Moorings in North Cornwall and Devon coast

This area covers the north coast of Cornwall and Devon, from Newquay and the Camel estuary past Port Isaac and Bude, then into north Devon with Clovelly, the joint estuary of the Taw and Torridge, Ilfracombe, Watermouth and Lynmouth. It is a coast of small harbours and two tidal estuaries rather than marinas.

The Camel is the main boating estuary. Padstow Harbour Commissioners, the statutory trust port body, manage the harbour, and the Doom Bar, a sandbank across the estuary mouth, has long been a hazard to shipping. Padstow's inner harbour is kept afloat behind a floodgate, and its pontoon berths can be reached about two hours either side of high water. The Commissioners also let seasonal moorings from April to October in South Dock, at North Quay, at Port Arthur and across the water at Rock, a mix of drying and floating berths, with boats up to 10 metres at Rock. The tide runs on up the Camel to Wadebridge.

Cornwall Council runs the harbours at Newquay, which has seasonal tidal moorings from April to October, and Bude, where drying moorings sheltered by a breakwater are joined by a hand-operated sea lock into an inner basin on the Bude Canal. Port Isaac is a small harbour with its own harbour commissioners.

In Devon, the Taw and Torridge estuary is entered over a bar that is dangerous in rough weather, with suggested passage times of about two hours either side of high water. In summer boats are moored in the river, most on moorings that dry at low tide, including off the beach at Instow, home of the North Devon Yacht Club. Upstream, Bideford Harbour manages moorings along its quay between the town's two bridges. Ilfracombe, run by North Devon Council, has drying visitor moorings in the outer harbour and an inner harbour that dries completely, where fin and long keel boats can lean against the wall. Watermouth, just east, is a drying natural harbour with fore and aft moorings, and Lynmouth is a small drying harbour with boats moored fore and aft up its middle.

North Cornwall and Devon coast moorings are therefore mostly drying berths suited to bilge keel boats and craft that can take the ground, with Padstow's inner harbour the main place to lie afloat.