Mouillage

Phare de Cordouan

Ouvrir dans BoatMap ItinéraireEnregistrer

Shelter: NW
Seabed: sand
Anchoring: Allowed

Anchorage off the Cordouan lighthouse, at the mouth of the Gironde estuary in New Aquitaine. Sand bottom, shelter from NW only.

Beach

Guide

Approach and anchoring

Open to the Atlantic swell and cross seas of the Gironde bar; this is not a protected anchorage. Approach at slack water or early flood, by day only. The sandbanks shift constantly and the charted soundings are unreliable, so work the depth sounder in. Drop on sand to the lee of the lighthouse plateau, where the anchor holds well despite the strong current; the south side is less crowded but the current runs harder there. Do not dry out on the bank, and expect swell to build on the flood. Port Bloc 3.9 NM to the SE, Port Médoc 4.3 NM to the SE.

Practical

No services. Landing by dinghy on the sandbank around the lighthouse, tide-dependent. Guided visits of the lighthouse run in summer from Royan and Le Verdon.

Ashore

Cordouan lighthouse is climbable during guided tours, 301 steps to the lantern. The royal apartment, chapel and king's chamber are visited on the way up.

History

Cordouan was begun in 1584 by Louis de Foix on a plateau off the Gironde estuary and completed in 1611. The upper section was raised by Joseph Teulère in 1788 to reach its current 68 m. The lighthouse was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2021.