River Dart

[graham]

We plan to visit the River Dart with our small trailer sailer this year.

Can anyone recommend a place to launch and somewhere to leave the car and trailer.Would any of the yacht clubs allows us temporary membership for a few days?

Any general recommendations such as pretty places to visit good pubs etc etc.

Thanks in advance Graham

 

[johnalison]

As someone who only visits Dartmouth I would be looking at somewhere like Darthaven marina on the Kingswear side which is not unduly expensive and has plenty of parking. They were helpful to us this year when we wanted an extended visit.

Lots of places to visit. We had a nice day out on the bus with our senility tickets to Torcross on Slapton Sands and there are several gardens worth seeing as well as a tour of Britannia College, bookable through the tourist office.

 

[Skysail]

Go up the Dart as far as possible; at Dittisham, Greenway is Agatha Christie's house, Ferry Boat Inn opposite. Sharpham vineyard further on. If you can get to Totnes the river is lovely all the way. If you can't take your boat there are excursions. Steam train to Paignton also good.

 

[Cerddinen]

The Dart is very limited for slipways.

Working from the north downwards:

There is a slipway at Totness and nearby parking but unlikely to be secure. It is also a long (but attractive) way up river.

Dartside Quay (a boatyard at Galmpton) has the best slipway, good parking, but will charge and is only accessible about 2 hours each side of high tide. Ideal if you plan to spend a few days and can time your launch.

Dittisham Sailing Club does not have a slipway but boats go directly in from the beach. Easy to use and accessible though the public car park at Dittisham. The car and trailer can be left in the car park. Good, as long as you are happy towing a trailer down miles of single track road.

Greenway Quay has a rough slipway. But since this was taken over by the National Trust I doubt they will be very helpful. The old ferryman was very different.

Dartmouth does not have a slip as such, but you can launch alongside the upper chain ferry provided you do not impede the traffic. There is parking across the road (if space) and a the park and ride up the hill.

Kingswear has three slips. One is at the head of the creek but you may have trouble going under the railway. You can also launch from the ferry slip but only if you can do this before the ferry starts in the morning or after it finishes at night. There is also a slipway alongside the Royal Dart Yacht Club. This requires some clever boat handling to get onto. The roa leading to it is narrow with a very tight 90 degree bend. Unless you are far better at reversing than me you will have to drive in forward and manually turn the boat. For all three you can park in the marina car park.

I have used all of these with the exception of the Greenway. For your proposed trip I would recommend Dartside Quay since the parking is secure, the slipway is easy to use, and you will not run into any difficulties (e.g. soft sand, rapidly approaching ferries, no space to rig, tricky manual boat handling).

Second place would be Dittisham but you are launching off a beach.

 

[Coaster]

When we had a trailable boat we launched, several times, at Brixham which is close by. There is an excellent slip at Brixham and an adjacent multi-storey car park with good access onto the top deck where trailers can be parked. If you want to consider this option I suggest you phone Brixham Marina where the staff were helpful and informative.

We trundled round to the Dart by sea, which is by far the best way of approaching that sort of west country location. There are various places to anchor, upriver, especially for a small boat, or you could stay at one of the various marinas.

 

[Sequoiah1]

Pm me and I will give you a few pointers