Whatever happened to Burnham?

[nigelm]

I thought Burnham dated back to the 70's/80's from a conversation I had with a "berth owner"

My father kept his boat in Essex marina back in the late 70's early 80's and Byh didn't exist then .

But I do remember buying my first new boat from a boat show that was held at Byh and that was '92 so guessing around 1990 would be right .

 

[wingdiver]

The best marina facilities we've encountered areMayflower Marina in Plymouth and Wemeldinge in the Oosteschelde both of which have am option of a kind of en suite type room with wc, sink and either shower or bat.

 

[DanTribe]

My father kept his boat in Essex marina back in the late 70's early 80's and Byh didn't exist then .

But I do remember buying my first new boat from a boat show that was held at Byh and that was '92 so guessing around 1990 would be right .

I have a picture taken the day after the great storm 1987. The marina was dug out and much of the concrete lining in place but the break through not done. So I would think 1988 would be the right year for opening.

 

[MountainGoat]

The main snag with Burnham has been the surprisingly short pontoon fingers and associated lack of buoyancy. For a relatively new marina this seems rather odd.

The short finger pontoons is why we moor stern-to; no centre cleats on my 30 footer and bow-to the stern cleats are too far from the finger pontoon to get a decent angle.

 

[Bru]

There are seats in the shower cubicles.

Good! They must have heard me grumbling

 

[Chalk]

No cubicle seats at BYH when I was there last in May.
Burnham town itself is part of the problem. The sailing fraternity just hasn't managed to lift the town out of the general seaside East coast town demise. Sailing isn't enough to do it on its own. It seems counter intuitive but Brightlingsea, with similar problems, being smaller and less of a day-out destination for land lubbers is more appealing for me.

 

[PaulRainbow]

The short finger pontoons is why we moor stern-to; no centre cleats on my 30 footer and bow-to the stern cleats are too far from the finger pontoon to get a decent angle.

The fingers at Shotley are a bit shorter and narrower than some we've used, they are also a little "bouncy", but we soon got used to them. There was an article in YM last year about French marina fingers and they sounded just like these.

We also moor stern to, but we'd do that whatever, years of mobo's with bathing platforms and transom doors formed the habit. I do still prefer to climb over the transom on this boat too.

 

[nigelm]

I have a picture taken the day after the great storm 1987. The marina was dug out and much of the concrete lining in place but the break through not done. So I would think 1988 would be the right year for opening.

Found on Google -
Via yachting monthly
In January 2003

Edward Symmons Hotel & Leisure has sold Burnham Yacht Harbour on behalf of First National Bank to Shotley Marina Holdings Ltd for a cool £4.185 million

Edward Symmons Hotel & Leisure has sold Burnham Yacht Harbour on behalf of First National Bank to Shotley Marina Holdings Ltd for a cool £4.185 million.

Burnham Yacht Marina is located on the northern bank of the River Crouch in the town of Burnham-on-Crouch, Essex. It opened in 1989 and is home to the Royal Corinthian Yacht Club, Royal Burnham Yacht Club, Crouch Yacht Club and Burnham Sailing Club

So we were all in the ball park

 

[MountainGoat]

We also moor stern to, but we'd do that whatever, years of mobo's with bathing platforms and transom doors formed the habit. I do still prefer to climb over the transom on this boat too.

Suspect more would if there wasn't this view that doing it is "hard". In a long keeler that doesn't behave while going astern, maybe, but modern fin keel boats behave very nicely manoeuvring astern. Mine is a Sun Odyssey 30i and there isn't even any discernible prop walk effect.

 

[ex-Gladys]

Suspect more would if there wasn't this view that doing it is "hard". In a long keeler that doesn't behave while going astern, maybe, but modern fin keel boats behave very nicely manoeuvring astern. Mine is a Sun Odyssey 30i and there isn't even any discernible prop walk effect.

I'm not a long keeler, but more a 1970's style mid fin and skeg. However, going astern needs a lot more speed to have the degree of control I have going ahead...

 

[PaulRainbow]

Coming in astern, when you start to reverse into the berth, have a crew member step off as soon as possible (i reverse close to the end of the finger to drop them off) with a long line fixed to the midships cleat. They take this line to the pontoon end of the finger, take half a turn around the cleat/ring/bollard/whatever and keep pulling the slack in as you reverse. If you get blown out of shape, just engage ahead and motor against the line, the crew member just holds it tight (very easy to against the pull of the engine). The boat will square up against the pontoon and you resume reversing.

I can do this when i'm single handing too, by setting a line up from the midships cleat so that it forms a loop at the cockpit, outside the guard wires. I drop the loop over the cleat at the outer end of the finger as the stern passes it and quickly pull the slack in. The just let the line slip through my hand as the boat reverses in. If i get blown off i just stop the line and the boat squares up to the pontoon.

 

[NealB]

Suspect more would if there wasn't this view that doing it is "hard". In a long keeler that doesn't behave while going astern, maybe, but modern fin keel boats behave very nicely manoeuvring astern. Mine is a Sun Odyssey 30i and there isn't even any discernible prop walk effect.

Personally, I positively love a good bit of propwalk.

That's not the problem with long keelers, it's more about the unpredictability as to which way the stern is likely to go.

I swear that some of them really do have a mind of their own, and a very wicked sense of practical joking.

 

[tidclacy]

Agreed you save 90 mins on journey time , if you're heading out / in the river , but "better" facilities ? You sure ? , last time I visited BYH the ablutions were less than appealing , they are old and need a refurb plus dirty , even had to chase the HM for loo roll !!!

In contrast Fambridge marina loos are spot on .

All been upgraded and modernised.

 

[Lucky Duck]

For the average fin keeler, is there anything upstream of Fambridge?

 

[MoodySabre]

For the average fin keeler, is there anything upstream of Fambridge?

I've been up as far as Hullbridge but not to stop. Before that there were some buoys in reasonable water for a lunch stop. But the basic answer is no.

 

[Cantata]

For the average fin keeler, is there anything upstream of Fambridge?

Adventure!

 

[Bru]

For the average fin keeler, is there anything upstream of Fambridge?

Disaster!

 

[nigelm]

You could get to Hullbridge on a springtide no problem, I kept my Pegasus 700 on a mooring there and I reckoned I could get away 2.5 hrs after low water , just have to know where the deepest water is ...........

 

[Bru]

... just have to know where the deepest water is ...........

Well downstream of Hullbridge afaic!

 

[NealB]

Roy Hart (well known local: bon vivant, adventurer, raconteur and entrepeneur), managed to get 'Victory' (the ex-Peter de Savary 12 metre) right up to Battlesbridge, albeit with the aid of a couple of tractors to pull her through the mud on the final reaches.

She draws 2.72 metres.