Port

Barfleur

3.5Barfleur, FranceCotentin

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Maximum length: 49 ft
VHF channel: 9

Tidal harbour of 125 berths on the north-east tip of the Cotentin peninsula, in Normandy.

Guide

Approach and anchoring

Approach from the east, rounding the Pointe de Barfleur and its Gatteville lighthouse, the tallest in France at 75 metres. Strong tidal streams run off the point, up to 5 knots at springs, and pot floats off the entrance can make the approach fiddly. Entry between two jetties marked by red and green lights. The visitor berth dries completely alongside the quay on gravel and small stones with no rock, so rig long lines and expect a ladder to reach the top at low water; the buoys inside are for local boats. VHF 9.

Practical

Space for visitors is very limited, the quay walls largely taken up by the fishing fleet, and the quayside is busy with parked cars and visitors through the day. Capitainerie on the south quay. Water and electricity on the pontoons. No fuel berth in the harbour, nearest diesel at Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue 5 nautical miles south. Bakery, fishmongers and small grocery within 100 metres of the quay.

Ashore

Church of Saint-Nicolas on the quayside, 15th to 17th century, its stone buttresses facing the harbour. Gatteville lighthouse walk 4 km north-east, 365 steps to the top. Coastal path GR223 runs through the village towards Saint-Vaast.

History

Barfleur was the embarkation port of William the Conqueror for England in 1066. The White Ship sank off the Pointe de Barfleur in 1120, drowning the heir to the English throne William Adelin, son of Henry I.