Marinas in Normandy, France: Portbail Sur Mer
Portbail in Normandy is a good stopover for visitors making a trip across the channel. It also has a rich history as Brian Ferguson reveals.
Harbours and Ports in Normandy
There are quite a number of ports and harbours on the coast of the Cotentin Peninsula which are not well frequented by British visitors. Some by nature of their shallow draught and difficult access, like the many small ports between Barfleur and Cherbourg, or in the case of larger harbours such as Le Becquet or Regneville sur Mer, their distance from any towns with enticing shops and restaurants, renders them of little interest to visiting yachtsmen.
Strange then, that on the west coast of the Cote des Iles, facing the Channel Island of Jersey there is a port town with an attractive commercial centre with numerous bars and restaurants, and a weekly market to rival any in the area. Stranger still that this well sheltered harbour is equipped with a modern 300 place marina with pontoon and swinging berths for visitors and with chandlery and boatyard services nearby. Strangest of all is that this marina receives, except for discerning local Channel Islanders, hardly any British visitors.
Portbail, Normandy
Portbail probably suffers from the geography that places it a mere four miles south of its better known sister Carteret. The majority of visitors following a pre-planned cruising schedule have usually decided on their daily destinations en route for Brittany perhaps, and the next obvious stop off is generally Granville or St Malo. Why would you drop down the coast to another harbour which is within walking distance? Well there are quite a number of good reasons actually.
Portbail has been an active port for a long time, the original name from it’s Roman origins as a trading centre was Grannona. Two thousand years ago Portbail’s extensive shallow inner harbour was producing salt for export as well as for preserving fish to feed its large Roman population. Later the town was an early centre of Christianity, the oldest known baptistery in Western Europe from the early fifth century, is preserved and on public display behind the Mairie. The beautiful eleventh century Eglise de Notre Dame stands on the harbour wall and contains a navigational leading light in its bell tower. The church is floodlit each evening and is a regular venue for concerts and art exhibitions.
As a modern holiday resort Portbail developed in the late 19th century with the coming of the railway. It was the second last stop on the route between Paris and Barneville Carteret. The Beau Monde of Parisien society favouring Carteret, with its large hotels and second homes overlooking the sea, while Portbail with its town centre a mile or so inshore was less popular and developed more as a working town with a larger year round population.
The marina has recently benefited from a major redevelopment with many of the swinging moorings in the enclosed inner port being replaced by pontoons with electricity and water. The pontoon places dry out on all but neap tides and are not really suitable for modern fin keels, although long keels, bilge keels, lifting keels, motor cruisers and craft with beaching legs should have no issues. Laying to your own ground tackle is permitted for visitors in the extensive outer harbour, and though this is suitable only for boats able to take the ground, it is free of charge.
The almost one million square metres of clean white sands of the inner harbour, just past the marina entrance, are one of Portbail’s most impressive features. At low water the whole area is left dry by the receding tide which then heats up during exposure to the summer sun. This heat is then transferred to the incoming sea with the next high tide providing a huge expanse of warm water ideal for swimming, canoeing or paddle boarding. The area is not subject to the strong currents which affect the coastal beaches, and with its moderate depth make it a safe area for any water born activities. The sailing school just outside the marina has sailing dinghies, wind surfers and stand up paddle boards for hire, while sand yachts are available on the flat sandy beach between Portbail and Saint George de la Riviere.
Passage Planning
The entrance to Portbail is not as clearly evident from seaward as is Carteret to the north. First time visitors should time their approach to arrive from two hours before high tide to one hour after, although at spring tides an arrival close to high water will avoid the strong flow at the entrance. The entry is located between the large grey coloured hotel and a tall concrete water tower clearly visible for miles. Keeping a distance of about two kilometres from shore, there is a safe-water buoy at 49,18.4 N and 001,44.8 W which marks the beginning of the approach channel. Line up the white lighthouse with a red top with the church bell tower, then follow a bearing of 042 degrees between a series of port and starboard marks until you are level with a line of fixed perches to port, these are mounted on the edge of a stone built training wall. The deepest water lies close to the wall. At the end of the wall the channel then veers to starboard and the marina entrance is just to port beyond the end of stone and timber pier. Be watchful for boats leaving the marina as visibility is restricted at the entrance.
Cruising Grounds
Portbail Faces onto the southern area of the Channel Islands with the charming group of small islands known as the Ecrehous being only eight miles distant, with Gorey on the Island of Jersey a further six.
During the 1960s and 70s a Jersey fisherman lived as a hermit on the Ecrehous for fourteen years in a fisherman’s hut with no heating and only rain water to drink. Apart from the occasional tins of food dropped off by visiting yachts and passing fishermen he lived on whatever he could scavenge from the sea. Incredibly upon returning to Jersey, the hermit, Alphonse Le Gastelois, went on to live to 98 years old. The port de Herel at Granville and the spectacularly lovely Isles Chausey are approximately equidistant thirty miles to the south. Visitors to the area usually make landfall from the UK at either Cherbourg or the Channel Islands. The newly formed Ports de la Manche, comprising all seventeen of the marinas from Dieppe to Granville offer discounts of up to 50% for visitors who hold UK membership of associated schemes.
Portbail Run Ashore
The charming old town of Portbail has a great deal to commend it, especially in the height of summer when it is not as busy as most of the other ports in the area. There is a small chandlery in the town centre with a limited stock of boat parts and accessories and fishing tackle. Around 800 metres out of town there is a boatyard with engineering and boat lifting facilities as well as an impressive variety of spares, electronics, rigging and service items. On the other side of the road you will find a very comprehensive Mr Bricolage store, a kind of French B & Q or Homebase.
For a small town you will find a surprising number of bars and restaurants. For a delicious meal of locally sourced ingredients in a perfect setting Les Treize Arches, or thirteen arches is at the end of the thirteen spans of the bridge connecting the town to the port, the restaurant is very popular locally and booking is advised. On the opposite corner the Rendevous des Pecheurs has an extensive outdoor terrace. Immediately beside the marina is the Repere Bar Restaurant with excellent sea views. The town centre is also well supplied with patisseries, boulangeries, butchers and a well stocked mini supermarket. Portbail’s weekly market is on a Tuesday from 8 in the morning until 1 in the afternoon and in the summer occupies the entire town centre. On a Thursday you could hop on the vintage 1950s tourist train to Carteret to explore their market. The train runs regularly in the summer season with a restored variety of rolling stock.
Local berth holder
Freddy D’Aigrement has had a berth at Portbail for more than 25 years and whilst the fact that he only lives two miles away probably explains his choice of marina, he has never been tempted to move. Freddy is a producer of local oysters and has to work in accordance with the tides and the weather, This means that his leisure time can be erratic and departures at three or four in the morning are not unusual. This largely means that most of his sailing is done single-handed, not many friends look kindly on predawn trips of only one or two hours. He says that one of the best features of the port is its friendly family atmosphere, with everyone looking out for their neighbours.
Like hundreds of Frenchmen he began sailing in a plywood Musketeer, these along with the similar plywood Muscadet were responsible for introducing a whole generation to inexpensive cruiser racing. In anticipation of retirement he recently traded up from his 1970 British Halmatic 880 to a Jeanneau Attalia 32 of newer vintage.
Portbail Fact file
Bureau du Port, La Caillourie 50580 Portbail. Tel: 0033 233 048348.
Email, port-bail@ports-manche.fr Tariffs per 24 hr for 32ft from 19euros. Places can be pre booked by phone or email.
Char a Voile Portbail (Sand Yachts) Rue Roze, Portbail Plage
Sailing School Cote des Isles, 5 La Caillourie Portbail.
Chandleries
Portbail Nautique, 0033 233 041231 – Boat storage, repairs, engineering, electronics, spare parts.
Portbail Plaisance – 0033 233 520897 – Small chandlery, clothing, large range of fishing and leisure equipment
Portbail Restaurants
Aux Treize Arches (Thirteen Arches) 0033 233 048790, Au Rendezvous des Pecheurs 0033 233 048137, Le Cotentin 0033 233 048418.
Fire and Ambulance
18 – Police 17, Coastguard Emergency – 0033 142841606.
Read More:
- Normandy Marinas: A Guided Tour of Carteret
- Armel le Cleac’h Interview: Reflections on the Ultimate Challenge
- Tabarly Triumph: Ocean Globe Race Winner by Barry Pickthall
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