Canterbury Sailing Locations
Christchurch and Banks Peninsula
The Christchurch Estuary
Mount Pleasant Yacht Club
Prevailing Wind - North East
Best Sailing Wind - North East
MPYC situated on the Christchurch Estuary has been established almost 75 years and has more than 100 members, with a lot of family and junior members.
The waters are safe for learners and the facilities are excellent. Boats can be launched and retrieved easily from several ramps facing different directions and about 10 metres of shallower water before the ramps. The estuary is tidal so see the tides and weather page and has a consistent NE sea breeze during the sumer months. MPYC also has a full sailing programe and regularily joins with other clubs on the estuary.
Facilities:
The Club has excellent facilities for members including:
The Club also owns several rescue boats and training yachts. |
Naval Point Club Lyttelton
Prevailing Wind - East
Best Sailing Winds - East, South
Established in 2001, the Naval Point Club is the result of uniting the Banks Peninsula Cruising Club and the Canterbury Yacht and Motor Boat Club. The Club has over 900 members and is based at Magazine Bay, Lyttelton.
The Club has excellent facilities, is an all-tide sailing venue and offers many services to its members. A comprehensive member's handbook is published yearly listing the full race calendar, social and cruising events, membership, fleet registers, contact details and Club rules. The Club's active fleets include vessels from the small Optimist dinghy to large keel boats, with substantial numbers of trailer yachts, catamarans and dinghies. As well as sailing vessels club membership includes powerboats and launches, waka ama and kayaks and is a venue for dragon boat training.
The summer sailing season is from late September thru to mid April predominately on Saturdays, with a very popular twilight series held on Wednesday evenings during daylight saving. A winter series of races is also held thru May and June on Sundays and is contested by many keen sailors. Major events on the Club calendar are the annual Presidents Cup Keel Boat regatta, held in conjunction with Akaroa Cruising Club, Canterbury Regatta weekend for all classes, Naval Point Women's Regatta and Trailer Yacht Class events. The annual cruise to Akaroa is proving to be popular. Harbour events are supported by the Club's fleet of rescue boats and ocean races are held in Pegasus Bay.
Naval Point has a very regular strong easterly wins, usually stronger than the Estuary. It also has a sea swell to contend with making it a fast and exciting place to sail.
Pigeon Bay Boating Club
Prevailing Wind - North East
Best Sailing Wind - North East
Pigeon Bay is situated approximately one and a half hour’s drive from Christchurch, a short distance off the main Akaroa highway, on Banks Peninsula. (Turn left at the Hilltop, first bay on the left.)
About seven kilometres long from the heads to the beach and facing due North, Pigeon Bay is exposed to good Easterly sailing winds on relatively flat water. As well as boasting one of the best sailing waters in Canterbury, there are good launching facilities and a large grassed and sheltered rigging area. The Pigeon Bay camping ground is approximately 300m from the rigging area.
The Pigeon Bay Boating Club has its ‘historic’ clubhouse right at the water’s edge next to the wharf and has a mixed fleet of trailer yachts and centreboard dinghies. There are club Optimists available for tuition.
The club regularly hosts class and PT championships each season as well as regular club sailing weekends. There is a good social atmosphere and the club is always happy to make visitors welcome.
Akaroa Sailing Club
Prevailing Wind - South
Best Sailing Winds - South, East
Akaroa is a noth-south facing harbour that has a vast sailing and racing area with spectacular scenery about an hours drive from christchurch. The club house is situated just outside the main busy street in a safe sheltred bay great for all water sports. The club is run mostly by bach owners so runs only a few major regattas. Labour weekend, Show weekend, New Years and Easter. The New Year regatta is the largest and makes a nice regatta with a leisurely schedule ideal for holiday racing.
The club boasts a small but highly competitive fleet made up of flying fifteens, lasers, paper tigers, R-class, 3.7s and the odd trailer sailor.
