Poole, the St Tropez of the
South?
Or so says the tourist
literature, a grand claim for somewhere in the UK
but what’s it like as a place to go boating? Paul
Glatzel reports.
It’s that time of the year again
and you’re sitting there thinking about what a new
season’s boating will bring, you’ve listed the
little jobs that need doing on the boat, and you’ve
finally sussed the mystifying little (big!) manual
on the new electronic gizmo you bought at Excel.
But now the hard part – where’s that special
location to take the boat this summer that you and
the family will remember for years to come?
After Sydney, Poole is the
second largest natural in the world, has a coastline
of some 60 miles and covers 10 acres. The Harbour is
a place of contrasts, on the one hand Poole Harbour
is about vast wealth, large expensive houses (the
Sandbanks Peninsula is the 4th most
expensive place in the world to live), glorious
Sunseekers (they’re built here), swanky bars and
delightful restaurants. On the other hand it is an
area of truly outstanding natural beauty where you
can experience total tranquillity well away from
other boats and people. In fact, in some areas of
the harbour you will can anchor with only one or two
other boats for company and you’ll struggle to
believe you are actually in one of the busiest
boating areas in the country.
If you are trailing then your
first challenge is to find somewhere to launch.
Baiter Slipway is the only ‘large-ish’ public
slipway and is just along from Poole Town centre.
The shallow angle of the slipway means that you will
struggle to launch anything over about 18 ft by hand
or you will need an extremely long line to attach to
the trailer. In the summer it can become hugely busy
with long queues to launch and recover. Alternatives
are the marina slipways but do make sure you book in
advance as they will be closed to all but those who
prebook or have a marina pass when it’s busy.
Check the tide tables too as the
approaches to one or two of the launch sites dry out
at low water springs. Apparently, the average depth
of water in the harbour is 2ft, so always check a
chart and the tide tables to work out where you can
go. Staying in the main channels is a safe bet but
will mean you miss out on some of the really
beautiful areas of the harbour.
In addition to the usual ‘rules
of the road’ you will also need to adhere to the
local bylaws governing the harbour. These impose
speed restrictions of 6 or 10 knots throughout the
harbour (and a little beyond) in the summer season,
whilst over the winter months the limit is lifted in
some of the main channels.
From the entrance to the harbour
two well marked channels take you up towards Poole
Quay. The North Channel is the longer route and is
mainly used by pleasure craft whilst the Main
Channel is also used by the various ferries and
commercial ships that frequent the harbour. To the
side of the Main Channel is a small ships channel
that you should keep to as much as possible. If you
are a bit more adventurous though follow the winding
channel round behind Brownsea Island (where
Baden-Powell founded the Scouts in 1907) and anchor
for complete tranquillity and stunning scenery. The
channel continues round the back of Green and Furzey
Islands and back to Brownsea past Pottery Pier.
Pottery Pier is a great little anchorage which is
popular with local boats, be careful if swimming
here as the tide can really rip through the
anchorage. If the tide is with you then a trip
between the Arne Peninsula and Long Island is well
worth it too – you may even see the Harbour’s
resident seal if you’re lucky.
Once back in the main channel
you have the choice of turning up towards the
Wareham Channel heading up to Wareham. This takes
you past the Royal Marines/SBS base and into the
waterski area. If you want to ski here obtain a
permit from the Harbour Commissioners or from the
office at Baiter, stay in the approved ski area and
keep an eye on the depth.
The long and winding channel
that leads you up to Wareham Quay is best attempted
on a flood tide to ensure you have plenty of water
and time at Wareham. Once at Wareham you can grab a
bite to eat at one of the quayside eateries whilst
keeping an eye on your pride and joy. Back at Poole
Quay mooring in the new Marina at Dolphin Haven
gives you the opportunity to explore the revitalised
Quayside and wander around the town, short term
moorings are always available. Pottering along the
Quay towards the lifting bridge takes you past the
Sunseeker factory where you can size up your next
purchase! Continuing under the bridge and towards
Holes Bay brings the new RNLI training centre into
sight and yet more Sunseekers. Follow the channel on
and you reach the largest marina in the harbour -
Cobbs Quay. Here you can get a short term berth and
a bite to eat overlooking the marina and Holes Bay.
There is so much to do and see
in the harbour that you could spend many days just
exploring it and soaking up the beauty. Make time
though to get beyond the harbour entrance and see
the beaches, cliffs and bays that have lead to this
part of the Dorset coast being listed as a World
Heritage site.
As you exit the Harbour keep
well clear of the Chain Ferry and its trailing
chains. It indicates its direction of travel by a
black ball at the ‘front’ of the ferry and a strobe
light if darker. Ahead of you is the Swash channel
whilst immediately left before the Swash cardinal
mark is the Looe Channel leading towards the beaches
of Bournemouth.
Continuing out along the Swash
Channel don’t be tempted to turn right too soon
until the last in the line of red posts. These posts
mark a ridge of rocks referred to as the “Training
Bank” – many a boat has come to grief on top of
them. Equally don’t turn to the left too soon as the
shallows of Hook Sands claim many a prop and
outdrive each year. Once clear you can safely turn
to Starboard and head to the beaches and anchorages
of Studland Bay.
Between the Harbour entrance and
the rock formation known as “Old Harry” are 3 miles
of golden sandy beaches. If its takes your fancy
then there’s even a nudist beach, beach volleyball
is particularly popular!
Where the beaches meet the
cliffs is South Beach. Well sheltered and hugely
popular, in the summer you will do well to find
anywhere to even lay an anchor let alone let out 6x
the depth of anchor warp. Anchoring here though
allows you to reach the beach and its little café or
stroll up the hill to the Bankes Arms with its large
beer garden and stunning views over the bay (there’s
a public toilet there too!). Slightly back towards
the Harbour entrance is Middle Beach. There’s a café
but it seems less popular with the boating
fraternity. There’s also the National Trust centre
with a café and other facilities but the hordes of
people who have fallen out of the car park and onto
the beaches here rules it out as a sensible place to
stop. If you want to ski then most boats either ski
parallel to the beaches or parallel to the cliffs
towards Old Harry, keep outside of the yellow marks
which denote the 5 knots zone. During the day the
wash from other craft can make it uncomfortable,
wait though til late in the afternoon and the seas
will usually calm considerably.
Old Harry is an outcrop of rock
at the end of the cliffs and marks the turn out of
Studland Bay and towards Swanage. The cliffs and
caves between Old Harry and Swanage are worth a look
but time your arrival there to avoid the choppy
conditions you get there as tide races round the
headland. Swanage is a great bay with excellent
waterskiing (if the wind is from the right
direction) and is far less crowded although the
beaches are shingle so not as child friendly.
Swanage itself is a pleasant little village but you
will need to anchor up or take a mooring and contact
the water taxi to get to shore. Progressing along
the coast you will appreciate why this coastline
receives so many plaudits, whilst not as rugged as
the coast of Cornwall the cliffs and small bays are
stunningly impressive, no more so than Durdle Dor
and Lulworth Cove. Formed by the action of thousands
of years of erosion in an area of softer rock
Lulworth Cove is a delightful small bay which is
well worth a visit.
Had you turned left when exiting
the harbour you would have passed down the Looe
Channel towards the Solent. The channel passes close
to the shore area of the Sandbanks Peninsula so
beware of adventurous swimmers and stay well clear
of the beach. As you pass through the Looe Channel
check out the flats and houses to your left which
enjoy a view out of their rear towards the sea and
the front over the Harbour. Whilst you may choose to
anchor here you could hop down the coast towards
Hengistbury Head where you will find the entrance to
Christchurch Harbour.
Christchurch Harbour is far
smaller than Poole’s and has less places to stop but
it is well worth a visit, keep to the channels as
there is very little water outside them. You will
need to time your entry carefully as the entrance is
very shallow at low water springs.
There’s so much to see and do
round Poole that many people choose to make it a
place to stay for a week or two, even then you can
go back each year, each week or even each day and
you will always see or hear something new and
different. As the tourist blurb puts it – “it’s a
beautiful place” and it’s a great boating location
too.
Charts
Imray – Poole Harbour (Code Y15)
Stanfords – Local series (Code
L12)
Admirality – Poole harbour and
approaches (Code SC 2611)
Launch
sites
Check out www.boatlaunch.co.uk
Chandlers
Piplers, Poole Quay
Force 4, Bournemouth Road
CQ Chandlers, Cobbs Quay
Quay West Chandlers, Mitchells
Boat Yard
Salterns Marina, Salterns
Other
Poole Harbour Control – 01202
440200 – VHF Channel 14
Dolphin Yacht Haven – 01202
649488 – VHF Channel 80
Poole Tourism (www.pooletourism.com
& 01202 253253)
Fuel
Cobbs Quay (Diesel, Petrol &
LPG)
Poole Quay (Diesel)
Salterns Marina (Diesel & Petrol)
Floating fuel barge (Diesel &
Petrol) (located near “Aunt Betty” cardinal mark
just outside the main channel)
Paul Glatzel runs a RYA Powerboat
School in the harbour – Powerboat Training UK (www.powerboat-training-uk.co.uk).
