Eling Sailing Club is situated at the head of Eling creek off the Test estuary at the head of Southampton Water.

The Club House occupies half of the historic Eling Tide Mill where it has established a base for sailing events and club bar.  The Club has moorings for boats on the wall at Eling, on laid moorings on the mud flats in Eling Creek and a limited number of deepwater moorings situated downstream near Bury Swinging Ground. Dinghies may be kept in the Club’s compound, and members are encouraged to use the Club’s dinghy fleet.

Throughout the season, the Club organises several series of cruiser and dinghy races, and for the less energetic, a number of club rallies to neighbouring harbours and clubs.

Once a year a small contingent of the Club’s more adventurous souls go as a flotilla across the Channel. For those who don’t yet have a suitable yacht for these excursions there are nearly always ‘crew’ places available.

We also have a fairly full social calendar, organised by the Social Team.  The Club also offers a range of training courses to promote safety at sea, using a combination of in club volunteers and outside companies.

The Club House

Situated next to the Eling Tide Mill on the Toll bridge the clubhouse affords a grandstand view of the harbour. A great place to spend a sunny day. Inside we have a bar , club room, shower, changing rooms and a kitchen.

Our Moorings

The club moorings provide a safe and affordable place to keep your boat. For fin keelers and larger boats we have a number of deep water moorings accessed via a tender kept at the club.

Out on the water

Our Sailing Secretary organises regular Club Races and Cruises throughout the year.

Events

Tweets by ElingSC1939

Membership

The Membership of Eling Sailing club covers all age groups from toddlers up to old salts.  The ethos of the Club tends towards the cheerful, friendly, helpful, and casual (we only get dressed up in bow ties once a year). It is a self help club and everyone is expected to help out where they can.  The more experienced sailors are ever ready to help less experienced fellow members with advice on yachts, yacht maintenance and seamanship, and with hands-on assistance when needed. If this sounds like the sort of club for you, then turn up on when the club bar is open and introduce yourself.   If after seeing us in the “too, too solid flesh”, you still want to join, download and complete the form below then pass to the Membership Secretary with a passport photo attached.

Membership Application Form

Residential Qualification

Eling Sailing Club previously limited its membership to those residing within a 25 mile radius of Eling Creek. Whilst this restriction has been lifted and those outside of 25 miles may become members these are limited to 10% of the membership – it is advised to make contact before applying to check if there are spaces available.

Probationary Membership

Full Membership of Eling Sailing Club may be granted subject to the satisfactory completion of a 12 month probationary period. The Club reserves the right to refuse or withdraw membership at any time during the probationary period.

Types of Membership

Single – For anyone who is either on his/her own, or whose family has no interest in either sailing or joining in the Club’s social activities.

Family – Membership includes the principal member, his or her spouse and any children under the age of eighteen and in full time education.

Cadet – For young people under the age of eighteen, or under twenty five and in full time education, who are not already included in a family membership.

Membership Fees

Moorings

The Club has moorings for sailing boats under 10m in length on the wall at Eling, on laid moorings on the mud flats in Eling Creek and a limited number of deep water moorings situated downstream. These are available to members at the discretion of the elected Mooring Master. Dinghies may be kept in the Club’s compound, and members are encouraged to use the Club’s dinghy fleet.

Mooring Fees

Members Portal

Mooring Agreement


Email


Regalia


Club Rules


Harbour Bylaws


Dutyman


Members Area


Op Procedures


Data Protection


News

Gallery

Training

Eling Sailing Club is a RYA Recognised Training Centre offering training and qualifications in dinghy sailing and power boating.

Young sailors are offered about a dozen sailing sessions throughout the season and they progress at their own speed through the qualifications offered. The instructors endorse the student log-books as each skill is mastered and each level attained and the Centre Principal will issue RYA certificates. A succession of young sailors have begun their sailing experience at Eling since the Training Centre was first recognised in 1998. Some have become instructors themselves.

Individual adult club members liaise with instructors to construct their own schemes, training when time, tide and weather are favourable. The fully qualified Instructor Team are all volunteers so the costs involved are limited to Safety Boat fuel and the price of a RYA certificate if required. Members should discuss more formal weekend courses with the Centre Principal.

The club fleet includes two safety boats, two Hartley 12.2s, two Leaders, two RS Visions, three Picos and a Laser.

The RYA currently recognises the club to offer the following courses:

Dinghy Courses

Dinghy Level 1 – Start Sailing
Dinghy Level 2 – Basic Skills
Dinghy Level 3 – Better Sailing

Dinghy Day Sailing

Dinghy Seamanship Skills

Dinghy Sailing with Spinnakers

Youth Sailing Scheme – Start Sailing Stage 1
Youth Sailing Scheme – Start Sailing Stage 2
Youth Sailing Scheme – Start Sailing Stage 3
Youth Sailing Scheme – Start Sailing Stage 4

Powerboat Courses
Powerboat Level 1 Course
Powerboat Level 2 Course
Safety Boat Course

Visiting Eling Sailing Club

How To Find Us

Eling Sailing Club welcomes visitors by land or sea, and as Eling Creek can be tricky these following pictures are a guide to help you find you way to the pontoons. If visiting by road follow the Brown tourist road signs for Eling Tide Mill, Eling Sailing Club is situated in half of the mill building.

Eling Sailing Club is situated at the head of Eling creek off the Test estuary at the head of Southampton Water.

To reach us navigate to the Eastern Cardinal buoy ‘Eling’ grid reference 50° 54.475’ N

1° 27.844’ W. From the Cardinal, on a bearing of 111° and a distance of 0.2NM is the entrance to the Eling Channel. The channel entrance is marked with two posts, red can and green cone.

Into the Harbour

Follow the channel in, maintaining a distance of approximately 2 meters from the posts passing them on your Starboard side.

As you approach the bend in Creek turn to Port and stay about 3 meters from quay wall (beside containers).

You will see a slipway to starboard, and some parked craft, aim to pass astern of these with about 2 meters clearance.

Ahead there’s a post with a tidal gauge, pass this to Port.

Final Approach

Ahead you’ll see the Tide Mill and adjoining Club House, the visitor berths are immediately in front of this building.

Club Admin

As a general rule of thumb, access for a 1.2m draught boat the tide needs to be above 3.5m chart datum.

There is electric hook up (electric cards available in the Club House during bar opening times), water and Wi-Fi available.

Club House and bar are open Tues and Fri 20:00 – 23:00hrs & Sat 13:00 – 16:00hrs.

Visitors overnight fees are £10 a night, £5 short stay. By prior arrangement with the mooring master monthly charges are available.

About

Eling Sailing Club History

There is evidence that organised water based activity took place in the creek as far back as the 1920’s; however, ‘Eling Rowing Club’ records indicate that by 1932 the ‘rowing club’ had laid dormant for a number of years. Records show that on November 29th that year, club funds to the tune of £16.13s.9d (£16.68) was handed to the then parish council.
Eling Sailing Club was formed by a group of like minded people interested in sailing in 1937. Their meetings were held in the Anchor Inn.
In September 1939 the enthusiasts formed the Eling Boating and Sailing Club. However, their initial enthusiasm was to be curtailed for a few years because within days of the club’s formation the Second World War broke out. All activities around Eling Creek were consequently put on hold until September 1944 when the end of hostilities was in sight and thoughts returned to reviving the club and developing its membership.

The Beginning

A formal application for permission to construct a club-house, made from ex-army huts, measuring 60ft by 35ft, on piles which still exist alongside the present compound, proved successful. Winchester College (the landlord at the time) and the Secretary of the War Department, both gave permission for the project. Unfortunately records fail to indicate why the club-house project was never taken up and the scheme was abandoned.
On January 22nd 1945 the membership of the club opened negotiations with the tenant and Winchester College to acquire the old, and almost derelict, granary store attached to the Tide Mill (Visit Tide Mill Site). The present club house building was acquired at an annual rental agreement of £13.0s.0d, a deal which also included the foreshore.
Committee meetings were still being held in a back room at The Anchor Inn whilst a major programme of improvements and refurbishment took place to the recently acquired premises at the Tide Mill. Without even a roof, the building was in desperate need of restoration, most of which was carried out by club volunteers. Finally, and with great satisfaction, club members were able to take possession of their own club house, complete with modern electricity on 1st June 1945, a year in which Eling Sailing Club really moved forward, setting the foundations for the following years of continuous development.
It was also around this time in 1945 that the club decided to make major changes in policy, first the name of the club was considered, resulting in a decision to drop the name ‘boating’ and re-name the club ‘Eling Sailing Club’. Also in this year the club adopted the design of the Burgee, selected from several submitted during a member competition.

The Club Grows

Club minutes dated 12th February 1945 record another major step forward, when the committee voted in favour of ladies being accepted as members, but for ‘sailing and water events only’. In 1945 membership charges are recorded at five shillings (25p) entrance fee and five shillings (25p) annual subscription.
Eling Sailing Club has long enjoyed a healthy element of water borne competition, also introduced during 1945. The first events taking place on March 19th when the club was able to boast a strong dinghy fleet manned by an enthusiastic group of male and female members. Also in the same year the club introduced the first official rule book, details thrashed out during a committee meeting on 9th April.
Although the prime interest of club members has always been a mutual love of water based activity, a strong social link has also become a major element of developing good relationships between members. Records show that during the year of 1976 a permanent bar was installed and that the committee of that year decided that a notice should be displayed advising the ‘the piano must be played in a proper manner’. There is no doubt that, although the piano has long since disappeared, the club bar has provided a key role in the overall benefit, and indeed the development, of club membership over the years.
In the late 1990’s the club acquired three brand new sailing dinghies thanks to a lottery grant, to be joined later by a further three. These six small sailing craft were used by the thriving ESC Cadet Unit, that were taught by a small dedicated team of fully qualified instructors. Another major improvement was the installation of a ‘walkway ramp’ replacing a rather ungainly ladder to the main pontoon by the Tide Mill. Berths along the Quay wall were upgraded with access to electric shore power and fresh water. The veranda was installed between October 2012 and May 2014 providing a wonderful place to sit and enjoy the creek. In 2016 we started to renew our safety boat facilities replacing one of the old dories and for a Rigiflex 360 and new engines for both safety boats. In 2017 the toilets were refurbished and a shower was installed, ideal for after dinghy sailing or after working on the mud. In 2019 the club purchased two Hartley 12.2 dinghies adding to the training fleet.

The Club Today

In the late 1990’s the club acquired three brand new sailing dinghies thanks to a lottery grant, to be joined later by a further three. These six small sailing craft are used by the thriving ESC Cadet Unit, which is manned by a small dedicated team of fully qualified instructors.
A number of further developments have been successfully completed in recent times, all with the aim of improving the general facilities available to members. One major improvement has been the installation of a ‘walkway ramp’ replacing a rather ungainly ladder to the main pontoon by the Tide Mill. Berths situated along the Quay wall now have the benefit of electric shore power and fresh water and the main mud berths enjoy safer mooring facilities since the installation of deep piles at each end of the trots, ensuring strong anchorage for all craft, and also becoming a navigational asset for craft approaching the Creek via either of the two channels.

The Club Committee

Commodore – Ron May

Vice Commodore – Peter Hilditch

Rear Commodore – Jim Mundy

Treasurer – Richard Pike

Secretary – Vacant

Mooring Master – Dave Loyns

Sailing Secretary – Jeff Rogers

Bar Secretary – Robert Pike

Membership Secretary – Lisa Pike

Safety Officer – Mark Weaver

Social Secretary – Caroline Golding

RTE Principle – Alister Butcher

Publicity Secretary – Jeff Rogers

Maintenance Secretary – Arthur Avery

Non-Committee Posts

Bosun – David Hotson

Cleaning Co-ordinator – Vacant

Regalia – Kate Pike

Webmaster – Vacant

Social Media Ambassador – Kay Russell

Get in touch!

• info@elingsc.org.uk
• Eling Sailing club, Eling Hill, Totton, Southampton SO40 9HF

Usual Bar Opening Times

Tuesday     2000 – 2300 hrs
Friday         2000 – 2300 hrs
Saturday    1300 – 1600 hrs

• Terms & Conditions
• Privacy Policy

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