BEAULIEU RIVER BEAULIEU RIVER
50º46’.58N, 01º21’.60W (ENT)
The Beaulieu River is centrally located on the Solent, and is one of the most picturesque rivers on the South Coast. Forming part of the Beaulieu Estate, Beaulieu River is one of the few privately owned rivers in the world and is largely unspoilt, both in terms of its landscape and as a haven for wildlife. The banks play host to an exceptional variety of habitats with an equally varied display of flora and fauna.
Image: Beaulieu Enterprises Ltd
When approaching Beaulieu River from the East, keep the lit South Cardinal to starboard off Stone Point and steer to the vicinity of a lit, yellow special buoy close to the bearing to run in on. The bearing to run in on is 324° guided by the transit marks, the front mark is port post No. 2 and the back mark is the Eastern edge of Lepe House. If entering in the dark there is a sector light to guide you into the entrance of the channel. To approach from the west, keep well off the mud banks of Warren Flat and Beaulieu Spit and again steer a course towards the special buoy and transit as above. The Beaulieu Spit dolphin marks the entrance, it is a large port hand tripod. Unless you have a very deep draft on neap tides you will generally be able to enter the river at almost any time, with the minimum depth being just over 2 metres*. It is recommended to avoid the entrance 2 hours either side of LW Springs to ensure that you have enough water to cross the bar which has a depth of 0.9m depth at Chart Datum. If your boat draws 1.5m, (5 feet), you can enter the river 1½ hours after LW Springs. The navigation channel at the mouth of the river is defined with red and green piles. Those that are lit have a flashing sequence of FL.G.4s. Once past the piles you will find there are port and starboard hand buoys to keep you in the channel. These are also lit and have the same light characteristic as the posts. These will guide you up to the marina. Further upstream, branches of willow painted red and green known as ‘withies’ are used. The river benefits from a double tide, with a secondary high water. The flood tide takes 6 hours coming in; then, after a gentle fall, there is a second high tide some 2 hours later followed by a period of slack water for about an hour. Then the ebb sets in, and LW is reached in just 3½ hours. Buckler’s Hard village and its marina are 3.5m upstream from the entrance to Beaulieu River. Set within the heart of the New Forest
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