Weir Quay is a pleasant hamlet on the banks of the tidal River Tamar about 8 nautical miles upstream from Plymouth Sound. Positioned at the heart of the peaceful Bere Penninsula, the area has become a magnet for keen sailors seeking a relaxed atmosphere with easy sailing access to some of the country’s finest cruising grounds.
For a full list of committee members and contact details please click the link below:
https://wqsc.org/about-wqsc/weir-quay-sailing-club-committee/
To view the club’s Safeguarding Policy, please click the link below:
Weir Quay Sailing Club was formed on the 15th May 1966 when eighteen prospective members attended the inaugural meeting at Weir Quay.
The following year dinghy racing began, the first twelve moorings were purchased and the Club was recognised by the Royal Yachting Association.
Soon club working parties renovated Cleave hard, the (now public) slipway, which had served the limekiln adjacent to Cleave Farm at Weir Quay. Up until this time the hard had seen infrequent use due to its poor state of repair. However, once it was in more frequent use, the local authorities erected a notice board in order to display warnings and maritime information and regular boating returned to Weir Quay.
In 1975 a barn-cum-cowshed and yard was leased for a 30-year period for boat parking and equipment storage, with a view to turning it in to a Clubroom with Dinghy Park. This transformation began in 1976 with the help of a grant from the sports Council and a loan from the National Playing Fields association. Work also commenced on making the outer dinghy park alongside the Tamar foreshore including the construction of a natural stone wall facing the river.
In 1996 a mooring barge based on a catamaran hull with a steel gantry was purchased to facilitate the lifting and checking of Club moorings. This was launched the following year, though now, after many years of service it has been replaced with the mooring barge that we use today.
Unfortunately the Club lost the long term lease on the boat parks and clubhouse in February 2009 by which time the club had agreed to share some of its facilities with the Tamar and Tavy Gig Club.
In consequence a Development Group was set up by the two clubs, with a clear mandate to identify and secure the freehold of a suitable site on which to create replacement facilities. The group then went on to obtain the required planning permission, and to secure the funding neccessary to develop the site.
Rather than merge into a single club, both the sailing club and the gig club wished to maintain their individual identities and this led to the Development Group evolving into the Weir Quay Community Watersports Hub Club. The Hub Club was incorporated as a private not-for-profit limited company in November 2010 so that it could own land and other property with limited liability for trustees, and it registered as a charity in June 2011.
After a long and sometimes bumpy journey, the development of the Hub Club site has now reached the stage where both the boatshed and the dinghy park are now in routine use. The original plans were also extended to provide a training room for the gig rowers at the rear of the building.
Further information about the Weir Quay Community Watersports Hub Club can be found at http://www.wqwatersports.org.uk/
Today the Weir Quay Sailing Club has a membership of about 210, an enthusiastic dinghy fleet with sail training on Friday evenings and 45 moorings for yachts. Cruising members also include a large number of sailors who keep their boats on neighbouring moorings or in the various marinas throughout Plymouth Sound and the adjacent waters.
The Friday evening dinghy training programme is particularly popular and the annual club programme includes an up-river Dinghy camping trip, sail-away weekends with the club Cruisers and an extended Tall Ships sail-training cruise.
Our location at the heart of the West Country cruising grounds has made Weir Quay and the rest of the Bere Penninsula a very popular home for cruising sailors of all experience. Our Cruises In Company are well supported with destinations such as the Helford River, Fowey, Salcombe and Dartmouth providing the perfect destinations for these highly sociable events.
Closer to home, beautiful places such as the River Yealm or the Dandy Hole on the River Lynher make a lovely destination for a weekend excusion when time is short or the weather window limited.
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