Cheshire, England

Manley Mere put-in

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Launch — A slipway at the private Manley Mere watersports centre, used for self-launch by kayaks, paddleboards, sailing boats and windsurfers.

Parking — On-site car park with charges for standard cars and a higher rate for large campervans; payment is by coin box on weekdays and card machine at weekends and holiday periods.

Access — Self-launch requires advance online booking and a waiver valid for twelve months. Day launch sessions run 11:00 to 17:00 and evening sessions 17:00 to 19:30. Under-14s must be supervised on the water and under-17s must have an adult on site. Permitted craft are kayaks, paddleboards, sailing boats and windsurfers; pleasure toys, rowing dinghies, tenders and inflatable novelty craft are not allowed.

Season — The inflatable aquapark runs through the warmer months and closes over winter. A paddleboard club meets on alternate Wednesday evenings, and the site holds an annual charity race each October. Traffic for the nearby Creamfields festival can add delay to the M56 approach around the August bank holiday.

Regulations — Buoyancy aids rated at least 50N must be worn at all times on the water. Swimming outside the operator's designated open-water sessions is not permitted, and fishing is not allowed anywhere on the lake. Access is authorised directly by the landowner rather than a navigation-authority licence.

Manley Mere is a private watersports centre on a lake within a 100-acre wooded estate near the village of Manley, Cheshire. It offers supervised paddleboarding, kayaking, sailing and windsurfing tuition, accredited by the RYA, British Canoeing and BSUPA, alongside an inflatable aqua park on its lake. Self-launch for those with their own craft needs advance online booking, though the operator sells same-day guest passes when quieter.

Manley Mere was dug from a dairy farm in 1984, when Mike and Jane Houlbrooke converted the land into a lake for watersports. The farm's former milking parlour still stands beside the water, now the Chameleon Café Bar, and the site is run today by the second and third generations of the same family.

Self-launch paddlers share the lake with instructor-led powerboat, sailing and windsurfing groups. A 200 square metre inflatable aquapark, installed in 2017 with capacity for more than 50 people, occupies part of the lake through the warmer months.

The site draws heating from a submerged source heat pump in the lake, alongside shoreline solar panels for electricity, and the estate has planted trees around the water's edge over four decades of operation.

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Chameleon Café Bar

On-site café at Manley Mere, converted from the estate's former dairy milking parlour, with lakeside views.

Website

Lloyds Meadow Glamping

Glamping site with pre-erected bell tents (no space for visitors' own tents), open to public online booking; adults only.

Website

Conditions to check

Boat traffic

The lake is used for accredited powerboat, sailing and windsurfing tuition alongside self-launch paddling, so instructor-led groups on powered and wind-driven craft share the water.

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Other

An inflatable aquapark occupies part of the lake through the warmer months, closing over winter.

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Other

A submerged source heat pump draws heat from the lake for the site's heating.

Source

Other launches nearby

1 launch within 54m

54m west

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