Poole Harbour is a large natural harbour in

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , ...

, southern England, with the town of Poole on its shores. The harbour is a drowned valley (

ria A ria (; gl, ría) is a coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley. It is a drowned river valley that remains open to the sea. Definitions Typically rias have a dendritic, treelike outline although they ca ...

) formed at the end of the last

ice age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gre ...

and is the

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...

of several rivers, the largest being the

Frome Frome ( ) is a town and civil parish in eastern Somerset, England. The town is built on uneven high ground at the eastern end of the Mendip Hills, and centres on the River Frome. The town, about south of Bath, is the largest in the Mendip d ...

. The harbour has a long history of human settlement stretching to pre-Roman times. The harbour is extremely shallow (average depth ), with one main dredged channel through the harbour, from the mouth to Holes Bay. Poole Harbour has an area of approximately . It is one of several which lay claim to the title of "second largest natural harbour in the world" (after Port Jackson, Sydney).

History

In 1964 during harbour dredging, the waterlogged remains of a 2000-year-old

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostl ...

logboat were found off

Brownsea Island Brownsea Island is the largest of the islands in Poole Harbour in the county of Dorset, England. The island is owned by the National Trust with the northern half managed by the Dorset Wildlife Trust. Much of the island is open to the public and ...

. Dated at about 295 BC, the Poole Logboat is one of the largest vessels of its type from British waters. Its low

freeboard In sailing and boating, a vessel's freeboard is the distance from the waterline to the upper deck level, measured at the lowest point of sheer where water can enter the boat or ship. In commercial vessels, the latter criterion measured relativ ...

would have limited its use to within Poole Harbour. Poole was used by the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

as an invasion port for the conquest of southern England, who established the settlement at Hamworthy, now the western half of Poole. A Roman Road ran north from Hamworthy to

Badbury Rings Badbury Rings is an Iron Age hill fort and Scheduled Monument in east Dorset, England. It was in the territory of the Durotriges. In the Roman era a temple was located immediately west of the fort, and there was a Romano-British town known as ''Vi ...

, a Roman transport hub. At the time of the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Con ...

, Poole was a small fishing village. The port grew, and in 1433 Poole was made Dorset's Port of the Staple for the export of wool.

Medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

Poole had trading links from the

Baltics The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...

to Italy. In the 17th century, the town began trading with North America, in particular Newfoundland, and the town became very wealthy. In the 18th century, Poole was the principal

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

port trading with North America. At the start of the 19th century, 90% of Poole's population's employment was directly dependent on the harbour, but this dropped to 20% during the century as the railways reached the town, and deep-hulled boats moved up the coast to

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

, which had a deeper harbour and is closer to London. With regular dredging of a channel through the harbour, it has regained some importance. Dorset Yacht Co Ltd v Home Office was decided in 1970. The longest ship to enter the harbour is DFDS/LD Lines 186.5 metre '' Norman Voyager'' on 15 October 2013, with the second longest being the 167-metre '' Armorique'' of

Brittany Ferries Brittany Ferries is the trading name of the French shipping company, BAI Bretagne Angleterre Irlande S.A. founded in 1973 by Alexis Gourvennec, that operates a fleet of ferries and cruiseferries between France and the United Kingdom, Ireland, a ...

, which arrived in the port for the first time on 2 February 2010. The previous holder of that title was the 151-metre '' Bretagne'', which arrived in the port for the first time on 27 February 2007.

Geography and islands

The entrance to Poole Harbour is from the east, via Poole Bay and the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...

. Entering the harbour, heading west, on either side are the shores of Studland beach (south west) and

Sandbanks Sandbanks is an affluent neighbourhood of Poole, Dorset, on the south coast of England, situated on a narrow spit of around 1 km2 or 0.39 sq mi extending into the mouth of Poole Harbour. It is known for its high property prices and for it ...

(in particular, the

Haven Hotel The Haven Hotel is a historic AA four star hotel in Sandbanks, near Poole, Dorset on the south coast of England. The hotel dates from the Victorian era and was a location used by wireless telegraphy pioneer Guglielmo Marconi. History The ...

and the peninsula, north east). Directly ahead are several islands, the largest of which is

. Four rivers drain into Poole harbour, the largest being the River Frome, which flows from the west through Dorchester and Wareham. The others are the River Piddle, the Corfe River and the Sherford River. Following the harbour anti-clockwise, heading north-east passes the built up residential settlements of Poole including Lilliput and Parkstone (east). About north-west of the entrance of the harbour is the entrance to Poole Quay and the Holes Bay (see below). Directly west of the main part of Poole is Hamworthy. Continuing anti-clockwise, heading west around the Harbour are the settlements of Upton and Wareham, as well as the outlet of the River Piddle. This area of water within the Harbour is known as Wareham Channel and includes other places such as Rockley Sands. Continuing anti-clockwise, now heading south are the majority of the islands within the Harbour as well as several small channels and inlets. To the west is Arne Bay and the Wych channel. The majority of land in this area is heathland, and there are few settlements, as opposed to the eastern part of the Harbour. Directly south is Long Island, Round Island and Ower Bay. Green Island, Furzey Island and

(in that order) are to the east, with Newton Bay and Brands Bay (this area has several oil wells) to the south. This area of water is known as the South Deep. Continuing anti-clockwise comes back to the entrance to the Harbour and to Poole Bay, with Studland beach immediately south-east. Lytchett Bay lies to the north of the Harbour and flows into it through a narrow channel near the edge of the suburb of Hamworthy. This is fed by the Sherford River.

Holes Bay

Holes Bay is a tidal inland lake which lies to the north of Poole Harbour. It is a designated harbour quiet area. The entrance to the bay is a small inlet from the main harbour. Spanning the inlet are two bridges: Poole Bridge and the new

Twin Sails Bridge The Twin Sails Bridge (also known as The Second Harbour Crossing) is a double leaved bascule bridge in Poole, Dorset, England. The bridge provides a second road link from Poole Town Centre to Hamworthy. The intention is that the bridge will allo ...

; the latter officially opened in 2012 and cost around £37,000,000. Access to Holes Bay for vessels with an air draft greater than is only possible when the bridges are lifted, which occurs several fixed times daily and sometimes on request. The new bridge is intended to help reduce traffic jams by ensuring at least one bridge is open to vehicular traffic at any one time. The bay contains Pergins Island, and the South Western railway line runs west to east on a causeway across the bay. To the north of the bay is Upton Country Park. Holes Bay is the location of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) training school, attached to their Poole headquarters. Uses of the bay include fishing, kayaking and small leisure craft. A large marina known as Cobbs Quay is on the west side of the bay. On its east side the bay runs parallel to the A350.

Parkstone Bay

Parkstone Bay is named after the suburb of Parkstone. Harbourside Park wraps around the bay.

Islands of Poole Harbour

Poole Harbour is the location of a number of islands, of various sizes. These islands include: *

is near the sea entrance at Sandbanks. * Furzey Island is south of Brownsea Island. * Green Island is directly south of Furzey island. * Long Island is near the Arne Peninsula. * Round Island * Gigger's Island is in the west of the Harbour near the River Piddle outlet. * Drove Island is in the south of the Harbour in Brands Bay. * Pergins Island is in the north of the Harbour in Holes Bay. *

Stone Island Stone Island is an Italian luxury men's apparel and accessories brand. It was established in 1982 in Ravarino by Massimo Osti. In December 2020, Stone Island was acquired by the Italian fashion house Moncler. History Designer Massimo Osti fo ...

lies between Brownsea and Studland. It is a ridge of gravel and sand, possibly the remains of an old recurved shingle spit, which is only visible between high tides, and as such is a danger to sailors. It is now gradually being submerged by rising sea-level.

Geology

The harbour lies on a band of weak gravel and clay which is easily

eroded Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is disti ...

by the rivers and sea. This band is bordered by two bands of

chalk Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Ch ...

, the

Purbeck Hills The Purbeck Hills, also called the Purbeck Ridge or simply the Purbecks, are a ridge of chalk downs in Dorset, England. It is formed by the structure known as the Purbeck Monocline. The ridge extends from Lulworth Cove in the west to Old H ...

and

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a Counties of England, county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the List of islands of England#Largest islands, largest and List of islands of England#Mo ...

to the south, and the Dorset Downs and South Downs to the north. The clay extends west up the Frome valley to Dorchester, and would originally have extended east beyond

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

in Hampshire. Before the last

the River Frome continued to flow east through what is now the

Solent The Solent ( ) is a strait between the Isle of Wight and Great Britain. It is about long and varies in width between , although the Hurst Spit which projects into the Solent narrows the sea crossing between Hurst Castle and Colwell Bay t ...

, joining the Stour, Beaulieu, Test, Itchen and

Hamble Hamble may refer to: * The River Hamble in Hampshire, England * Hamble aerodrome on the banks of the River Hamble. ** Hamble-Warsash Ferry, a ferry service on the River Hamble * Hamble-le-Rice, a village on the river Hamble, close to the city of Sou ...

, before flowing into the

to the east of the present day Isle of Wight. A relatively resistant chalk ridge ran continuously from the Purbeck Hills to the Isle of Wight, which the rivers could not break through. When the glaciers of the north of the island of Great Britain melted, the south of England sank slightly, flooding the Solent valley and Southampton Water to form their characteristic

s (flooded estuaries). About 7,000 years ago, increased erosion from the sea and the increased flow caused by the change in climate broke through the chalk hills, cutting the Isle of Wight off from the

Isle of Purbeck The Isle of Purbeck is a peninsula in Dorset, England. It is bordered by water on three sides: the English Channel to the south and east, where steep cliffs fall to the sea; and by the marshy lands of the River Frome and Poole Harbour to the no ...

and flooding what is now the Solent and Christchurch Bay, leaving Poole Harbour as the estuary of the Frome.

Marine activity

Once a major port, freight transport has declined, but the port is still served by regular cross-Channel passenger ferries, with Brittany Ferries offering a passenger and freight service to Cherbourg. Condor Ferries operate to the Channel Islands and St Malo as well as joint high-speed service with Brittany Ferries to Cherbourg. Coastal trading vessels are also frequent visitors, unloading various cargos on the quaysides at Hamworthy, and fleet of

fishing vessel A fishing vessel is a boat or ship used to catch fish in the sea, or on a lake or river. Many different kinds of vessels are used in commercial, artisanal and recreational fishing. The total number of fishing vessels in the world in 2016 was ...

s operates from the south end of

Poole Quay Poole () is a large coastal town and seaport in Dorset, on the south coast of England. The town is east of Dorchester, Dorset, Dorchester and adjoins Bournemouth to the east. Since 1 April 2019, the local authority is Bournemouth, Christchurc ...

. There is considerable leisure usage of the harbour, by a combination of yachts and other private craft, cruise boats that ply the harbour, and

ferries A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water tax ...

that provide a passenger link to Brownsea Island. The harbour is managed by the Poole Harbour Commissioners (PHC), who represent all aspects of commercial and leisure activity in the harbour. Their duties include maintaining the shipping channels for the ferries and cargo vessels, enforcing harbour speed limits, improving port facilities and assisting with nature conservation. In November 2005 the main shipping channels into the harbour and the Port of Poole were dredged to accommodate modern ferries at all states of the tide. The project was carried out by

Van Oord Royal Van Oord is a Dutch maritime contracting company that specializes in dredging, land reclamation and constructing man made islands. Royal Van Oord has undertaken many projects throughout the world, including land reclamation, dredging and beac ...

, and on completion the depth had been increased from to . Approximately 1.8 million cubic metres of sand and silt were dredged from the approach channels to the Harbour and port, and 1.1 million m³ was made available to the local beaches of Poole, Bournemouth and Purbeck for

beach replenishment Beach nourishment (also referred to as beach renourishment, beach replenishment, or sand replenishment) describes a process by which sediment, usually sand, lost through longshore drift or erosion is replaced from other sources. A wider beach can ...

. Poole Harbour Commissioners define the main shipping channels, in which leisure craft should take care, as : *The Swash Channel from the Bar Buoy to the Chain Ferry *The Haven Channel from the Chain Ferry to 16 buoy *The Middle Ship Channel, from 16 buoy to Stakes *The

turning basin A turning basin, winding basin or swinging basin is a wider body of water, either located at the end of a ship canal or in a port to allow cargo ships to turn and reverse their direction of travel, or to enable long narrow barges in a canal to tu ...

, off the Ferry Port *The Little Channel from Stakes to Poole Bridge. RNLI B class Atlantic 85 lifeboat, Poole, England arp

Marinas

As well as the commercial activity discussed above, Poole is a major centre for sailing and motor boating. * Poole Quay Boat Haven is the most central marina, situated immediately east of the Town Quay on the main road through the town centre – berth holders have to cross it to get to the showers! * the Town Quay itself still accommodates larger visiting boats. * Port of Poole Marina is a little south-west of there, close to the ferry terminal, and caters only for resident boats – no visitors. * Poole Yacht Club is a little further west, and welcomes visiting boats * Parkstone Bay Marina together with the private Parkstone Yacht Club are located in Parkstone Bay to the east * Cobbs Quay Marina is in Upton Bay to the north-west, accessed only when the town Bridge (A350) is opened. * Salterns Marina is by Lilliput and houses the former Poole Harbour Yacht Club There is an enormous number of moorings in the harbour, and many places to anchor.

Ecology and nature conservation

Much of the north side of the harbour is a built-up area, including the town of Poole, and the conurbation which continues eastwards along the coast. The west and south sides of the harbour and part of the Purbeck Heritage Coast are important wildlife havens, as are the five large islands in the harbour, which are home to the endangered red squirrel. The harbour is an area of international importance for wildlife conservation and is on the Ramsar list. It borders three national nature reserves, including the internationally important

Studland and Godlingston Heath NNR The Studland and Godlingston Heaths NNR is located on the Isle of Purbeck in the English county of Dorset. It borders Studland Bay on the south side of Poole Harbour, between the settlements of Swanage and Sandbanks. Extending to 631ha, it is ow ...

, and a number of

local Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States * Local government, a form of public administration, usually the lowest tier of administrat ...

and non-statutory nature reserves run by organisations such as the National Trust and RSPB, notably Arne. The mouth of the harbour is partially blocked by

, a spit on the north, which is built up and part of Poole, and by Studland to the south, which is another important wildlife area. The harbour is very shallow in places and has extensive

mud flat Mudflats or mud flats, also known as tidal flats or, in Ireland, slob or slobs, are coastal wetlands that form in intertidal areas where sediments have been deposited by tides or rivers. A global analysis published in 2019 suggested that tidal fl ...

and salt marsh habitats, as well as muddy and sandy shores and seagrass meadows. Being an extremely popular recreation and tourism area means that the local authorities and organisations have to carefully manage the tourism to prevent damage to the habitats. The south shore of the harbour, including Wytch Heath and Godlingstone Heath, is open heathland of little agricultural use. During the 20th century there was some afforestation with conifer plantations. Around Wareham Forest in the west this has been for commercial forestry, but on the southern shore the plantations conceal the

Wytch Farm Wytch Farm is an oil field and processing facility in the Purbeck district of Dorset, England. It is the largest onshore oil field in western Europe. The facility, taken over by Perenco in 2011, was previously operated by BP. It is located in ...

oil wells. Three bird species occur in internationally important numbers: common shelduck,

pied avocet The pied avocet (''Recurvirostra avosetta'') is a large black and white wader in the avocet and stilt family, Recurvirostridae. They breed in temperate Europe and across the Palearctic to Central Asia then on to the Russian Far East. It is a ...

and black-tailed godwit. Other notable visitors include spoonbill, Sandwich tern and Eurasian whimbrel. Once rare, little egrets are now seen regularly and in increasing numbers.RSPB interpretation board, seen 29 April 2007 On 23 April 2022, ospreys nesting in Poole Harbour produced an egg, the first in southern England in modern times. The successful hatching is the first in 200 years. In August 2022, it was reported that one of the two chicks had been killed in a hawk attack.

Urbanisation and development

A wakeboarder riding down the Wareham channel Due to the ever-increasing popularity of pleasure boating in the United Kingdom, the harbour has seen a rapid increase in the private ownership of pleasure vessels over the past decade, most of which are housed in private marinas around the harbour. Due to this increase, Poole has seen a rise in the number of maritime-oriented businesses. With the popularity of watersports such as water skiing, wakeboarding, windsurfing and

kitesurfing Kiteboarding or kitesurfing is a sport that involves using wind power with a large power kite to pull a rider across a water, land, or snow surface. It combines aspects of paragliding, surfing, windsurfing, skateboarding, snowboarding, and wak ...

, Poole Harbour Commissioners have designated areas within the harbour almost exclusively for sport participation – virtually unrestricted from most regular harbour rules. Poole is also fortunate in that wind conditions are variable; wind conditions can be calm for sports such as wakeboarding, and a short while later strong for sports such as windsurfing. Most of these sports benefit from the harbour's generally flat water conditions. As a result, local watersport businesses operate around the harbour. Poole Tourism has developed and signed a number of trails and circular walks, collectively called the Poole Harbour Trails, as well as the Poole Heritage Cycle Route for cyclists.''Cycling''
at www.pooletourism.com. Retrieved 6 January 2017. A freight-only branch runs from Hamworthy railway station to Poole Docks. However the line is fenced off at the Poole Docks level crossing with a run-round loop provided at Hamworthy Park. The line is currently (2017) served by a weekly stone train.

References

Specific

General

* Clark, G & Thompson, W.H., 1935. ''The Dorset Landscape''. London: A & C Black. * Cochrane, C, 1970. ''Poole Bay and Purbeck, 300BC to AD1660''. Dorchester, Longmans. * Hutchings, M., 1965. ''Inside Dorset''. Sherborne: Abbey Press.
Poole Harbour Commission, The history of Poole Harbour
(accessed 8 November 2004)

External links

Poole Harbour Commissioners official web siteOnline Admiralty Chart of Poole HarbourPoole Harbour Study GroupPoole Harbour WebcamPoole Harbour Weather
Photographs:
Poole Harbour Dredging and Poole Bay beach replenishment
{{Authority control Geography of Poole Ports and harbours of Dorset Ramsar sites in England Special Protection Areas in England Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Dorset Nature Conservation Review sites