Approaches
Poole is a very large and beautiful natural harbour with an all-tide entrance, several good marinas and a number of quiet anchorages. Not surprisingly it’s a premier destination for yachtsmen and power boaters, and in settled weather can get very busy.

The beginning of the entry channel, which has a maintained depth of 7.5m, is denoted by the starboard hand Bar Buoy, almost 2 miles SSE of the entrance itself. In most conditions small craft arriving from the east or south-east will be quite safe to cut the corner slightly and use the south cardinal denoting the end of Hook Sand as their marker for entering the channel.

A handy alternative to the main Swash Channel for those coming along the coast from the east, perhaps having left the Solent by the North Channel, is to head straight for the entrance via the East Looe Channel. This is well marked with port and starboard hand buoys and runs west over the sands before dog-legging round to the SW close along the shore as you approach the entrance. Be aware however that it is quite shallow and visitors with deeper draft craft are unlikely to feel comfortable at less than half tide.

Across the entrance runs a chain ferry to which you must give way. Be alert also to the arrival and departure of ferries to Cherbourg and other shipping, and to the strong tidal flows which can occur at the entrance. At times of commercial activity small craft should use the Boat Channels just west of the Swash Channel and, inside the Harbour, just south of the Middle Ship Channel.

Marinas, moorings and anchorages
Poole Quay Boat Haven is easily reached by following the Middle Ship Channel round to the north and west until you are within a couple of cables of the ferry terminal where there is a marked channel to the Town Quay beyond the south cardinal Stakes buoy. The Haven is on your right next to the Town Quay.

It’s not always the quietest berth on the south coast, with biker meetings on the quay on Tuesdays and regular events ending in firework displays on Thursdays, but it puts you right in the centre of things, with plenty of shops including Sainsbury’s Local round the corner and a wide range of pubs and restaurants close at hand for which the marina helpfully has a selection of menus for you to peruse. The town itself is also worth exploring with an excellent museum and attractive old quarter around St James’s church.

For a more tranquil environment there is Salterns Marina closer to the harbour entrance. Leave the ship channel at the south cardinal Bell Buoy and head to starboard up the North Channel leaving the Royal Motor YC on your right. Tesco Express and fish and chips are up the road.

Beyond the town bridge in Holes Bay lies Cobbs Quay, the largest marina in the area, which may be able to fit you in if the others can’t. The bridge opens hourly in the morning and evening and less frequently during the day: for opening times see the borough website. The Backwater Channel up to the marina has a least depth of 0.3 LAT so fin keel yachts of any size need to avoid LW springs. There is a restaurant on site.

There is also a small marina at Lake Yard about a mile beyond the ferry terminal.

If marina prices don’t appeal and you don’t need to stretch your legs ashore there are numerous moorings all over the harbour where you can try your luck. Among those in deeper water are the ones just north of the Middle Ship Channel outside buoys 19 and 21.

Alternatively, for maximum peace and quiet anchoring can be an attractive option, though considering the size of the harbour finding a suitable spot is not that easy. One of the better options is to make a sharp turn to port between port hand buoy no.14 and the east cardinal Brownsea and venture down the marked channel South Deep south-east of Brownsea Island. You can’t anchor in the channel but with care you should find deep water just outside it, for instance where the channel turns west and north-west before Goathorn Point.

Other possibilities are the Wych Channel on the other side of Brownsea Island which runs west and then south-west from near the fuel barge; or outside the harbour in Studland Bay which offers good holding in settled weather with shelter from the south and west. Craft which can take the ground will find many other options in the more remote corners of the harbour, including the drying town quay at pretty Wareham.

About 9 miles east of Poole, roughly halfway between Poole and the Solent, lies the harbour of Christchurch whose entrance lies just east of the prominent Hengistbury Head. Approach on a heading of about 285º until you pick up the small red and green buoys and follow the winding channel in behind the headland. If coming from the west, keep well offshore around the headland by about a mile to avoid Beerpan Rocks and other shoal areas before heading in to the entrance. Inside, the area is attractive and unspoiled, but with less than 0.5m on the bar and much of the channel this is emphatically a place for shoal draft craft only.

© 2009 Yachtpilot