Axmouth is a small drying harbour on the East Devon coast near Beer Head; it appears difficult but with good weather and a little planning there are no real problems and once safely tied up the pleasant town of Seaton with its shops, promenade, cafes and famous tramway is easy to get to on foot. In unfavourable conditions Beer Roads nearby offers much more shelter than you might expect except from the SE quadrant.  

With light northerly winds forecast and settled warm weather I left my Weymouth Sailing Club mooring at 2000 hr and motored across Weymouth Bay in a flat calm.  I was sailing singlehanded and timing was important: in order to catch a fair tide it was essential to round Portland Bill about 4 hours after H.W. Weymouth. In addition I wanted to enter Axmouth in daylight at high tide - there is only an hour or so of slack water so I chose a night passage. With my new 5HP outboard I made good time and had to wait for the tide off Church Ope Cove on the East side of Portland. Having been up all day I was glad to doze for an hour in the cockpit as night fell. 

I got under way again at 2230 hr which turned out a bit early with a spring tide under me. It is best to keep close inshore rounding the Bill and in the dark I found it tricky to judge distance off  - finding myself in disturbed water and anxious to avoid the Race I motored directly inshore to find calm water, passing the darkened Lobster Pot café, the daymark at Portland Bill and Pulpit Rock half an hour early at 2330 hr but on such a calm night it didn‘t matter. The strong tide rushed me into Lyme Bay and I steered for the lights of  West Bay, Lyme Regis and Beer which I could see faintly in the distance.  About 0100 hr a light Northerly filled in and I was glad to stow the motor and make sail at last. The breeze gradually strengthened and I had a wonderful fetch in bright moonlight, arriving off Haven Cliff at the eastern end of Seaton about 0430 hr, I even needed a reef for the last half hour. Rounding up and dropping the sails I motored slowly past a dredger at anchor and dropped my own anchor 100 yd off the beach near the entrance to Axmouth, settling down for a short sleep while I waited for the tide.

Looking at my Almanac I found high water to be 0900 using Dover as standard port but 0930 using Devonport - I used Dover but in fact Devonport would have been better as it was more accurate on the day. Around 0830 the first fishing boats crept slowly out under full power against the flood, giving me an idea of the best way in.

It was another lovely warm sunny day, the breeze had dropped - ideal conditions. The Harbourmaster turned out to be at Dartmouth Regatta; his helpful wife (who I had woken up with my early phone call) told me to leave Beer Head directly behind for the best water - she was right. At 0900 the tide looked pretty high so I got under way and motored in heading straight down the alignment of the jetty - this was too far to the East but with the keel up I floated over the shoal and found myself carried rapidly up river. Axmouth Y.C. is very go-ahead, the members have recently extended their clubhouse which is now almost palatial and the pool has been excavated to hold more than the current 70-or-so yachts; it is planned to enlarge it further. The beach behind the pool has also been raised to prevent overtopping in stormy weather. Most members sail bilge-keelers with a large contingent of Westerly Centaurs.

Arriving in the pool I turned sharp to port for the first pontoon I could see: there is a low stone bridge just above the harbour which must be avoided at all costs. Arrived at the pontoon my lines were taken by some friendly Axmouth Y.C. members who gave me coffee and were very pleased to have a visitor as they get very few. They also recommended a café on the seafront which was excellent. There is a garage for petrol near the seafront but it is quite a long walk. I was charged £5 for a night’s stay which included showers & use of the clubhouse which I thought was worth every penny. There is petrol at the garage in Seaton after quite a long walk. I left the boat on the pontoon hoping that it would sit upright in soft mud but it was not to be and the picture below tells its own story                               

After a day resting, eating, drinking and exploring Seaton the kindly Club boatman let me tie up to his boat in the deep water just below the bridge and I left without incident the next morning about 0930 against the last of the flood (strongly recommended - don’t leave it too late and get caught in a strong ebb). A lovely day once again with hot sunshine and a light Northerly funnelling down the river valley. Setting sail I made the mistake of sailing straight into the wind shadow of Haven Cliff and had to get the motor out all over again in order to obtain an offing! Another glorious reach took me past Lyme Regis and on to West Bay where I tied up in the new outer harbour about 1130 hr. West Bay turned out more comfortable than I expected, wash from the traffic was not a problem but it was a bit noisy and of course would be horrid in winds from South to East. There is no petrol in West Bay, nearest garage is Bridport 1 mile away by (infrequent) bus or on foot across the fields. There are 2 good pubs in West Bay or, for the affluent, the famous Riverside restaurant. I was charged £7 at West Bay, no showers on the quay but apparently you may use the ones at the swimming pool nearby.  I needed to arrive at Portland Bill about 0730 the next morning to catch a fair tide into Weymouth Bay so I was off early at 0500, coasting in the growing dawn light past West Bexington, St Catherines Chapel on the hill overlooking Abbotsbury and finally the long stretch of the Chesil - which turned out fine except that the ebb tide was running hard and carrying me South towards the Race and I should have closed West Cliff on Portland futher to the North. I nearly missed the bus - it is essential to arrive inshore well before reaching the Bill so that you can round Pulpit Rock a few yards off (20 yards is plenty) especially in spring tides. Having safely rounded the Bill I could relax and had a pleasant beat into Weymouth arriving about 1130 hr. 

I would encourage anyone to visit these two harbours but next time I shall have beaching legs which will permit Lyme Regis as well.