Solent Area - Mooring Waiting Lists

[jac]

I was speaking to the Hamble Harbour Master earlier today and the waiting list for mid stream moorings is now 10-15 years. We're not looking at buying a boat for next season but probably the season after and it would be nice to start moving up the list. SWMBO is keen to join the list so I'll probably put my name down and send off the £30 per year fee anyway but not so keen on the 10 year wait bit.

We've got no major problem in taking somewhere either more expensive or less desireable for a year or two once we buy and need to keep the new boat somewhere that has spaces available there and then, but I'm thinking a bit more long term. We kept the last boat at Shamrock Quay and felt we were paying a lot for a location that was just out of the way - no club to pop into after a sail, although very good of course for winter work. With the next one we want to avoid that if possible

Has anyone got any suggestions for places with a slightly more reasonable waiting list - say 3-5 years, basic requirements ( in vague order):

Deep water mooring, pontoon, piles for 1.5m draft
Sheltered.
less than 90 mins driving time Door to Door from home (between Reading and Basingstoke)
24 hour access to the sea ( locks are fine if they work)
Quick access to sea ( 30 mins motoring max)
Family friendly club nearby
Reasonable long term parking for car / dink
Substantially cheaper than the local MDL boat park!

Other things such as nice shower facs , Launch service to moorings, Walk ashore access are all great as well but are definitely on the nice to have list.

 

[jonjo]

Wicor @ Fareham is often suggested for this type of question.

Royal Clarence @ Gosport is the cheapest not quite full service marina, good for monthly short stays though poor discount on an annual basis given the drawbacks.

 

[BlueSkyNick]

Beaulieu river - pile moorings with pontoons between or swinging buoys.

Less than half an hour to motor out into the Solent. (Sand bar at entrance is restrictive at the bottom of low tides)

about an hour from M3 junc 6 once you know how to avoid the traffic jams.

Marina at Bucklers Hard has parking, dinghy storage and fuel dock.

 

[StugeronSteve]

Beaulieu river - pile moorings with pontoons between or swinging buoys.

Less than half an hour to motor out into the Solent. (Sand bar at entrance is restrictive at the bottom of low tides)

about an hour from M3 junc 6 once you know how to avoid the traffic jams.

Marina at Bucklers Hard has parking, dinghy storage and fuel dock.

I won't argue with Nick (who would?), except to say that the Bucklers Hard pontoon is probably more like 45mins from the sea, but a very pretty sheltered 45mins. Facilities, other than the pub, are good. And to be fair the pub is improving!

 

[Wandering Star]

I won't argue with Nick (who would?), except to say that the Bucklers Hard pontoon is probably more like 45mins from the sea, but a very pretty sheltered 45mins. Facilities, other than the pub, are good. And to be fair the pub is improving!

The problem with the Beaulieu River and the marina there is that there's an abundance of very rough and unsophisticated sailors who keep their boats there. If there was such a thing as an "average" sailor, you'd probably find him in the Beaulieu River.

Cheers, Brian.

 

[Angele]

The problem with the Beaulieu River and the marina there is that there's an abundance of very rough and unsophisticated sailors who keep their boats there. If there was such a thing as an "average" sailor, you'd probably find him in the Beaulieu River.

Cheers, Brian.

... like Tom Cunliffe, you mean. Very "average"!!

(not to me, he isn't).

 

[arto]

What's the availability of moorings like in Beaulieu R? I'd always assumed a multi-year waiting list.

 

[jac]

What's the availability of moorings like in Beaulieu R? I'd always assumed a multi-year waiting list.

I'd always thought that and thats one of the things that i'm hoping to find out, not only for Beaulieu but Lymington as well and any other likely candidates.

This seems to be a fairly regular thread topic - another on PBO at the moment so 'ill post back on here in case anyone else is searching. No point hundreds of people ringing round asking how long is your waiting list.

 

[Twister_Ken]

I'd always thought that and thats one of the things that i'm hoping to find out, not only for Beaulieu but Lymington as well and any other likely candidates.

This seems to be a fairly regular thread topic - another on PBO at the moment so 'ill post back on here in case anyone else is searching. No point hundreds of people ringing round asking how long is your waiting list.

Used to be that Lymington moorings were only available for those living within x miles of Lymington church, where x is not a very big number. Dunno if that's still the case.

 

[jac]

Used to be that Lymington moorings were only available for those living within x miles of Lymington church, where x is not a very big number. Dunno if that's still the case.

Just Googled Lymington Harbour Commissioners and you're right Ken - x is 7 miles and the waiting list is 5 - 20 years depending on size. Wonder if SWMBO fancies moving???

 

[chubby]

Wicormarine in Portsmouth harbour often has moorings, not walkashore but a variety of bouys and pontoons between piles, 45 mins to Portmouth entrance, the option of sailing within threharbour for an hour or so, close to the M27, launch service, dinghy and gear storage storage: little to choose time wise between rowing out to a swinging mooring and sorting out fenders and warps for a marina berth, no connection with them other than a long term customer.

 

[nigelstgeorge]

Firstly get your name on the Hamble river waiting list when you finally get the call to offer you a mooring you will be overjoyed. Spend the savings on mooring on joining the Royal Southern Yacht club, RAF Yacht Club or Warsash Yacht club where you can keep your tender, park your car and some offer a Bosun ferry service FOC out to your yacht. Back in 1986 my Godfather near on forced me to put my name down and at the time the 17yr waiting list seemed a long way away but suddenly my Hamble Marine increased their annual mooring fees by 30% yes I do mean 30% and would negotiate. On principle I left and took a visitors mooring on the hamble for 3 months during the main sailing season and had her pulled out for the remainder of the year a hassle but cheap. Then I called up the Hamble HM and found I was now at the top of the list and was offered a fantastically positioned mooring between 2 piles with a pontoon. Current marina price for a circa 12M yacht in one of the main marinas on the Hamble is £7-9K per annum a river mooring circa £1,000. Go on get your name down now and think long term. Other alternative much cheaper moorings are on the Itchen there are several on both sides of the river.

 

[toad_oftoadhall]

... like Tom Cunliffe, you mean. Very "average"!!

(not to me, he isn't).

Yeah, distinctly below average in last year's RTIR. Got easily caught by a load of smaller boats and failed to finish.

 

[BlueSkyNick]

yep still true

in Lymington, we have been on the waiting list for 5 years since we moved here with no sign of getting a river mooring, or on the harbour masters pontoons.

Marina berths are available, depending what size and shape of boat you are looking to bring in.

 

[jhr]

What's the availability of moorings like in Beaulieu R? I'd always assumed a multi-year waiting list.

Not an expert on the why and wherefore of this but I got a swinging mooring on the River without any delay, a few years back.

I attribute this to the following:

My boat is small and doesn't draw much
I was prepared to take a mooring a long way up-river
I'd already kept a Mirror Dinghy in the Boat Park for some years , so they knew me.

(Point 3, in particular, is pure speculation on my part )

If I'd been looking for a mooring for a 35 foot raggie, drawing a couple of metres, I suspect I wouldn't have met with such immediate success and I suspect the situation may be worse now, as people give up expensive marina moorings and look for something cheaper.

It's also sometimes possible to take over someone else's mooring for a while, if they are boatless, which I know at least one other Forumite has done in the past.

 

[Giblets]

A friend of mine has his Bowman 40 on a pile/pontoon mooring on the Hamble (and, yes, he was on the waiting list for 12 years). However, he did tell me that one of the conditions was that he can only pass the mooring on to his son not to his daughter. I suppose that's to stop some chancer marrying the daughter to get his hands on a Hamble mooring.

 

[Ubergeekian]

A friend of mine has his Bowman 40 on a pile/pontoon mooring on the Hamble (and, yes, he was on the waiting list for 12 years). However, he did tell me that one of the conditions was that he can only pass the mooring on to his son not to his daughter.

Seriously? Unless there is something else we don't know ("May only be passed on to a yachtmaster?") that sounds very, very illegal.

 

[Giblets]

Seriously? Unless there is something else we don't know ("May only be passed on to a yachtmaster?") that sounds very, very illegal.

As the Hamble Harbour Authority manages the moorings on behalf of the Crown Estate I suppose anything is possible. Mind you this was back in the mid-eighties so things might have changed since then.

 

[BlueSkyNick]

A friend of mine has his Bowman 40 on a pile/pontoon mooring on the Hamble (and, yes, he was on the waiting list for 12 years). However, he did tell me that one of the conditions was that he can only pass the mooring on to his son not to his daughter. I suppose that's to stop some chancer marrying the daughter to get his hands on a Hamble mooring.

well that's better than Lymington - a husband can't even leave the mooring to his wife, if it was in his name only !

 

[Twister_Ken]

well that's better than Lymington - a husband can't even leave the mooring to his wife, if it was in his name only !

She'd only crash the boat, anyway.