Passage Notes for the river Tamar upstream of the Tamar Bridge

Looking upstream from the Tamar bridge, the casual sailor would be forgiven for thinking that the river was a dour expanse of mudflats and drying banks. Nothing could be further from the truth!

The section from the Tamar Bridge to the confluence of the Rivers Tavy and Tamar is well marked by a sequence of 4 starboard buoys. Stay well clear of the first three buoys but pass close to the final buoy at Neal Point as there is a narrow passage between the buoy and a drying mussel bed to port.

On rounding the the corner of Weir Point (marked by a port hand unlit perch) the Cargreen mooring field is immediately ahead. To starboard lies a yellow mark delineating the upper limit of one of the Port of Plymouth's High Speed Craft areas.

The channel through the Cargreen mooring field lies on the Cornish side of the area with the next mark being a poorly located starboard perch indicating a slight bend as you leave Cargreen heading for Weir Quay and the Holes Hole mooring field. The channel between moorings is well indicated by buoys and moored boats, but err toward the port side of the channel when heading upstream as the starboard marker is located on a covered spit.

As the Cargreen moorings are left astern, the channel curves slowly to port and the Weir Quay moorings become clear. The first moorings you will encounter, a widely spaced group of 5 or 6, are operated by Weir Quay Boatyard and you should choose a line that takes you through the middle of these. There is then a clear passage before the Weir Quay mooring field begins, almost directly below the high tension power lines spanning the river at this point.

Some older charts mark the safe clearance for these cables as 16 metres above Highest Astronomical Tide. However, in practice the bottom of the catenary of these cables is over the drying mudbank. In addition to this, the cables were replaced in 2017 with much lighter aluminium based cables and the latest update of the relevant Admiralty chart shows a clearance of 21 metres - once again over the Cornish mudbank where no vessel capable of carrying a 21 metre mast would dare to navigate!

It is possible to anchor on the Devon side of the river, just below the Weir Quay public slipway. Because this was one of the old salmon netting stations, the ground is clear. Just be sure to anchor far enough off to avoid the steeply shelving mud bank. It is an easy hop to the public slipway and a short walk to the Boatyard Cafe.

Upstream from the public slipway, Weir Quay Sailing Club moorings are on the Cornish side and boatyard moorings on the Devon side. The fairway through both mooring fields is easy to identify. It is possible to go alongside the boatyard pontoon subject to tides and prior arrangement - https://www.weir-quay.co.uk/

Upstream from the boatyard, the 29 Holes Hole Mooring Association moorings begin and continue around the bend below Hanging Cliff Wood, the old Silvermine and the prominent white faced South Hooe Farmhouse. Visitors moorings are sometimes available - https://holesholemoorings.com/visitor-moorings and this stretch of the river offers exceptionally sheltered mooring conditions in which to ride out a prolonged spell of foul weather.

Above the HHMA moorings lies Pentillie Castle (https://www.pentillie.co.uk/), Halton Quay (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xa4kUegxWuk), the Tudor house and historic quay at Cotehele (https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/cornwall/cotehele https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utm-gE7PSow0 and the large village of Calstock with its impressive rail viaduct.

Halton Quay & Pentillie Castle - Matt Cowley's YouTube Channel

3 visitor moorings above Calstock are offered by the Calstock Boatyard but these are probably only suitable for smaller vessels and come with warnings about depth and suitability! https://calstockboatyard.co.uk/moorings/ tel. 01822 834559

Beyond Calstock lies the historic Morwellham Quay, founded around 961 by the Benedictine Monks of Tavistock Abbey and reaching its heyday in the Victorian era when it handled ships of up to 300 tons exporting lead, silver, arsenic, manganese and copper. It has been many decades since this stretch of the river has seen 300 ton twin masted schooners, so these days, the upper reaches of the tidal Tamar are best explored by dinghy or canoe!

Sailing Up the River Tamar to Calstock – Classic Yacht Adventure & Hidden History Meandering Molly's YouTube channel.

From Holes Hole Moorings To Calstock with Sailing Cadoha