Somerset, England

Burnham-on-Sea Esplanade slipway

Launch — Concrete stepped sea defences from the late 1980s carry a jetty for launching small vessels at high tide; the promenade also has a Beach Office and seating shelters along its length.

Parking — Somerset Council pay-and-display car parks at Pier Street East, West and South together hold around 300 spaces adjacent to the Esplanade.

Access — Somerset Council records general beach access as having no restrictions, subject to review at busy times. Launching a craft from the jetty requires a Council permit or day charge under the published beach charges and permits scheme, which is framed around boats and hovercraft and does not mention hand-carried or unpowered craft; proof of purchase is required before launching.

Regulations — No SSSI byelaw or harbour-authority restriction specifically restricts launching small craft at this slipway, beyond the general Bridgwater Bay SSSI designation. The access exclusion that does apply under that designation covers the Steart Peninsula coastal margin several kilometres across the estuary, intended to protect moulting and overwintering birds; it does not extend to the Burnham Esplanade.

This slipway sits on the Esplanade at Burnham-on-Sea, launching onto Bridgwater Bay, the muddy, sand-banked arm of the Bristol Channel at the mouth of the River Parrett. The Low Lighthouse, a Grade II listed structure on nine timber piles on the foreshore, has stood since 1832 and remains an active navigation light. The bay has one of the largest tidal ranges in the world, exposing wide mudflats at low water, and is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

At low tide the slipway gives onto sand and then onto extensive drying mud rather than open water; the tide can recede as far as 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the sea wall. Bridgwater Bay's fast, high-amplitude tides have led to drownings on these mudflats, and Burnham Area Rescue Boat, set up in 1992, operates hovercraft because they can cross mud and shallow water an inshore rescue boat cannot reach.

The wider bay lies within the Severn Estuary Special Protection Area, Special Area of Conservation and Ramsar site, designations that extend beyond the Bridgwater Bay SSSI itself. Together they protect the estuary's mudflats and saltmarsh for internationally important numbers of wintering and moulting waterbirds.

Nearby

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Bay View Cafe

Seafront cafe on the South Esplanade.

Website

Haven Burnham-on-Sea Holiday Village

Holiday park with caravan and lodge accommodation, open to public bookings.

Website

Home Farm Holiday Park

Touring, static caravan and glamping accommodation open to public bookings.

Website

Conditions to check

Limited exit

The mudflats exposed at low water extend up to 4 km wide.

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