Poole Harbour & Sandbanks – a personal view

It is perhaps a little known fact that at just under a hundred miles round, Poole Harbour is reputed to be the second largest natural harbour in the world. Second only to Sydney.

I have come for my holidays at Sandbanks every year and in all of my fifty I haven’t yet missed my summer holiday in this idyllic setting. The Sandbanks Beach was just a bucket and spade holiday when I was a kid here and we never contemplated that such a place could ever compete on the world stage of property values. But for me you cannot put a price on the views and surrounding beaches and bays that make for the entrance of the harbour itself.

Within the harbour are five main islands although if you include the muddy banks at low or even high tides there are a feast of others inhabited largely by Poole’s much respected wild life. ‘Stoney Island‘ is the one on the left as we enter the harbour but tends only to be visible at low tides.

In all its splendor Brownsea is the largest island with a 5 mile shoreline and is owned by The National Trust except for the castle. It’s a pretty place to walk as well as being home to the red squirrel and Major-General Robert Baden-Powell’s infamous scout movement, the latter largely based to the west of the island. Interestingly, Brownsea was also used as a decoy to German bombers believing that it was Poole town itself as parts of the island were left to burn at night, no doubt saving many lives in Poole.

Furzey Island is the next biggest at 31 acres and used to be occupied almost entirely by BP who first arrived there in 1984 but have since reduced there holding to 5 acres. Not just on Furzey Island but else where in that part of the harbour, oil exploration has continued ever since. Making it one of the largest ‘on shore’ oil sites in western Europe. To this day oil is pumped from sites in Poole to Fawley near Southampton. Cleverly, much of this industry goes unnoticed to the tourist, shrouded in the natural beauty of its surrounding countryside.

You would be forgiven if you didn’t know the area for asking the question “where is The Isle of Purbeck?” For all intense and purposes it is not an obvious island as such but a beautiful stretch of un-spoilt countryside that forms the mainland to the south and west of the harbour or commonly referred to as “Thomas Hardy country”. Much of it is visible by boat as we tour the harbour itself, including a glimpse the infamous Corfe Castle in the distance which is what we call “real Dorset” and is in marked contrast to the urban area that surrounds Poole.

Green Island is close to Furzey and formally joined to it. At just 25 acres it is the third biggest island. Sadly, like Furzey it is not accessible but one can easily admire the beauty of this island from the boat as we tour around the harbour.

Round Island is 10 acres in total and has a pretty south east facing house built in 1934 with four other cottages originally built for Lord Illiffe’s daughter. He also formally owned Furzey Island prior to BP. It use to be possible to rent a cottage here and I trust that might still be the case as I can think of no place quieter in the world.

That leaves Long Island which is in site of Poole town itself as well as butting on to the northern edge of Round Island. It’s a low lying flat area covering some 7 acres in total and no house resides but for a house boat rammed against the shoreline on a high tide. Apart from a small peat ‘industry’ mentioned in old books many years ago, there is little else to mention of this quiet sanctuary. However, it does mark the entrance to Arne Bay, a delightful stopping point for afternoon tea for but a view boats. An exciting site is a glimpse of a pair or even one seal sometimes found popping its dog like head out of the water. Or better still catching the creature lying full length on a small square shaped raft seemingly left by the owner off round island pier – rent free! But you have to be lucky.

Since I have been running Sea Events, to date, I have not had to cancel a single charter through adverse weather conditions and one of the main stays of this record is the safety and shelter that Poole Harbour offers. At almost any state of the wind strength, direction or wave height, it is nearly always possible to find a bay, beach or island to hide behind to enjoy your lunch and still keep your sun hat on! That has to be a boaters dream. For kids too or early learning dinghy sailors much of the harbour is no deeper than Dad’s height. If one ever capsized you’d have to be pretty unlucky not to hit a beach or shallow water before being swept out to sea, such is the natural safety that surrounds this beautiful place.

Sea for yourself! Take a trip around Poole Harbour or out to sea with Sea Events!

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