St Ives (North Cornwall)
At a Glance
Download Guide
Contacts:
Harbour Master Tel 01736 795018 VHF 16/12 tel no 07933
173958
St Ives harbour is tucked into the western corner of St Ives Bay
15 miles north east of Lands End. That puts it about thirty miles
from Penzance and forty miles from the Scilly isles. It is one of
a number of harbours on this coast which serve the inshore fishing
fleet and is visited by yachties in the summer.
The harbour mouth is very wide and faces South but on-shore weather
from the North can turn in and make it fairly boisterous; as well
as this, although there is not much sea room for swells to develop
in Easterly weather, winds from that sector can make it and the
anchorage outside untenable.
There has been a fishing port here since the dim and distant past;
the first pier was built here in the late 1700s and then when the
railway came through in the 1870s it blossomed into the town we see
today. The railway was initially for the fish landed here but the
Victorians soon found it and it became a holiday destination and
popular spot for artists as the light is so clear.
The town itself is idyllic in early to mid May and again in
September but in August it is a nightmare. Holiday makers flock
here and pack the streets around the harbour; some even attempt to
(and regret) drive their cars through but the pavements spill over
with pedestrians and movement can be almost impossible.
The harbour front is a long line of fish & chip shops and pubs
and if you are lucky enough to find an empty seat to eat your take
away meal you'll find that the seagulls insist on sharing it with
you (they can and will grab the whole lot in a fly-by hijacking!)
So, be warned, if you come here in mid summer you will not have the
place to yourself; on the other hand, at either end of the season,
it is lovely, as are all the other Cornish harbours. The one
advantage of being a holiday hotspot is that it is set up to
maximise the visitor trade and you are a visitor!
St Ives (North Cornwall)
Approach
if you intend coming inside the harbour you will need
..... to arrive a couple of hours either side of HW or you will
have to anchor or moor off to await the water. That's ok from the
South because you can come up with the flood; from the North you
will have to peg the tide which, once you are south of Trevose
head, only reaches a maximum of about 1.5 kts at Springs so it's
not too bad.
From the South coming round Lands End you can choose to go outside
the Longships Light or, in settled weather and by day, come up
through the Longships Channel. Ideally you would leave your
departure point on the South Coast in time to take the English
Channel ebb down to Lands End, pass that at slack and take the
flood up to St Ives; obviously give the Runnel Stone a good offing
and, once through the Longships Channel (AC 2345-5 makes it seem at
lot less daunting than a smaller scale chart and is available in
the Members area of this website), give all the headlands between
there and St Ives Head at least a couple of cables.
This is an incredible bit of coastline and in onshore weather
downright dangerous so treat it with respect. On the other hand,
with settled conditions (on shore or off shore), sailing off here
just on the limit of where the wind lifts to clear the cliffs
(about half a mile off) is an experience not to be missed. If
coming from the North you just have to sail down the coast and give
the Stones off Godrevy Island a miss. Although the Sound between
Godrevy Island and the Stones looks as though it might be shorter,
unless you are racing, it saves only 3 cables if coming from
Newquay and is not worth the sweat.
If you are coming out of the Bristol Channel be sure to pass
through between Lundy & the mainland on the ebb – the
flood can stop you dead.
Run into our Initial Fix from the North and you'll be clear of all
dangers but if approaching at night be aware that boats on moorings
and at anchor in the bay do not always carry anchor lights so be
ready for some drastic course alterations at the last minute!
£ GMT
Waypoint
Charts
Rules & Regs
Hazards
Tides
Berthing
As has been said you can only get into the harbour a
.... couple of hours either side of high water and if stopping you will need to be able to take the ground. There are four drying moorings laid opposite the west quay which will cost you £18 per night up to 12 metres.
It is no longer permitted for visiting boats to tie up alongside in the harbour
Other than that you can anchor in the bay but it's a long row into the harbour if you haven't an outboard for your dinghy.
Ed Note. They are negotiating for an ammendment to the HRO to permit the harbour to lay moorings in the bay but that will not happen until late 2023 or (more likely) the 2024 season.
The harbour website can be found at St Ives - Cornwall Harbours
Facilities
This is not a marina! You'll find water at one of three taps on
Smeaton Pier, the HM has the keys for the showers so you need to
catch him in his office to get those.
There's a chandlery which services the fishing fleet and you can
get both Gas & Gaz in the hardware shop.
Main problem is that there is no garage in St Ives so no petrol or
diesel; the HM does have red diesel but he is no longer allowed to
serve it to yachts or leisure craft but he is aware of the problem
and in cases of dire need has a van which he will transport
cans.
Chandlers
Jones Boat Chandlery
The Boathaven, Low Road, St.Ives, St.Ives, Cambridgeshire. PE27 5ET
Newline Chandlery
The Fish Market, Newlyn, Penzance, Cornwall. TR18 5JB
What to Do
St Ives is geared up for the holiday maker so you will be well
catered for here; loads of pubs, restaurants and fast food outlets.
There is access to the whole of the Cornish travel network from the
railway station with trains every hour to Plymouth via Penzance; if
you intend going round the corner to Mousehole or Penzance as the
next leg of your odyssey you can always go and have a look before
you depart! A good website to discover everything available
is
http://www.onestives.co.uk/index.html