Shandon, Gare Loch

[tyce]

Some of you may or may not be aware that i have been looking for a mooring / marina on the clyde for a wee while.
There is a mooring currently for sale at Shandon, Gare Loch and it is administered by Clyde Corinthian Yacht Club.
I know nothing about this area so any info that you folks could pass onto me would be greatly appreciated.
Main points are-
Amount of shelter as the boat will be left unattended for longish periods.
The area in general.
The yacht club, is it a good club.
Access by dinghy, the owner says its near a slip.
Anything else you can think of.
Thanks

 

[dimdav]

There are a lot of boats moored up that side of the loch and its generally pretty sheltered. Very close to the sub base at faslane so access to the firth can be restricted by the QHM. Area in general nice, easy access by road, short hop from helensburgh and all the usual amenities also just a couple of miles away from various marine services eg Rhu marina and the various companies at rosneath.

 

[awol]

Can't disagree with above. Getting out of the Gareloch can take a wee while but there are handy traffic lights or directional beacons so you can't get lost.
Other places are Cardwell Bay and Royal Gourock Yacht Club. The RGYC runs a club launch and the boatman keeps his eye on the anchorage; there's storage for dinghies and motors + an Arts and Crafts clubhouse. I have a friend who is likely to be selling his mooring off RGYC (if he sells his boat) but getting your own laid for a 36' boat is only about £1k.

 

[Jcorstorphine]

Some of you may or may not be aware that i have been looking for a mooring / marina on the clyde for a wee while.
There is a mooring currently for sale at Shandon, Gare Loch and it is administered by Clyde Corinthian Yacht Club. I know nothing about this area so any info that you folks could pass onto me would be greatly appreciated.
Anything else you can think of.
Thanks

Main points are-
Q:-Amount of shelter as the boat will be left unattended for longish periods.

A:-Shandon is on the east side of the Loch and therefore more exposed to prevailing SW, W and NW winds than the West side (Clynder) but as the Loch is only a mile wide, then there is not too much of a build up of waves.

Q:- The area in general?

A:- Shandon is easy to get to by car but the Gareloch is quite a long haul from the likes of the Kyles of Bute, Cumbrae and Arran. To get to these areas, you would need to allow about 5 to 6 hours sailing/motoring. Within shorter distances is Loch Long, Loch Goil and Holy Loch all with quite nice anchorages. We kept our boats in the Gareloch for about 35 years but have now migrated to the Ayrshire coast at Largs as the long haul to get anywhere became a bit of a chore.

Q:- The yacht club, is it a good club? The Clyde Corinthian Yacht Club does not have a Clubhouse as such and is more involved in organising race meetings etc so there are no shore facilities.

Q:- Access by dinghy, the owner says its near a slip?

A:- Just need to check that you can leave a dingy, failing that use an inflatable kept in the boot of the car.

If as you say that the boat will not be used regularly, it may be worth looking at using the Shandon mooring as a fixed base but when you are in full cruising mode, then take a month to month berth at one of the Marinas such as Largs, Kip or Clyde but take the boat back to Shandon when you are not as likely to use it.

If you want to get involved in one of the Yacht Clubswith a shore based clubhouse then as said, the Royal Northern have moorings just south of Shandon, the Royal Gourock Yacht Club has moorings off Gourock (bit exposed to NW through to NE)

Lowest cost marina in the area is Clyde Marina at Ardrossan. Most expensive is Largs and Kip. Holy Loch Marina is nice but a bit of a treckby car unless you take the car ferry from Gourock (£20 return for car and driver if you buy tickets at shops)

In general, the Clyde is a great sailing ground, lots of places to anchor for free, I have been pottering around the Clyde for over 50 years and never get tired of it. There is also the lure of the West Coast by either rounding the Mull of Kintyre or through the Crinan Canal.

Any questions, PM me

John

 

[tyce]

A big thanks to everyone for taking the time to reply, certainly plenty to think about.
I think a special thanks to John for a very detailed reply and very, very helpful.
I now have a good few more options to mull over. Pardon the pun.