Why the West Country Rewards the Cruising Sailor

There are few stretches of coastline in Britain that pack so much variety into a single week's sailing as the West Country. Between Weymouth and the Bristol Channel you can thread your way through granite havens, wooded ria valleys and harbour towns that grew fat on pilchards, tin and trade with France and Iberia. The distances are kind — most hops are between fifteen and thirty-five nautical miles — which means you can sail for three or four hours, pick up a berth, and still have the afternoon free for a walk and a decent meal ashore.

What makes the region genuinely rewarding, though, is the shelter. Deep-water harbours sit within easy reach of one another, and the rivers that cut inland give you options when the wind pipes up from the south-west. Add tides of four to five metres on springs, and you have a cruising ground that rewards a little planning and repays it handsomely.

Planning Passages and Picking Your Weather

The prevailing south-westerlies push you east along the south coast and make westward passages a beat, so many crews run the coast in one direction and take the train or a friendly lift back to the boat. If you are short on time, base yourself somewhere central — Falmouth, Plymouth or Dartmouth — and take day passages out and back rather than committing to a one-way delivery.

Tidal planning matters more here than in the Solent. A few things worth building into your routine:

• Work the tides, not against them. The flood runs east along the south coast; a fair tide off Start Point or the Lizard is worth two knots of boat speed.
• Respect the bars. Salcombe, Padstow, Fowey and Dartmouth all have entrances affected by swell and ebb, and all are best approached in daylight on a rising tide.
• Book ahead in high summer. Visitors' pontoons in the popular harbours fill by mid-afternoon in August, and a phone call at breakfast is far better than a hopeful circling at dusk.
• Carry a decent anchor and chain. The Helford River, the Yealm and the upper reaches of the Dart all offer quiet anchoring when the marinas are full.

Fowey and the South Cornwall Coast

Fowey is the classic introduction to Cornish harbour cruising: a steep-sided town of narrow streets, whitewashed cottages and a church tower that stands sentinel over the water. The harbour is deep and well marked, with visitors' moorings and a water taxi that runs until late in the season — a real luxury when you have muddy boots and bags of shopping.

From Fowey you can poke into Polperro on a settled day, or head west to Falmouth, where the anchorage off St Mawes offers one of the finest views in the county. The Helford River, a few miles further on, is quieter still: wooded creeks, good holding, and a feeling of having slipped back a century or two.

Dartmouth, Salcombe and the South Devon Havens

Dartmouth is the grandest of the Devon harbours, and the approach past the castle is one of the most satisfying bits of pilotage in England. Once inside, the river runs for miles past Kingswear, Dittisham and Stoke Gabriel, and the upper reaches give you all the seclusion you could want. The town itself is a proper working harbour with a chandlery, a market and plenty of places to eat within a few minutes of the pontoon.

Salcombe, twenty-odd miles west, is the prettiest of the lot but also the busiest. The bar demands respect in any swell, and the harbour is tight on a summer weekend. If it is full, carry on to the Yealm or make for Plymouth, where Sutton Harbour and the Tamar give you sheltered berths in almost any weather.

Padstow, Ilfracombe and the Bristol Channel

Round Land's End the character changes. Padstow sits behind the Doom Bar, a notorious stretch of shifting sand that demands a fair tide and a steady nerve, but the reward is a charming harbour town with excellent fish and a genuine sense of arrival. Further north, Ilfracombe and Clovelly offer striking cliffs and a rocky, exposed coast where you really do want the forecast on your side.

Bristol Channel sailors contend with some of the biggest tides in the world, and the passage up to Bristol itself is a serious undertaking best left to those with local knowledge. For most cruisers, though, the north coast is a place for a settled spell of weather, a couple of days of dramatic scenery, and a quick retreat south if the wind turns.

What to Do Ashore: Walks, Seafood and Harbour Pubs

The joy of this coast is that you never need to go far for a good day ashore. Every one of these harbours has a footpath leading out along the cliffs or up the valley, and most have a pub within a hundred yards of the water.

• Fowey: walk the Hall Walk for views over the harbour, then find crab sandwiches and a pint by the quay.
• Dartmouth: follow the river path to Dittisham and take the ferry back across, finishing with locally landed scallops.
• Salcombe: a short ferry ride to East Portlemouth gives you a sandy beach and a quiet walk back along the estuary.
• Padstow: the coast path towards Stepper Point is superb, and the town's fish restaurants need booking well ahead.

Take your time, keep an eye on the tide tables, and let the weather decide the itinerary. The West Country has been welcoming sailors for centuries, and it still does it better than almost anywhere else.