Salcombe entrance

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Just looking at the entrance chart and it seems that the leading line takes one over a shallow part of the bar (1.3m @ LAT) whereas just 1/12th cable to the west there appears to be another metre of depth (2.5m LAT) so it would seem sensible to go off transit to the west just before the bar and then head NNE to go the right side of the PHM and back on transit. Is that what the locals do or do they stick religiously to the transit?

TIA

Rob
 
I have come out of Salcomb on LW springs (yacht 1.6 M depth) guided out by a nice bloke in rib with forward looking sonar. You are right keep up to the west.
But at the same time there was a very large motor yacht stuck in the sand on the transit only 50 feet away from me, lots of shouting and alarms going off gin and tonic flying all over the place. I had to snigger.
By the way thanks to the bloke in the Rib.
 
As a former Island Cruising Club skipper in the 1970s that's what we used to do around LW, except for the two big yachts Provident and Hoshi both of which drew approx 3m. If we arrived home at the wrong time we would anchor in Starhole Bay and wait for sufficient rise of tide - good practical use of Secondary Port calculations!
BTW in most pilot books e.g. The Channel Pilot, NP 27, the deeper water to the west is mentioned.
 
In practice, theres nearly always plenty of water over the bar. But, yes there is more to the west. Just keep quite close to the cliffs, till just before the green buoy, then follow the chanel round. It's very easy, less the weathers bad.
 
Oh no there isn't!! I used to live down there and regularly see peeps with that assumption come to grief. The channel used to be pretty well on transit but the bar has shifted a bit and maximum water on the turn is indeed now west of it. It is usually OK at high tide but try low tide with a southerly gale and the breakers will pick you up and dump you solidly on the bar. Stay away in southerly gales m'dears!
 
But at the same time there was a very large motor yacht stuck in the sand on the transit only 50 feet away from me, lots of shouting and alarms going off gin and tonic flying all over the place. I had to snigger.

What a sad person you must be to have such thoughts.
 
Oi. I said, unless the weather is bad.

The deaper chanel has been over to the west, for the last ten years, that I know of.

But not a place to be in strong southerlys. Sorry I'll improve my wording. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
The Bar can change after each winter. I have not been out yet so cannot confirm if there are very shallow areas. In past years there has been as little as 1ft on the Bar at low water springs. There is a 6-7ft deep channel at low water springs close to the west shore but you need to be very careful when you turn out away from the shore as there are underwater rocks at the end of the deep water channel. I usually check the depth early in the season by motoring along the Bar. I have seen the lifeboat do the same so it seems sensible . They definitely use the west channel in rough weather as it rarely breaks on that line.
 
[ QUOTE ]

But at the same time there was a very large motor yacht stuck in the sand on the transit only 50 feet away from me, lots of shouting and alarms going off gin and tonic flying all over the place. I had to snigger.

What a sad person you must be to have such thoughts.

[/ QUOTE ]

I sniggered but for the grace of the rib captain I would be on the sand bank too.
 
[I sniggered but for the grace of the rib captain I would be on the sand bank too.]

[/ QUOTE ]

Oxford Dictionary:

Snigger - a smothered or half-supressed laugh

I would like to think it was a poor choice of words on your part
 
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