Windsurfing near Exmouth - Exe Estuary
- Bigbury (51 km)
- Portland Harbour (68 km)
- Overcombe (70 km)
- Ringstead (75 km)
- Woolacombe (82 km)
Nearby Windguru Forecasts
The Duck Pond, as it is known to locals, is a rather special place just within the Exe Estuary. At high tide it can offer a large sailing area where you can be pretty sure that you are going to be within your depth if you come off your board. It's perfect for learning and sailing in maxed-out conditions. It can be sailed in most wind directions, with SW through N being best) and if the worst comes to the worst you can be pretty confident that you will be blown to shore. There is ample parking on the waterfront, toilets nearby and it's a 3 minute walk to the town centre. There is a large grassy rigging area right next to the water.
The big drawback to the Duck Pond is that it's really only sailable for a couple of hours either side of high tide, so a tide table is a worthwhile investment (or check the Exmouth Dock tide times on the BBC web site). High tides vary in height between 2.7m and 4.2m, although wider extremes occasionally happen. On a sub-3m tide, sailing is really only practical for about 45 minutes either side of high tide and don't use a fin that you mind stacking into a sand bar. Having said that, if you don't mind a walk over the sand, advanced sailors can score an excellent session over on the western side of the estuary (incoming tide in a northerly, for example) - just sail slowly until you've checked out the shallow spots.
You'll find all levels of sailors here from complete beginners to first time short boarders to sailors throwing the occasional loop on really windy days.
The local windsurfing shop is Waterfront Sports on the seafront in Exmouth.