Braye Harbour
| Braye Harbour Alderney Harbour |
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|---|---|
Braye Inner harbour – outer harbour and breakwater in the background
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| Location | |
| Country | Channel Islands |
| Location | Alderney |
| Coordinates | 49°43′46″N 2°11′31″W / 49.72933°N 02.192°W |
| Details | |
| Opened | Old harbour 1736, new harbour in 1857 |
| Available berths | +70 |
| Piers | 2 |
Braye Harbour (also known as Alderney Harbour) is the main harbour on the north side of the Island of Alderney, in the Channel Islands, a dependency of the British Crown. A 3,000 feet (910 m) break-water built by the Admiralty to protect the Navy in the 19th century shelters Braye Harbour. It is an artificial harbour created by building a pier or jetty. The harbour faces out onto the Swinge, which is part of the English Channel. It is here that most of the island's freight comes in. It is more or less a suburb of St Anne, which is a large settlement in Alderney that juts out on a rocky promontory on the west side, approximately 1 mile from the harbour.
The harbour precinct contains harbour facilities, a knitwear factory, a sailing club, toilets, and several places offering food and drink.
The original main harbour at Longis Bay was built in 1736 by Henry Le Mesurier, Governor of Alderney, at his own cost. The old harbour was not safe even for ships of 40 to 60 tons capacity, as the current entering the bay during storms endangered the beams of the ship that supported the deck. In 1807, twenty ships moored at this harbour were lost or damaged and the stone protection works were swept away by the sea. Building a new harbour became inescapable, as it was felt that the bay would provide a "safe and capacious harbour" for use by on line ships. Trade and commerce first developed with building of a jetty at Braye Harbour.
Between 1847 and 1864 a massive breakwater was constructed.
During the second world war the Germans put a boom across the harbour and incorporated a Rescue buoy into the boom.
The western side of Braye Bay has been extended towards the east with a pier, which has created this sheltered artificial harbour. The best time to enter the harbour is during rising tide, as it dries when at low water neaps. In 1859, when the artificial harbour was built, lighting facilities to guide the ships through the entry channel or "fairway channel" were also fixed, as directed by the Hydrographic Office. Lights were fixed at two levels. Two red leading lights were installed at the head of the harbour; one was fixed on a parapet wall at a height of 25 feet (7.6 m) above high water tide level and the other, an upper light, was placed on the north-east corner, placed at 55 feet (17 m) height above the maximum tide condition, about 370 yards (340 m) from the lower light location. Navigation guidelines were also prescribed for entry into the harbour, guided by the two lights. At present, there are five harbour Fairway buoys. These are QG and QR at its outer end, and Q(2)G 5sec towards the centre, and QG (3) 5sec and QR (3) 5sec on approach to Little Crabby Harbour. 2FR (vert) lights mark the Commercial Quay end. FG and FR lights mark entrance to Little Crabby Harbour.
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Wikipedia