Whitby Slip

shirehorse · 16 July 2008, 21:24

Looking at going to Whitby this saturday but not sure who to see about launching, did a recky awhile back and the harbour masters office said closed sat and sunday. Is there anyone who knows the crack and or knows any good bays or points of interest to head for would much appreciate any advice cheers IAN.

Brian Dinsley · 17 July 2008, 04:10

Ian

I've used Whitby slip a couple of times in the last month. I've found it easy to launch with just 2 people. The ramp is wide, sufficiently wide to launch/ recover two boats at the same time.

There's ample parking for car and trailer, although when the weather's good it does get busy so best to get there early to get a parking spot. I paid just less than £18 to launch my RIB and park my car and trailer last Sunday.

The marina office opens at 8:00 AM. The chap who runs the office sometimes leaves the office unattended to carry out duties around the marina, though he's usually only away for a short while. I've found them to be very helpful. If weather conditions are marginal, he'll advise you to take a walk along the pier to see conditions at the harbour mouth, before you commit to paying your launching and parking fee.

Cheers,,,, Brian

shirehorse · 17 July 2008, 06:10

Thanks Brian could you point me in the direction or what to look for with the marina office cheers Ian.

geoff · 17 July 2008, 12:00

This link will take you to the relevant page on Boatlaunch.

http://www.boatlaunch.co.uk/default....dfilterid=2949

Jeff · 17 July 2008, 12:08

Hi Ian
The office is a blue portacabin near the toilet block.
Launch and recover ok +/- 1 hr of low water ( except on low water springs when between 1.5 hrs and 2)
If you go up the coast past Sandsend you will reach Runswick bay which is quite nice.... and beyond takes you to Staithes. Going down the coast is Robin Hoods bay and its scenic coastline all waydown to Scarborough.
Have fun
Jeff

Brian Dinsley · 23 July 2008, 05:01

Hi Ian

Did you get to launch at Whitby? The weather wasn't great last week-end so my boat stayed on the drive. I'm planning on launching at Hartlepool this Thursday and keeping her in the marina until Sunday night. I'm hoping summer's about to start!

Cheers,,,, Brian

shirehorse · 23 July 2008, 06:23

Thanks brian yes we did launch there was a couple of dive ribs but we all made it short trips, not to pleasant out there but got to do alot of docking practice and boat work that i had forgotten from my training days. I bet its real nice running down to Scarborough on a good, I found out that the marina would launch and recover me so will just go with the motorhome next time. Whats hartlepool got to offer?.
IAN

BruceB · 23 July 2008, 21:19

£18 pounds to launch a boat? Is that not a bit steep?

shirehorse · 24 July 2008, 06:46

It certainly is but do you not find that where ever there is a need there is a greedy person waiting to cash in.

BruceB · 24 July 2008, 07:25

The only slips in 12 years of boat use I have ever paid for is Nth Berwick which is a donation to the RNLI.
Every other slip I use is free all up and down the west coast.
I assume the situation is slightly different in the south?

havener · 24 July 2008, 07:59

Very different this far south - £30 at Hamble Point Marina! Lovely slip though...

To be fair, there are a couple of free ones locally but they're pretty crap...

Dry_Doc · 24 July 2008, 09:26

Quote:

Originally Posted by shirehorse

It certainly is but do you not find that where ever there is a need there is a greedy person waiting to cash in.

We usually launch at the Humber rescue slip at Hessle foreshore (under the Humber Bridge). You can 'hire' keys for the slip by making an annual donation to Humber rescue (currently £40 per year).

The only disadvantage is that you're about 1-1.5 hours from open sea!

Brian Dinsley · 24 July 2008, 20:19

Quote:

Originally Posted by shirehorse

Thanks brian yes we did launch there was a couple of dive ribs but we all made it short trips, not to pleasant out there but got to do alot of docking practice and boat work that i had forgotten from my training days. I bet its real nice running down to Scarborough on a good, I found out that the marina would launch and recover me so will just go with the motorhome next time. Whats hartlepool got to offer?.
IAN

Ian

I've launched once at Hartlepool. There are two slips. There's one which is inside the marina, and then there's a second one which is outside of the marina lock gates. The latter one is apparently difficult much below high water, as there are lots of rocks around the slip.

The slip which puts you inside the marina is somewhat difficult. While the slip is good and wide, it's got a steel rail barring access. It has a gate in the middle of the rail (get the key for a deposit from the marina office £10), but the gate is just a couple of feet wider than the boat. Also, you can't approach it directly (perpendicular to the water line), since it has a wall preventing you from doing so. Consequently, you have to approach the slip parallel to the water line, and then make awkward turns to manoeuvere the boat through the gap. It may be easier to separate the trailer from the car and then man-handle the boat through the gap.

If this SE wind dies down and the sea state improves, I may launch there tomorrow afternoon. Fishing is pretty good. There are a lot of wrecks in the area for fishing and diving. Coast-line's not as pretty as that around Whitby, but the Marina's quite nice. A bit of sunshine makes the difference!!

Cheers,,,,, Brian

Brian Dinsley · 24 July 2008, 20:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by BruceB

£18 pounds to launch a boat? Is that not a bit steep?

Bruce

£18 is steep, The web-site www.boatlaunch.co.uk quotes £8 to launch, but they fail to mention the car and trailer parking fee. Not too bad if you're sharing costs with mates.

Cheers,,, Brian

shirehorse · 25 July 2008, 06:24

The sunshine makes all the difference on the east coast Brian, hope you have a good day weather looks promising.The cost at Whitby does allow me to park my motorhome in safe surroundings all day IAN.