Elephant Boatyard is located on the south coast of England, within the River Hamble, which flows into the northeast side of Southampton Water. It is situated at the upper end of the meandering river, a notable yachting hub, and although a working boatyard, it occasionally welcomes visitors alongside empty berths.

Located within the protected waters of Southampton Waters and two and a half miles upriver, the boatyard offers complete protection. Although it can be safely accessed night or day and at any stage of the tide for most vessels, newcomers should visit during daylight owing to the density of moored vessels.

As this is a boatyard that accommodates visitors on an impromptu basis and on the berths of absent resident berth-holders, it is advisable to make contact during working-week hours in advance of any intended stay.

Keyfacts for Elephant Boatyard

Position and approaches

Haven position

50° 52.956' N, 001° 18.218' W

This is the southernmost end of the hammerhead pontoon.

What is the initial fix?

This is located 80 metres southward of Hamble Point South Cardinal buoy Q(6)+LF1. 15s and on the line of bearing of 352°T, in the white sector (351°-353°) of Hamble Common Light-beacon.

What are the key points of the approach?

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What's the story here?

The Elephant Boatyard is a well-known traditional boatyard situated on the west bank of the River Hamble in Old Bursledon, two and a half miles above its entrance. The boatyard lies 250 metres below Bursledon Bridge, which, for most sailing vessels with an air draught of 4 metres (MHWS) and 3.5 metres HAT, marks the effective head of navigation. It is a family-run business renowned for its excellence, specialising in the refit, restoration, and bespoke construction of classic wooden yachts. While they also work on GRP vessels, their main passion is traditional wooden craft.

The Elephant Boatyard does not have dedicated visitor berths and does not offer specific arrangements for visitors. However, they occasionally accept visitors on an ad hoc basis if there is space available on their boatyard's hammerhead. Although these visits are entirely impromptu, they are competitively priced and located in a fascinating part of the river that is steeped in history, making them well worth checking to see if they can accommodate a vessel.




Pontoon Berthing [2025] Including electricity:

• • £3.90 per foot / £12.80 per meter

Weekly Rates:

• • Inner Pontoon: £3.40 per foot / £11.20 per meter per week


• • Outer Pontoon: £2.65 per foot / £8.70 per meter per week


• • Creek Rate: £2.65 per foot / £8.70 per meter per week

Because this is on an ad hoc basis, if space is available, it is recommended that berthing is arranged in advance by contacting the Elephant Boatyard during the working week hours, 9 am to 5 pm
+44 (0)23 8040 3268, info@elephantboatyard.co.uk or via their web form .

They also tend to favour boat owners who fully utilise the yard's facilities. Moreover, the onsite floating Ferry Restaurant, most notably built into what was once the Woolston Floating Bridge, has been serving excellent food for over a decade to boatyard patrons. Those intending to dine in the restaurant are also given priority when it comes to berths.

How to get in?

Guidance, tide timers, and waypoints to Southampton Waters are provided in the Western Approaches to The Solent and the run-up to Southampton or the Eastern Approaches to The Solent and the run-up to Southampton . Approaches, tide timers, and waypoints for the run-up the river as far as Bursledon Bridge, the effective head of navigation for most sailing craft, are covered in the Navigating the River Hamble .




Berth alongside the boatyard’s hammerhead as directed.

Significant caution is needed when berthing in the Hamble River on the ebb. This is particularly true during Springs when the 'river effect', caused by a very rapid initial tidal drop, is intensified by the Solent's double high 'tidal stand', which allows only 3-4 hours for the ebb to complete its cycle. The combination of the 'stand' and 'river effect' results in a disproportionately sudden and intense first ebb flush that is best avoided when coming alongside or, if the skipper chooses to proceed, requires close attention from the helmsman.

Likewise, be alert for strong cross-currents when passing between the marina's pontoon heads. These currents will not remain constant as the depth decreases into the marina area, and in some cases, the tidal flow may even decrease. It is helpful to know the berth orientation in advance; if there is a stream, it is easier to approach against the tide. Therefore, having prior knowledge of the berth orientation or requesting a more straightforward berth to approach is advisable.

Why visit here?

Elephant Boat Yard received its name from the later 74-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, HMS Elephant. She was built and launched from the boatyard in 1786, and the current boatyard, founded by Michael Richardson in 1952 on the same site, adopted the ship's name to commemorate the renowned ship's birthplace.


Shipbuilding in the River Hamble dates back many centuries before HMS Elephant. The river's sheltered waters, forested banks, and easy access to the sea created ideal conditions for building timber ships, and King Henry VIII's fleet was constructed in this area. The river's shipbuilding peak was during the time of HMS Elephant in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. At that time, HMS Elephant was one of forty-six ships the River Hamble supplied to the navy. Afterwards, the supply of shipbuilding timber began to decline around the river, and much of the naval shipbuilding shifted to Beaulieu and Lepe, where the New Forest offered abundant resources. By then, the defeat of Napoleon at Waterloo and the subsequent absence of a French threat for decades reduced the need for such vessels.




But this was not the case when the master shipbuilder George Parsons was building HMS Elephant at Bursledon. Parsons was born in Poole in 1744, and after working as a shipwright at the Royal Dockyard, he progressed to leasing the Bursledon yard and later established his own yard at Warsash. Elephant was designed by Sir Thomas Slade as a 3rd rate 74-gun ship and was constructed from Baltic timber planking. Elephant's dimensions included a 168 ft Gun Deck, a 139 ft 10in Keel, a breadth of 47 ft, a depth of 19 ft 9in, a tonnage of 1617, and she was battle-ready with 590 men. In late November 1790, she narrowly avoided destruction when lightning struck her while she was in Portsmouth harbour. The main topmast exploded but did not fall through the quarterdeck as the top rope still held it. By chance, in 1801, HMS Elephant became Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Copenhagen, where she contributed to the legend surrounding Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson.




The formation of a 'League of Armed Neutrality' among the northern powers—Russia, Prussia, Denmark, and Sweden—in 1800 led to the War of the Second Coalition, where HMS Elephant and Nelson would come together. Nominally, the league was formed to protect neutral trade at sea, particularly to ensure free trade with France, which was at the time blockaded by the British navy. The British saw the League as a significant threat that was very much in France's interest and dispatched a fleet of fifty-three ships, including eighteen ships of the line, to the Baltic in the Spring of 1801. Sir Hyde Parker, an amiable man who was naturally cautious and deliberate, was given command of the fleet. He had Nelson as his second-in-command, then a junior admiral, but Parker was unrivalled in his authority and held the confidence of the fleet. When they arrived off Copenhagen, where the Danish fleet was concentrated, Sir Hyde Parker was inclined to blockade Denmark and seize control of the Baltic entrance. However, Nelson, a man of action, was tired of manning the French blockade and urged a pre-emptive attack on the Danish fleet in the harbour, and Parker agreed. Before the battle, Nelson transferred his flag from the 98-gun HMS St. George to HMS Elephant, as her shallower draught made her more suitable for the shallow waters around Copenhagen.




The attack started poorly for the British, with HMS Agamemnon unable to reach its intended position, HMS Bellona and HMS Russell running aground, and because the wind was from the southeast, Sir Hyde Parker couldn't execute his planned attack from the north. The rest of the fleet faced heavy fire from Copenhagen's formidable Trekroner, Three Crown, and the battery at the northern end of the seafront, along with Denmark's strongest ships found there. They exchanged fire for two hours, and Parker, noticing the danger to Nelson's position, grew anxious. He sent his second-in-command, Captain Robert Waller Ottway, with a message authorising him to retreat if he deemed it necessary. Before Ottway arrived, who had to row in a boat to reach the HMS Elephant, Parker decided it would be more generous for him to take responsibility for ordering the retreat. Therefore, he hoisted the signal of recall, reasoning, I will make the signal for recall for Nelson's sake. If he is in a condition to continue the action he will disregard it; if he is not, it will be an excuse for his retreat and no blame can be attached to him.




As it happened, Parker's recall was a well-meant but poorly judged order. Nelson could only have retreated before the south-easterly wind by passing the Trekroner Fort, where the passage is narrow, navigation difficult, and the guns of the battery would have had full sway over his ship. He, therefore, disregarded the signal, angrily responding to the signalman who informed him of it, 'I told you to look out on the Danish commodore and let me know when he surrendered. Keep your eyes fixed on him'. He then amused himself with the few officers on the deck of HMS Elephant by turning to his flag captain, Thomas Foley, and saying, 'You know, Foley, I have only one eye. I have a right to be blind sometimes.' Then he, raising his telescope to the blind eye, said, 'I really do not see the signal.' Of Nelson's captains, only one, 'Riou', who was in charge of the frigates opposite and attacking Trekroner Fort and could not see Nelson's HMS Elephant, followed Parker's signal. As they drew off, his force was exposed to heavy fire from the fort, and 'Riou' was killed.




The bombardment continued for another hour, leaving both the Danish and British fleets heavily damaged. But it was at this time that the battle swung decisively to the British as their superior gunnery took effect. The guns of the dozen southernmost Danish ships had started to fall silent owing to the damage they had sustained. Nelson astutely and legitimately seized the opportunity to open negotiations with the Danes. The Danish commander, Crown Prince Frederick, who was shaken by the spectacle of the battle, allowed himself to be drawn into a reply, which had to be referred to the fleet commander Parker. The Danes then suspended the fire to allow time to receive Parker's answer, which Nelson promptly made use of to withdraw his squadron past the Trekroner fort. The difficulty found in getting the ships out, one of which grounded in the process, showed how disastrous it would have been to attempt to draw off under the fire of the forts.



Parker approved of Nelson's actions in retrospect, and Nelson was given the honour of going into Copenhagen the next day to open formal negotiations. At a banquet that evening, he admitted to Prince Frederick, who spoke English, that the battle had been the most severe he had ever been in. The Danish government, which had entered the coalition largely out of fear of Russia, was not prepared to make significant sacrifices and was happy to enter into negotiations for an armistice. In the event, the assassination of Tsar Paul in the following days cleared the path for them to sign a fourteen-week armistice. This left the British fleet free to proceed up the Baltic. Parker was recalled in May, and Nelson was made commander-in-chief in the Baltic Sea. As a reward for the victory, he was created Viscount Nelson of the Nile and of Burnham Thorpe. Nelson then sailed to the Russian naval base at Reval, now Tallinn, to find that the pact of armed neutrality was to be disbanded. Satisfied with the outcome of the expedition, he returned to England in July.



Copenhagen is often considered Nelson's hardest-fought victory, ranked alongside battles such as the Battle of Trafalgar, as the Danes offered a very stubborn resistance. With the help of HMS Elephant, Nelson's legend was to grow larger, and the expression of 'turning a blind eye' became a household catchphrase.




The Elephant Boatyard continues to build boats to this day. Since 1952, it has operated as a traditional family-owned business under the Richardson family's custodianship. It continues to offer a comprehensive service, including moorings, slipping, and storage for yachts based on the Hamble River and further afield. Known for its charming and somewhat rambling site, it is a mecca for boaters to ramble around. The charm of old-world sailing values hallmarks all their dealings (something that the author can attest to having fitted out for a circumnavigation here).




The adjacent Jolly Sailor pub perfectly dots the i and crosses the t of this unique touchstone of British nautical history. Parts of the current structure date back to the 18th century. It was initially built as a vicarage in the 18th century and transformed into "The Jolly Sailor Public House" in 1845. In its time, it had an adjoining shed that stored the dead bodies recovered from the river until an inquest was held at the pub. It has witnessed centuries of shipbuilding, sailing, and seafaring life, and this is evident in its traditional character, with old beams, exposed brickwork, and nautical paraphernalia. It is by far the most famous pub on the Hamble.




Those intending to stay should dine at the Ferry Restaurant, originally a chain-link ferry permanently berthed in the marina. It is the ideal location to take full advantage of the beautiful views in peaceful surroundings whilst enjoying excellent cuisine.

What facilities are available?

The hammerhead is equipped with electricity and water. The boatyard has a highly skilled workforce capable of dealing with most boat repairs, big and small. The large well stocked Force 4 chandlery situated within the yard has almost any part imaginable. Swanwick Marina’s fuel berth is immediately opposite.

The Ferry Restaurant is fully-licensed and there are plenty of excellent pubs and restaurants on either side of the river in the immediate vicinity. Swanwick post office across the river is within walking distance of the marina. The closest large supermarket is Tesco, a 20 minute walk at 1.2 miles from the marina, at the top of Hamble Lane.

Located on a bend of the Hamble River, just before the A27 Bridge, road access and parking is very convenient and usually available close to the main gangways. Bursledon railway station, on the West Coastway Line, is a short stroll. It offers an hourly service between Southampton Central and Portsmouth Harbour each day of the week, with additional trains at peak periods.

With thanks to:

Michael Harpur S/Y Whistler.