Saundersfoot
Dave Richards, his 10 staff and the team of harbour commissioners at Saundersfoot have really got their act together. Situated at the gateway to the Pembrokeshire National Park and with 3-4,000 visitors a day at peak season (60% of harbour income comes from car parking) tourism has allowed the harbour to be developed in a bold and imaginative way.
For the 200 boaters who use the harbour there is a new "all tide" mooring gantry, seasonal pontoons, dry stack storage and state of the art launching equipment. It is not surprising Dave has a waiting list of 180 people For the land tourists there is a complete "stage area" (see photos) which has been imaginatively designed and built "over" the sluicing reservoir to accommodate families who enjoy crabbing (there are 10 different varieties of crab in Saundersfoot) all the way through being able to host the National Philharmonic Orchestra for outside concerts. .
Unlike so many harbours where the vital operation of sluicing the channels to keep the harbour free of sand has ceased, Saundersfoot perform this twice a day on each low tide, using water captured and stored at high tide to "wash out" any sand or silt deposited in the harbour.
EU grants have also been used to pay for harbour development, the last of which is a large hotel and restaurant complex being built right by the waterside. For a port which used to export coal, this harbour has been transformed for the 21st century with ex Ship's Master Dave firmly at the helm!
For the 200 boaters who use the harbour there is a new "all tide" mooring gantry, seasonal pontoons, dry stack storage and state of the art launching equipment. It is not surprising Dave has a waiting list of 180 people For the land tourists there is a complete "stage area" (see photos) which has been imaginatively designed and built "over" the sluicing reservoir to accommodate families who enjoy crabbing (there are 10 different varieties of crab in Saundersfoot) all the way through being able to host the National Philharmonic Orchestra for outside concerts. .
Unlike so many harbours where the vital operation of sluicing the channels to keep the harbour free of sand has ceased, Saundersfoot perform this twice a day on each low tide, using water captured and stored at high tide to "wash out" any sand or silt deposited in the harbour.
EU grants have also been used to pay for harbour development, the last of which is a large hotel and restaurant complex being built right by the waterside. For a port which used to export coal, this harbour has been transformed for the 21st century with ex Ship's Master Dave firmly at the helm!