Porlock Weir
May 25, 2019
Porlock Weir, nestled between Exmoor and the sea, must be one of the tiniest harbours I have been to.... and Keith "Pud" Harding is one of the most friendly Harbour Masters** I've met. .
** NB ALL Harbour Masters are friendly!! .
.
The second photo shows the extraordinary shape and position of the harbour. A very VERY narrow channel over stones allows access from the sea to the lock and harbour entrance. The tiny "pins" on the chart are the thin withie sticks you can see in the 5th photo. And..... to add to the fun...the shingle keeps moving around!.
.
One evening Pud was anchored off the beach in the dark waiting for the tide to rise, when he and some friends saw a boat sail past them, straight towards the unlit harbour and UP the beach....all under sail. The crew were so frightened they just jumped off the boat and ran away! History does not relate what happened to the skipper....
.
Otherwise Porlock Weir, part of a private estate (owned by Mark Blathwayt, an Architect) remains a quiet retreat. Amazingly a total of 50 boats live in or just outside the harbour. It was originally used to import coal from South Wales across the water in return for pit props made from trees cut down from Exmoor's extensive forest. How sailing boats with no engine negotiated the tiny entrance, wicked currents and massive tidal range I will never know!
Thank you Pud, and also for your personal donation to Seafarers UK.
** NB ALL Harbour Masters are friendly!! .
.
The second photo shows the extraordinary shape and position of the harbour. A very VERY narrow channel over stones allows access from the sea to the lock and harbour entrance. The tiny "pins" on the chart are the thin withie sticks you can see in the 5th photo. And..... to add to the fun...the shingle keeps moving around!.
.
One evening Pud was anchored off the beach in the dark waiting for the tide to rise, when he and some friends saw a boat sail past them, straight towards the unlit harbour and UP the beach....all under sail. The crew were so frightened they just jumped off the boat and ran away! History does not relate what happened to the skipper....
.
Otherwise Porlock Weir, part of a private estate (owned by Mark Blathwayt, an Architect) remains a quiet retreat. Amazingly a total of 50 boats live in or just outside the harbour. It was originally used to import coal from South Wales across the water in return for pit props made from trees cut down from Exmoor's extensive forest. How sailing boats with no engine negotiated the tiny entrance, wicked currents and massive tidal range I will never know!
Thank you Pud, and also for your personal donation to Seafarers UK.