About us
About us
We invite you to join our friendly, family environment. Our membership of about 250 includes family, single and junior members and associates equating to about 400 members in total. Our members have around 135 yachts and motor boats and 50 dinghies on our site and afloat on our moorings. We have a fantastic dinghy training section for adults and children from 8 years old using our own fleet of training dinghies which are also available free for club members to use with appropriate experience.
HSC is a recognized RYA training establishment and offers a wide range of both shore based and on the water training courses for all ages from absolute beginners to yacht master.
We also have some great social events which take place within the club house and a camping area with BBQ for those warmer, summer nights.
Our modern two story club house occupies a unique position with the first floor bar and function room with balcony overlooking Southampton water and a great lawn running down to the water for those sunny days.
The grounds have ample car parking and over wintering storage for 130 cruisers up to 35ft in length and 5’3” draft, with electricity and water connections at frequent intervals. There is storage for about 60 dinghies in the dinghy pound.
A wide slipway provides for launching and recovery of dinghies and is available up to about 2 hours either side of low water. The slip is also used for the recovery and launching of cruisers at high water.
The pontoon allows for the temporary mooring of cruisers and is also suitable for launching tenders. As the pontoon dries at low water it is only accessible to cruisers from about 1 hour before high water to about 3 hours after.
We have an active sailing and social program throughout the year, which includes sail training, dinghy and cruiser racing as well as rallies to locations in the local area and across channel.
The bar is generally open Wednesday evenings, weekend lunchtimes and after racing.
Moorings & Pound
The inner moorings are generally allocated to twin keel, shoal draft and lifting keel yachts and motorboats. The very innermost moorings dry at low tide; however the sea bed is very soft mud throughout the moorings.
Moorings are allocated in accordance with the mooring by-laws by the Hon. Mooring Secretary.
The Boat Pound
The boat pound winter lay up area has space for all boats on club moorings up to a maximum of 1.6 meters (5’3″) draft, and are allocated by the pound master. There is also space for up to 60 sailing dinghies / catamarans.Tenders are normally kept in the pound space allocated to the member although there are a small number of spaces available on the sea wall at an additional cost during the sailing season.
There is vehicular access to all boats in the pound and water and mains electricity is available at regular intervals.
Our Bosun is responsible for ensuring that our tractors and equipment used for recovery and launching of boats is kept in prime condition. The larger boats in the pound will require a suitable wheeled trailer to enable launch and recovery. Smaller boats will require either a wheeled trailer or a suitable cradle which can be mounted on one of the club trailers for launch & recovery. Road trailers are not suitable.
Members are able to launch and recover their boats throughout the year and our pound is laid out in a manner that allows this without the need to move other boats. If you wish to keep your vessel afloat between October 31st and March 31st you should insure that your insurance covers this and you must be prepared to move your boat for servicing of the moorings.
There is no additional charge for launch or recovery if using your own trailer. A small charge is levied to using the club trailor. Launch and recovery is undertaken using authorised tractor drivers. It is expected that when several boats are launched or recovered on the same day that assistance is given to all by everyone involved. A launch & recovery booking diary is kept in the club house wet room. Launch and recovery procedure documents can be found in the front of the booking diary, and under the members only section of the website under mooring documents together with an online copy of a launching guideline video. Although no charge is made for launching or recovery the tractor drivers do appreciate a small token of your thanks as they give up their own time and travel at their own expense to do this for you.
Our Ethos
If you are considering joining a sailing club, why not come for a drink and a chat and see if HSC is for you.
Hythe Sailing Club History
The formation of Hythe (Southampton) Sailing Club took place in 1957.
A group of about twenty people, most of whom were local to Hythe, got together for an inaugural meeting, at which Captain Donald Depledge was appointed chairman. Amongst those original twenty were Fred Richmond, who was one of the Clubs four Trustees in the 80’s. Another founder member was Mr. J Holmes who was a director of the West Cliff Hall Hotel, and at the Club’s first Annual General Meeting he was elected as the first Commodore.
For him this was a somewhat ‘honorary’ title as he did not sail, but it was because of him that the Club found its first home; he arranged, at a modest rent, for the members to have the use of a semi-basement room in the hotel building, and the use of two small sheds at the head of a nearby creek.
Later, as the Club membership began to grow, a wooden building was purchased from Mullards for the sum of £20, transported to the site on a local coal merchants lorry and eventually erected close by the first two sheds. This then became the first clubhouse owned by the club.
In 1964 the club moved to the current location, when land reclamation work was carried the the current Hythe Pier (part of which is now the marina). Various projects were completed over the next thirty years, and in the 90’s, the current purpose build club house was built.
The club’s facilities continue to be improved, for the benefit of the club members, and the local community.
Further details about the club can be seen in a history of the club written in 1986 – Click here to download