Have Lat/Long so PM if you want them

 

[Ex-SolentBoy]

Now that's a Poole Harbour boat! From Pottery Pier take the Upper Wych Channel to the West turn South past Shipstal Point and the Round Island jetty and keep going as far as you dare. See how close you can get to Corfe Castle! Probably best attempted on a rising tide! Or try and get to the old quay at Redhorn Point, I did it once in a Wayfarer Dinghy. See here.

Thanks for the diagram. I can see that a "bird sensitive area" is where we must be sensitive about birds, but what is an "anchoring sensitive area"?

 

[jhr]

Thanks for the diagram. I can see that a "bird sensitive area" is where we must be sensitive about birds, but what is an "anchoring sensitive area"?

An area where there is particularly acrimonious debate about which type of anchor will provide the best holding?

 

[Tranona]

An area where there is particularly acrimonious debate about which type of anchor will provide the best holding?

Rarely any doubt about that in most of Poole Harbour. Just about anything sinks into the glutinous mud! Even a CQR - in fact after many years of happy CQRing in Poole (and much of the Solent) it came as a bit of a shock to discover it does not work too well on some other bottoms!

 

[LadyInBed]

Be warned that the wind across Poole harbour can blow pretty hard.
A tranquil option is to head up the river Frome (Wareham channel) and 'borrow' an Environment Agency mooring. They are fore and aft and all in good nic
Less than 5ft draft is no problem, 5 or more will require a bit more planning.

 

[Dockhead]

Sorry for the induced thread drift, but we love Poole Harbour and have often wondered whether there is any place where we could anchor out, rather than being at the mercy of the Dolphin Haven. We draw 2.35 metres and it all looks terribly shallow on the chart. But we've been all over the harbour in our dinghy, and it looks like there is a lot of space. Up the Wareham Channel past the ferry terminal looks like deep water and even some big ship moorings, but we couldn't figure out whether it is possible to anchor there (or borrow a mooring).

Any tips?

 

[Tranona]

You are limited by draft and size. The constraint is not so much the anchoring spots where there are often deep(ish) holes but the narrow and shallow channels. However, the two most obvious place are just south of Brownsea Castle and Pottery Pier at the other end of the island using the Wych channel to get there rather than using Wills Cut from the quay. Dorset lake is also possible. Problem with anchoring is access to the shore is usually not very good unless you are after mud and wilderness!

 

[Dockhead]

You are limited by draft and size. The constraint is not so much the anchoring spots where there are often deep(ish) holes but the narrow and shallow channels. However, the two most obvious place are just south of Brownsea Castle and Pottery Pier at the other end of the island using the Wych channel to get there rather than using Wills Cut from the quay. Dorset lake is also possible. Problem with anchoring is access to the shore is usually not very good unless you are after mud and wilderness!

Well, we don't mind having to dinghy for some distance. We have a fast (25 horsepower) dinghy. We anchor out for the sake of peace and quiet, so those spots and the drying mud sound great. Thanks for the tips.

Is it not possible to anchor beyond the ferry pier near the Wareham Channel? I was surprised to see big ship moorings (big yellow buoys) quite far up there. If big ships can go there, couldn't a yacht like ours anchor there somewhere?

Sorry again to everyone for the thread drift, but maybe this will make the thread after it's archived into a good general resource.