LYME REGIS
Dag Pike finds a quiet spot to drop the hook in this popular south coast resort
Dag Pike finds a quiet spot to drop the hook at this Dorset resort
Lyme Regis is an attractive place to stop over for the night when cruising up or down the English Channel. It offers a good selection of pubs, restaurants and cafés, and is famous for its fossils, being located at the heart of Dorset’s Jurassic Coast.
The town’s popularity amongst cruisers has increased in recent years following the expansion of visitor pontoons just outside the main harbour.
The harbour here dries out at low water, and for those who can’t take the ground there is the option to anchor outside. The chart shows an anchorage close by the harbour entrance with its lighthouse, but here you are right in the line of fire of all the boats heading in and out of Lyme Regis: it is hard to picture getting a quiet night’s rest in this spot.
The alternative anchorage is about a quarter of a mile to the east of the harbour, where there is shelter from the prevailing westerlies. But even here, the best spots are now taken up by visitor moorings. There is, however, room to anchor in about 2 metres at low water.
It is advisable to stay to seaward of the buoys as the area closer to the shore is shallow, especially at low water spring tides. If the wind is veering then you should get good shelter from anything from the west through to the northeast, but legacy swells can be a problem.
Once you have found your spot, you then have options if you want to go ashore. The logical thing would be to take the tender into the inner harbour where you can usually find a spot on the slipway. At busy times, you might need to carry your dinghy up the slipway to find somewhere to park it.
The north end of the harbour brings you within easy reach of the Harbour Inn or the Cobb Arms, plus a great ice cream stall and the Crab House Café.
Another option for landing is on a concrete groyne that stretches out from the shore towards the east end of the town, although be aware the area is busy during the holiday season and you may feel your dinghy would be more secure within the confines of the harbour. The groyne does bring you ashore virtually in the town centre, with the grade two-listed Pilot Boat Inn and the Rock Point Inn close by as well as a selection of restaurants and cafés. You have to remember that Lyme Regis is a bustling holiday resort which offers the benefits of all the shoreside facilities you might need, but can be packed in peak season. Even the waters can get crowded with water skiers and dinghy sailing but that should quieten down at night. Unless you are desperate for a run ashore, my choice would be to watch the fun from the boat rather than head into the town, and if the conditions allow, find your anchorage a bit further east away from the harbour.