Destination guide
will be rewarded by the sight of
a picturesque village where you
can enjoy afternoon tea at the
appropriately-named Tearoom
& Restaurant on the edge of
the green. Alternatively, the
two pubs can provide something
a bit stronger.
The southern bank beyond the
last of Walberswick’s fisherman’s
huts consists of private moorings
and open marshland, whereas
the opposite bank, known as
Blackshore, is home to the port’s
remaining commercial ventures.
The wooden buildings include two
boatyards, the base for the 9m
charter RIB Coastal Voyager, a
chip shop, a seafood restaurant,
a café and traditional fishermen’s
huts, some of which still sell
locally-caught fish. The concrete
public slipway beside the harbour
master’s office is the final
landmark before you arrive at
the visitor moorings.
The harbour master’s office
used to be Southwold’s lifeboat
station until the RNLI built a new
one at the other end of the harbour
in 1994. During the intervening
years, it has undergone a series of
changes including the installation
of toilets and showers for visiting
yachtsmen, while the removal
of its slipway has enabled two
pontoons to be installed in front of
the wooden building for visitors.
Those with powerful engines
should have no difficulty coming
in to moor at the visitor berths.
However, it is important to be
aware that the margin for error in
a strong flood tide is reduced by
the combination of moored boats
along both sides of the river as
well as the presence of the nearby
Bailey bridge. Those who fail
to take these constraints into
account while manoeuvring can
quickly become trapped by the
Bailey bridge, which effectively
marks the limit of navigation for
many boats. The designated
turning area for vessels over 12m
(40ft) stretches from the harbour
master’s office to the end of the
visitor moorings. Those with less
powerful engines such as the
larger classic boats that come into
Southwold resort to the traditional
‘ferry glide in’ method. The
procedure begins by placing the
vessel’s bow gently into the soft
mud of the southern bank
opposite the harbour master’s
office and allowing the tide to turn
the boat. As the hull comes round,
the water pressure brings it off the
mud. At this point you either drop
the anchor and ease out the line
to place the craft on the moorings,
or lower the anchor enough so
that it drags along the bottom as
you manoeuvre the boat on to the
mooring, using the rudder to
‘glide’ on the tidal stream.
Southwold’s visitor moorings
are a valuable commodity, so
the harbour master makes the
best of his scarce resources by
performing a juggling act to get
the most out of the available quay
heading and pontoons. Therefore,Out and about –
places of interest
- Southwold Pier, 01502 722105
- Beach huts
- Lighthouse (tours available, 01502 724729)
- Southwold Bailey bridge
- Visitor moorings
- Harbour Inn, 01502 72238
- Harbour master, 01502 724712, VHF Ch12
- Harbour Tea Rooms, 01502 722593
- Harbour Marine Services Ltd, 01502 724721
- Fishermen’s huts
- Justin E Ladd Boatbuilding, 01502 724643
- Coastal Voyager, 07887 525082
- Southwold Ferry
- RNLI lifeboat station
- The Alfred Corry Museum, 01502 723200
- Blythburgh Road Bridge, A12
- Blythburgh Church
- White Hart Inn, 01502 478217
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it is important to bring long ropes
that can be used as shore lines,
because at peak periods boats
are moored up to four deep from
the quay heading, and you must
be prepared to change berths if
asked to do so by the harbour
master to create enough room
or larger vessels. Plans have
been drawn up to install additional
pontoon moorings for visitors
along the southern bank,
although the potential timings
have yet to be firmed up at the
time of going to press.
Blythburgh
Once alongside the visitor
moorings, those with a sense of
adventure and a small tender may
wish to explore the 3¼-mile-long
stretch of the River Blyth above
the Bailey bridge to the village of
Blythburgh. This waterway was
once a busy commercial highway
known as the Blyth Navigation
Trailable boats can use, for free, the slipway by the harbour master’s office
Southwold’s brightly-painted wooden beach huts change hands for up to £150,000