For entrance to the port, visiting yachtsmen are expected to obtain navigation information available from official publications such as:
- Admiralty Pilot and Charts
- Shell Pilot and / or one of the many yachtsmen's pilots available
- together with a similarly reputable Nautical Almanac.
Relevant Admiralty Charts
Numbers: 28, 1634, 1613 Stanford 13 Imray C6 Y48 OS 202
| The harbour lies between Bolt Head to the west and Prawle Point to the east. Salcombe's Bar, made famous in Tennyson's "Crossing of the Bar", stretches south westerly across the entrance from Limebury Point on the east side. This sand bar has a least depth of 0.7 metres LAT and should not be negotiated on an ebb tide with strong onshore winds or swell. The entrance leading line (000°T) is marked by a red and white striped pole with red topmark on the Poundstone Rock, with a second beacon behind it on Sandhill Point, which is white with a horizontally striped red and white diamond topmark. The rear beacon displays a Directional Flashing light WRG 2sec., of which the white sector 357° - 002°T shows the leading line. Once Blackstone Rock is abeam to starboard, the main fairway course of 042°T can be set, again marked by leading lights near to Scoble Point. The navigable channel through the turn from 000 T to 045 T is marked by six lateral buoys. Three port hand buoys at Bass Rock, Poundstone and Castle with QR lights and three starboard hand buoys at Wolf Rock, Blackstone Souoth and Blackstone North with QG lights. |