Well blow me, Menai here i come.

[tyce]

It looks like we are finally in for a settled spell and even more amazing is it coincides with my two week hols.
Menai here i come.
First stop Conwy, want to stay a couple of nights, would you recommend the river pontoon or Marina?

 

[Searush]

It looks like we are finally in for a settled spell and even more amazing is it coincides with my two week hols.
Menai here i come.
First stop Conwy, want to stay a couple of nights, would you recommend the river pontoon or Marina?

The river pontoon every time - partly cos marinas are just boat parks, but the view of the floodlit castle at night is stunning. But be aware, the river runs very fast (we are on springs at the moment) so you need decent fenders & full springs & warps.

There will be probably be swinging moorings available if you ask. There is a club launch will run you ashore on request by VHF but if you use your dink remember the tide falls & rises VERY quickly at half tide, so be carefull where you tie up & keep an eye on the time.

The castle is great, but pricey, but the town walls are free. The Gt Orme (Llandudno) is worth a trip, esp the bronze age copper mines & the funicular railway.

 

[hlb]

The HM does not encourage visitors, though we always got by OK.

It is a personal choice. We were in Conwy marina, but spent some nights in the river. The tide does 7/8 knots, so just make sure you do not get wrapped up under the bridge. We had 400 HP, but I could not stop the boat from going under, luckily it just made it.

Go to Conwy marina rather than Deganwy, it's much closer to town and I think now, there is a water taxi.

 

[Searush]

The HM does not encourage visitors, though we always got by OK.

It is a personal choice. We were in Conwy marina, but spent some nights in the river. The tide does 7/8 knots, so just make sure you do not get wrapped up under the bridge. We had 400 HP, but I could not stop the boat from going under, luckily it just made it.

Go to Conwy marina rather than Deganwy, it's much closer to town and I think now, there is a water taxi.

That's news to me, but there was a time when the tunnel was under construction & 1/3 of the moorings had to be moved/ lifted so there would have been problems then. I'll bet there isn't much of a waiting list these days.

Haydn's right about the bridge, my mooring was up there & I watched a Hurley carried under the road bridge before catching the backstay over part of the old suspension bridge. It only came free when the stay broke! Keep over 100m away from the bridge when the tide is flowing towards it!

Great opportuntiy to practice ferry glides & white water boating! I used to row the dinghy across, but you have to use the eddies to get as far upstream as possible & then row at a slight angle to the flow, mostly travelling backwards in a big loop untill you can recover the eddies on the other side.

 

[tyce]

Thanks for replys, phoned the harbour master today and he is quite happy to either stick me on a pontoon or on the wall, so i think i will try this option over the marina option.

 

[Searush]

Thanks for replys, phoned the harbour master today and he is quite happy to either stick me on a pontoon or on the wall, so i think i will try this option over the marina option.

The wall is usually alongside fishing boats - they don't often move & you sit in deep mud. There is a strong eddy between the jetty & the fuel pontoon by the bridge, it usually runs the opposite way to the tide. Keep your eyes open for it. There is also a big mud bank off the quay just upstream from the jetty so try to approach from the bridge close to the quay & leave the same way. It is common for boats pulling off the quay & heading out to miss the end of the jetty come to a slow but certain halt.

Mind you it is several years since I was berthed there & they have modified the line of the quay which may have changed the flow patterns slightly.

 

[hlb]

HM said it was to much trouble, collecting just a few quid.

They removed alot of the sand and mud from infront of the quay, about three years ag.

 

[Searush]

HM said it was to much trouble, collecting just a few quid.

What a lazy plonker - just make it free then! Conway is a bit out of the way for many N Walians, the entrance channel takes 20 mins for yotties to pass with the tide behind them & probably almost double that if its agin 'em. Many won't bother.

They removed alot of the sand and mud from infront of the quay, about three years ag.

About time they did something for the yotties rather than just taking the annal fees of 'em. I used to love the town, but I got fed up with being treated as a money tree. Caernarfon is much smaller & friendlier - plus a couple of hundred quid pa cheaper.