South coast to Bristol Channel via inland waterways?

[guyd]

Is it possible to traverse from the south coast, sort of Poole ish area to the Bristol Channel, without going round the Lizard? Logic says that it probably was possible in the day, as both areas were high trade places, but is it possible now, in a small 25' footer?

Looking at a boat down there, and thought it might be fun to go cross country.

I can't find any maps of the south England waterways. Any links?

Thanks

 

[VicS]

Is it possible to traverse from the south coast, sort of Poole ish area to the Bristol Channel, without going round the Lizard? Logic says that it probably was possible in the day, as both areas were high trade places, but is it possible now, in a small 25' footer?

Looking at a boat down there, and thought it might be fun to go cross country.

I can't find any maps of the south England waterways. Any links?

Thanks

Only the long way round via the Thames and The K& A canal I think

 

[zoidberg]

The only way you would do that, in a "small 25' footer" would be on the back of a truck, and along the A36.

 

[bitbaltic]

I might be tempted to say that if the BC is to be your cruising ground then going round the Lizard and all the rest of it will only be a warm-up anyways, so if you are considering going from Poole to the BC via canal maybe you could rethink the destination in the first place

 

[guyd]

Lol, ok, so what's the mileage from Poole to London, then BC via canals, just for a laugh.?

I thought the lizard etc was particularly nasty?

 

[classic jenny]

If you are going to be cruising the BC then I suggest you bite the bullet and go around the lizard might as well experience our great sailing ground earlier rather than put it off.

 

[Tranona]

Is it possible to traverse from the south coast, sort of Poole ish area to the Bristol Channel, without going round the Lizard? Logic says that it probably was possible in the day, as both areas were high trade places, but is it possible now, in a small 25' footer?

Looking at a boat down there, and thought it might be fun to go cross country.

I can't find any maps of the south England waterways. Any links?

Thanks

There are no waterways. The trio round to the Thames and then the Avon and Kennet is far more demanding and time consuming than going round Lands End. There was a write up in YM a couple of years' ago by somebody who did it (from Dartmouth) and it took a whole summer.

The only sensible way is on the back of a truck with a Hi Ab which will only take a day. You can hire a truck in Poole.

 

[stuey_two]

There was a canal link from Littlehamptonr to the Wey Navigation which linked to the Thames at Weybridge but it became impassable many years ago. It featured on the TV series "Great Canal Journeys" with Timothy West and Prunella Scales - the film is available on the net.

 

[Reptile Smile]

The Wey and Arundel navigation is currently being restored and is probably decades away from completion.

Twice, I've bought a boat in Kent/Essex and brought them back via the hames, and then K and A - the first was an eventide (2.75' draught) - wonderful adventure, got stuck in flood water on the Thames for 4 months, made it back to Bristol. Treasured memories indeed. Took forever,

Second time in an Achilles 24 (3.75' draught) and had a wonderful Easter week coming up through London, along the Thames, and then found the K and A was simply impassable to this draught. I found fin keel trailers were v hard to find, despite promising leads on some websites, and eventually sold the boat in Reading for peanuts.

 

[RIBW]

I might be tempted to say that if the BC is to be your cruising ground then going round the Lizard and all the rest of it will only be a warm-up anyways, so if you are considering going from Poole to the BC via canal maybe you could rethink the destination in the first place

Totally agree !
But to be positive, have you thought about the Exe estuary? It is an hour's easy drive from Bristol (except for the six weekends of school summer holidays) and there is a good mix of buoys and moorings.
Merry Christmas
Bob

 

[[70521]]

There is a Inland Waterways map published, I saw one on the water taxi in Leeds when I use it a few months back.

The Exe Canal only goes as far as Exeter and does not join up with the Great Western at Tiverton.

 

[Seajet]

Totally agree !
But to be positive, have you thought about the Exe estuary? It is an hour's easy drive from Bristol (except for the six weekends of school summer holidays) and there is a good mix of buoys and moorings.
Merry Christmas
Bob

I think your suggestion merits a very close look from the OP - while the Exe estuary is not to be taken lightly, it's a helluva lot nicer place to be based, with much better sailing grounds to be had than the Bristol Channel offers.

Sorry BC fans, but I have tried it and have been visiting - sometimes living in - Somerset since 1980, and the BC just doesn't compare with the South West, unless one wants a hair shirt lifestyle.

 

[Halo]

I did loads of canal trips in my Westerly 25. The limiting factors for you are likely to be draft (the K and Avon is shallow) the beam through the narrow locks and time. You can only get a month on the canals without getting certification for your boat.
If your boat can fit then canal trips can be great fun and a sharp contrast to sailing.
Check the details on the Canal and River trust website.

 

[JimC]

... the BC just doesn't compare with the South West, unless one wants a hair shirt lifestyle.

I second what Seajet says. My home sailing areas encompass Morecambe Bay and the Solway Firth so I'm accustomed to broken water but I'd shrink from basing my boat in the Bristol Channel.

 

[guyd]

I'm motoring an Antares 760.... draft 3'1" beam 9'

Not sure why the raggy brigade got involved ;-)

It's only 2.5 tons, so I might just borrow a Range Rover off a mate.

Does anyone know how to work out the centre of gravity of a dry boat, prior to balancing it on the trailer? I have a trailer that is weight capable of this, but not sure if the cog will be in the middle of the twin wheels....

 

[Seajet]

I take it you know where the engine/s and heavy bits are; make an educated guess and work forwards and / or back until the weight on the tow hitch seems about right.

If it's 2.5 tons + trailer to suit, aren't you going to need a pretty hefty vehicle to be legal ? They're very keen on checking towed boats & things.

If you don't like ' the raggie brigade ', sorry people tried to help; you could have asked on the stinkpot forum...

 

[guyd]

Sorry, didn't mean to suggest I didn't like the saily types, just confused as to why it was assumed to be a sail boat.

The problem with the trailer is it's touch and go if it's long enough from fixed bow support to axels... obviously, when loading we would shift it fore and aft to get the nose weight right.

A range rover tows 3+ tons legally. So that's boat, plus fuel, plus trailer, ish. Anchors etc can be lobbed into the car. Top end, but just. Or I just pay some other idiot to take the risk....

 

[Reptile Smile]

Man, you try to help... Not sure which bit of my advice wasn't relevant to both motorboats and sailboats given all I talked about was draft and route. But next time, sort yourself out.

Seajet and others, couldn't disagree more. Have sailed the BC for six years, and frankly for the first time have properly learned to sail - yes, sometimes in challenging conditions, but with a great range of harbours and sailing clubs - of which, I'm the outgoing Commodore of one. Accordingly, part of me feels like saying, "Great - if you don't like it, stay away - more room for us", but on the other hand, wouldn't want people to discount the great clubs here without trying it first.

Happy Xmas everyone!

 

[Seajet]

I love the way its assumed only the Bristol Channel is challenging and unless one is based there one doesn't get to try such conditions.

How do you think I get to the Channel Islands and Brittany ? Clue - not by trailer...

I have known Uphill for a start for over 30 years - as a visitor by road, and one look will explain that.

I've also sailed out of Burnham, and played with a cruiser in and just outside of Watchet.

Even with a boat able to take the ground, to make use of a high proportion of what harbours there are requires a race against a falling tide.

I'm glad you enjoy it and have learned to sail properly there Reptile Smile, but there are lots of other places you can do that.

I once met an American singlehander in Alderney ( a serious place, see ' Heavy Weather Sailing ' ) - on finding we were from Chichester he exclaimed " That's the roughest place I've ever seen ! Don't people get killed there ? " - and he'd just crossed the Atlantic...

The answer to his question is yes they do but fortunately not often - largely because there are good alternatives if conditions don't suit.

 

[Reptile Smile]

How can you possibly take what I've written as thinking that other places aren't challenging?

The difference between me and you seems to be that I enjoy sailing everywhere and you seem to take pleasure in steering people away from places that others value and enjoy...