Visiting West Mersea

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TimfromMersea

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Boat at West Mersea, Essex. Live in Wivenhoe, Esse
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West Mersea YC are sorry to have to say that as ‘social distancing’ rules continue, the WMYC launch service remains severely restricted in carrying capacity. This means long waits for the launch for members, with some reporting a wait of an hour at busy times.

On that basis the Club sadly has to remind East Coast sailors that the situation decided by the Club Committee and introduced earlier this year, where the launches will only carry WMYC members and their crews, must continue. Regrettably therefore the WMYC launches remain at the moment unavailable to take visitors ashore.

Visitors can still call the Club launch, YC1 (pronounced ‘why see one’) on Channel 37 to request a mooring, but to get ashore, a dinghy will be needed. Alternatively the privately operated ferry boat ‘Lady Grace’ is running and is available by pre booking.

All of us at the Club regret this position but when Government rules mean our launches can have only less than half their normal capacity, we can’t have our own members waiting for ages so that visitors can be carried. As soon as ‘social distancing’ rules are removed, the launch service will be open again to carry visitors.
 
RivalRedwing said:
From this thread:
Woodbridge tidemill

If correct, Lady Grace is £5 per person each way... a bit of a deterrent for a family of four
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It seems that W. Mersea , unlike Brightlingsea , do not want visitors at all.
There will of course be a time when the island does need money that visitors could provide.

The club, if they really wanted to, could make alternative arrangements to meet most people's needs.
 
LONG_KEELER said:
It seems that W. Mersea , unlike Brightlingsea , do not want visitors at all.
There will of course be a time when the island does need money that visitors could provide.

The club, if they really wanted to, could make alternative arrangements to meet most people's needs.
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I think you have a grossly inflated idea of your own worth to West Mersea. Why would West Mersea want visitors, they only get in the way of local sailors. Of course if someone visits, we like to make them welcome, and I don't think many people see visitors as a money making opportunity
 
I must say that the club launchmen have been very helpful allocating visitor moorings as close to the jetty as possible. I had some mates visiting from Blackwater Marina, and Ollie put them at the top end of Thornfleet, close to the piles, where they could get ashore easily. Such a short trip in a flubber is safe and easy, so not a deterrent from visiting, in my view, at least.
 
The Club is happy to have visitors and can entertain visitors subject to the standard 'Restaurant rules'. The problem is the launch cannot lawfully accept non-members. There are restrictions on members use of the launches. I think the fact that there is no charge on the moorings is evidence that water based visitors are welcome. Are Brightlingsea not charging? Personally I would nuke the grockles (land based visitors). I came ashore stepping aside of the half easten sandwiches discarded on the quayside, failed (being antient (sic)) to quickly sidestep a wielding crabbing net handle, was half knocked over by a brat (being arthritic - me that is) and narrowly survived cycling home on account of moron grockle drivers.

Stacey does not wait at the Hammerhead at the moment because she can only provided pre-hired 'commissions'. Would you come out from home, down to the hammerhead, row out to her launch and collect a visitor, drop them at the hammerhead, take her launch back to her mooring, row back to the Hammerhead, cycle back home all for £2? Stacey is a very intelligent woman and is very involved in many other projects that (I suspect) are slightly more feasible. I am she would love to be get back to her normal business but the rules prevent her.
 
tillergirl said:
The Club is happy to have visitors and can entertain visitors subject to the standard 'Restaurant rules'. The problem is the launch cannot lawfully accept non-members. There are restrictions on members use of the launches. I think the fact that there is no charge on the moorings is evidence that water based visitors are welcome. Are Brightlingsea not charging? Personally I would nuke the grockles (land based visitors). I came ashore stepping aside of the half easten sandwiches discarded on the quayside, failed (being antient (sic)) to quickly sidestep a wielding crabbing net handle, was half knocked over by a brat (being arthritic - me that is) and narrowly survived cycling home on account of moron grockle drivers.

Stacey does not wait at the Hammerhead at the moment because she can only provided pre-hired 'commissions'. Would you come out from home, down to the hammerhead, row out to her launch and collect a visitor, drop them at the hammerhead, take her launch back to her mooring, row back to the Hammerhead, cycle back home all for £2? Stacey is a very intelligent woman and is very involved in many other projects that (I suspect) are slightly more feasible. I am she would love to be get back to her normal business but the rules prevent her.
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well said
 
There are plenty of visitors thinking ahead and bring their dinghies, which is great, but can I reinforce Tim’s message:

1) please call for a mooring 37a or m1. Launchman will not answer the phone whilst handling the launch. please don’t just pick up a mooring , local knowledge of suitable berths is vital with edge moorings and swinging distances. Along with which local boats will be back of course.

2.) do look carefully at your charts when entering. From our mooring we see many visitors crossing the mud - and getting stuck!. Good rule : where there are no boats there is no water!

3) there are a good number of unused moorings this year, most will not have strops on, so be prepared to fish your lines through , lasso the buoy or whatever method you prefer. Again, we see many who have great difficulty, which is a shame.

4) our mooring fee is just a few pounds all of which helps fund bouyage etc for everyone’s benefit. It’s a shame to observe the number of visitors who slip in late and out early to save a few quid......and no I’m not tarring everyone with the same brush!

And yes we do welcome visitors, but to add an extra launch costs us around £350 a day........

Hope this helps visitors to be prepared and have a great stay!
 
tillergirl said:
The Club is happy to have visitors and can entertain visitors subject to the standard 'Restaurant rules'. The problem is the launch cannot lawfully accept non-members. There are restrictions on members use of the launches. I think the fact that there is no charge on the moorings is evidence that water based visitors are welcome. Are Brightlingsea not charging? Personally I would nuke the grockles (land based visitors). I came ashore stepping aside of the half easten sandwiches discarded on the quayside, failed (being antient (sic)) to quickly sidestep a wielding crabbing net handle, was half knocked over by a brat (being arthritic - me that is) and narrowly survived cycling home on account of moron grockle drivers.

Stacey does not wait at the Hammerhead at the moment because she can only provided pre-hired 'commissions'. Would you come out from home, down to the hammerhead, row out to her launch and collect a visitor, drop them at the hammerhead, take her launch back to her mooring, row back to the Hammerhead, cycle back home all for £2? Stacey is a very intelligent woman and is very involved in many other projects that (I suspect) are slightly more feasible. I am she would love to be get back to her normal business but the rules prevent her.
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Hi Roger,

While I strongly agree with the sentiment of your message, Wild Thyme spent Thursday night on a mooring at West Mersea - very efficiently allocated and we had no need to go ashore. YC1 came to see us before we left on Friday morning and gave us a printed sheet with the mooring charge (I forget how much, so it can't have been a lot) and details of the bank account to which it shoukld be paid, so the moorings are not free nor, in my mind, should they be.

The four of us dined pleasurably round the cockpit table in the midst of a couple of Dabchicks races - most entertaining.

Different approach in Pyefleet on Satueday night when a whole family did the rounds of those moored up charging a tenner each in cash, again most pleasurable, but the beautiful evening on board was marred by the constant background noise of personal water craft out of Brightlngsea. Fortunately, none of them actually came up the channel.

Peter.
 
I came to Mersea a couple of weeks ago and after failing to raise the launch on the VHF picked up a mooring mid afternoon up the Thornfleet, After a while I did make contact with the young lad on YC1 and he redirected me to a more suitable mooring near the island and when passing later waved and said I’d be fine there. Excellent service, I waited until about 11:00 next day but no one stopped to ask for a mooring fee,, I guess they were busy taxiing?
if Tim from Mersea could pm me the mooring fees sheet I would be happy to cough up :)
 
DavidofMersea said:
I think you have a grossly inflated idea of your own worth to West Mersea. Why would West Mersea want visitors, they only get in the way of local sailors.
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Exactly. I find W. Mersea rather quaint. It reminds me of life in the 1960's. Not that it should be anything different to what it wants to be.
I kept a mooring there for a couple of years. Although that was about 25 year's ago.

I would say that YC1 is, and probably still is , the best service of it's kind on the East Coast.

W. Mersea is designed and run for elderly residents, yacht club members and commercial fishermen. It has no interest in anything else.

That's what I find quaint. There are hard times ahead though.
 
LONG_KEELER said:
It seems that W. Mersea , unlike Brightlingsea , do not want visitors
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LONG_KEELER said:
Exactly. I find W. Mersea rather quaint. It reminds me of life in the 1960's. Not that it should be anything different to what it wants to be.
I kept a mooring there for a couple of years. Although that was about 25 year's ago.

I would say that YC1 is, and probably still is , the best service of it's kind on the East Coast.

W. Mersea is designed and run for elderly residents, yacht club members and commercial fishermen. It has no interest in anything else.

That's what I find quaint. There are hard times ahead though.
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Have you seen the number of dinghies, paddle boards windsurfers, visitors by road, holiday makers , people in the restaurants recently?etc? I suggest your image is many years out of date.
 
Brightlinsea is very welcoming ,Mersea seems to think is something else .. the YC attitude is a going out of date .. commodore etc .. it’s all a bit dads army
Cater and move with the times or your precious club house will be flats in no time .
 
Not sure which Wmyc you are referring to. The one I know has a thriving membership, many families and children, a bar and restaurant open 7 days , has invested continually for the last 10 years or so , runs two launches , owns pontoons and has even now an active sailing programme. I’m sorry if it’s not what you think it should be ,but there’s a lot of members across a broad spectrum who are in general very happy with their club.
The dabchicks is also in good order with many members of both clubs and runs sailing four days most weeks......with the bar open. .
And as I said before, Watersports in general in Mersea is thriving.
 
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