Birdham Pool Marina lies within the sheltered, unspoilt waters of Chichester Harbour, just five miles from the quaint yet bustling town of Chichester.

On arrival at the marina, you feel transported a million miles away, yet Birdham is surrounded by excellent transport links and services, with Southampton and Gatwick airports an easy drive or train journey.

Within the tranquility of the locked marina you can enjoy a plethora of wildlife as well as uninterrupted views across the harbour as far as Goodwood Racecourse.

FACILITIES & BERTHS

Opening in 1937, Birdham Pool is one of the oldest marinas in the country and is adorned with all the charm and character you would expect. However, the marina has, over time, been sympathetically updated and now offers some of the best marina and boatyard facilities in the area including:

  • 290 pontoon berths including a mix of finger berths and pile berths mooring bow or stern onto a pontoon.
    • Marina office, customer lounge and decking area overlooking the marina
    • First class facilities and laundry
    • Marine trades for all areas of boat maintenance and repair
    • Crane/boat mover with 30t lifting/transporting capacity
    • Undercover storage plus winter storage afloat and ashore for up to 14m
    • On site boat brokerage
    • Seasonal café (www.facebook.com/scuttlebuttcafe)

In the last three years, Birdham Pool has undergone a monumental transformation. Phase one saw the renovation of the old marina office building into four state-of-the-art residential dwellings. This was quickly followed by the removal of the old slipway, creating new customer parking, and the renovation of the old boatyard buildings into new, modern units, housing several marine trade tenants as well as the new Marina Office.

The front of the building has been fully decked creating a space for customers to relax and also enables the team at Birdham better visibility across the marina.

In 2018 the facilities and laundry building had a complete refurbishment, whilst 29 new alongside berths at the north west side of the marina were completed. The new, fully serviced berths have capacity for craft up to 10m length and 1.6m draft and, as finger berths, offer greater accessibility compared to Birdham’s traditional moorings.

ACCESS

Birdham Pool can be found on the southern edge of Chichester lake, inside Chichester Harbour and is a non-tidal basin except at high water springs, when the lock is operated on free flow at the top of the tide.

The duty Lock Keeper can be contacted on 07831 466815 during the normal operational times and VHF Channel 80 for locking instructions.

Tidal gauges are located on the seaward side of the channel to Birdham Pool Marina and on the Channel Piles. These indicate the height of the water on the lock sill. The channel is approximately 9m in width and has adjacent mud banks on both sides.

Follow the line of posts leaving them 4m to starboard. A chartlet has been designed to provide guidance on the approach. This is for customer guidance and should not solely be used for navigation.

By road, from the A27, turn onto Stockbridge Road towards ‘Witterings’ and ‘Selsey’. Stay on the A286 over the mini roundabout, and then after 3.3 miles turn right onto Church Lane. Fork right into Court Barn Lane. Birdham Pool Marina is along a single-track lane.

Marina Lock Times 2019/2020

1 January – 30 March            07:00 – 18:00 (7 Days per week)
31 March – 26 October         06:00 – 22:00 (7 Days per week)
27 October – 31 December   07:00 – 18:00 (7 Days per week)
Closed 25 – 26 December

Lock Capacity

Beam: Max 4.5m
Length: Max overall 14.5m
Draft: Max 1.9m
Depth: Depth over the sill at three hours before and four hours after 1.2m


CRUISING

The sheltered waters of Chichester Harbour are ideal for racing and day sailing. Observe the 8 knots speed limit which is in force for the whole of the harbour. Please also be careful of the Chichester bar at low water, see Chichester Harbour Notice to mariners.

Over 10,000 craft use the harbour and there are some 5,500 moorings and 14 sailing clubs with over 11,000 members. Other popular activities include angling, birdwatching, walking, wildfowling, painting and photography.

The landscape of Chichester Harbour was formally recognised as being of national importance in 1964 when it was designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB)

For day cruisers there are so many places to explore in Chichester Harbour. Emsworth Yacht Harbour is a popular breakfast spot, followed by seal watching on the Western side of Thorney Island. There is also a great anchorage of sandy beaches off East Head.

For weekends or longer trips, the Isle of Wight is only a short hop across the Solent, with its varied coastline, pretty villages and of course the sailing mecca that is Cowes. Portsmouth Harbour, home to sister marina Royal Clarence, has a lot to offer, with the bustling Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth and plenty of maritime history on both sides of the harbour.

Brighton and Eastbourne are to the East, or for those feeling really adventurous, there is great access to the Channel. As a TransEurope Marinas (www.transeuropemarinas.com) member, Birdham Pool can offer annual berth holders discounted berthing in other member marinas throughout Europe and beyond.

BIRDHAM CLASSIC BOAT FESTIVAL

Birdham Pool’s Classic Boat Festival was first hosted in 2014 and celebrated its sixth year in 2019. This year’s event was held on 7 -8 September, with over 25 visiting classic craft in attendance, for a weekend of arts, crafts, live music, classic vehicles and advice on all aspects of classic boat maintenance and repair from on-site marine specialists. Classic Boats are granted a weekend’s free berthing if they dress fully for the event.

“Just wanted to say thank you to you and the team for such a wonderful time last weekend. Birdham has a great team and the relaxed atmosphere there certainly came across in spades!” Dee Orme, Classic Yacht Daisy, visitor to the Classic Boat Festival

THINGS TO DO

Within a 20-minute walk of the marina is Birdham village, hosting a Nisa Local Store (1 mile), Russel Garden Centre (1.6 miles) (www.russellsgardencentre.com) with café/restaurant and lifestyle store, brimming with nautical interior furnishings, gifts and cards and The Lamb Inn (2.2 miles) (www.thelambwittering.co.uk), serving excellent food and local ales.

A short walk from the marina is Chichester Yacht Club (www.cyc.co.uk), a members’ club renowned for its friendly, informal atmosphere. The clubhouse has fabulous views over Chichester Harbour, a restaurant and bar together with excellent facilities for all the family.

Birdham is also just a few miles from the lovely sandy sweep of Bracklesham Bay and West Wittering Beach, both accessible by The Salterns Way, a 19km footpath and cycle path which runs from the centre of Chichester to the beach at West Wittering. (www.visitchichester.org/activity/salterns-way)

MORE INFORMATION

Marina Manager: John Hiltunen
Marina Office: 01243 512310
The marina office is open Mon – Sat: 9am – 5pm, Sun: 10am – 4pm
Open every day except Christmas Day and Boxing Day and Bank Holidays.
Email: info@birdhampool.co.uk
VHF Channel 80

www.castlemarinas.co.uk/marinas/birdham-pool

 

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