The River Exe Estuary - A haven of tranquility for people and wildlife in an area of outstanding natural beauty
Powderham has owned a substantial portion of the River Exe Estuary since the Castle was first built back in the Middle Ages. A place of trade, mobility, defence and commerce for centuries, the River Exe Estuary continues to form an integral and much loved and visited part of the Estate.
It’s an ideal place to explore, if you live locally or are visiting the glorious West Country on holiday, by boat, bike, or walking, and with its clean and open, but sheltered waters, it makes a fine place to keep your boat. There are Sailing, Kiting and Waterskiing clubs, a unique floating Café, riverside walks to excellent local pubs, and the Exe Cycle Trails. If you need to cool down you can wild swim in clean bathing water from sandy beaches, or take a ferry to local waterside towns and villages. It is a World Class site for birds and other wildlife making it a special place all year round.
Moorings at Powderham
Our spacious areas off Starcross have space for some 300 swinging moorings and offer an excellent solution for boat owners looking for somewhere peaceful, good value, and quiet with good local links and access to the sea. We have designed our Annual Mooring License to ensure you can make the most of your time out on the water, with convenient access from two local sailing Clubs.
Suitable for a variety of boat types, with drafts up to approx. 2m we have a recommended Moorings Contractor who will lay and maintain your Mooring giving you great access to the local waters of the Exe, navigable on the tide from Topsham to the Exe Fairway, off Exmouth, and thence to the open water of Lyme Bay. Make your boating base here leaving you free to explore, enjoy and escape…..
Access to the river
The Exe is a tidal river estuary with a Fairway Channel entering at Exmouth and positioned deep in the Bight of Lyme Bay. There are sand banks in the lower reaches, where you will often see seals basking in the sunshine and mud banks as you navigate inland towards the Devon capital of Exeter. There are railways on both banks and whilst they have done a great job at protecting the Estuary from development it means there are only a few places where accessing the river becomes possible. These are mainly around the village of Starcross, which is home to the Starcross Fishing and Cruising Club. Members of the SFFC have access to a spacious pontoon, Clubhouse, parking and dinghy storage and a great social and community atmosphere.
There are two other public slipways in the Village and cars and trailers can be left in the Castle grounds by arrangement. Starcross is about 10 minutes south of Exeter and the end of the M5 motorway. Starcross also has a Rail Station providing national links all over the country. SFCC welcomes visitors and hasshort term visitor moorings available. The Exe Harbour Authority is run by Exeter City Council and again the HM welcomes visitors to the Estuary, with visitor moorings close to the Marina entrance at Exmouth.
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