What's the story here?

Scratchell's Bay is a picturesque bay located at the southwest point of the Isle of Wight, just southeast of The Needles. The isle's western extremity, known as Needles Point, is a narrow chalky peninsula that rises perpendicular to the sea, forming high, jagged chalk cliffs. The largest and steepest expanse of these cliffs faces southward toward the English Channel, creating the dramatic Scratchell's Bay. It rises to 120 metres in height, measures 400 metres in length, and features a straight coastline with a 250-meter-long shingle beach at its base. A small cave, Needles Cove, is located at the bay's eastern end beneath Sun Corner.




The bay is reserved for boaters since it is only accessible from the sea, with no paths leading down from the cliffs. Likewise, it can truly only be seen from seaward as views from the island provide only oblique glimpses from its extremities, which lie within the National Trust. This vantage point is located either on the eastern cliff at the lookout point near the rocket launching facility or from the western Needles Old Battery.




From a boating perspective, Scratchell's Bay is shallow near the shore, with its 2-meter contour located more than 200 metres from the cliff face. Fin keel vessels will need to anchor a couple of hundred meters from the cliff face and work the tides to come in closer. Shallow draft vessels will have an easier time, but the bay's boulder bottom makes it unsuitable for vessels that can take to the bottom to dry out here.




It is free of approach hazards but poses two key dangers at the east end of the bay. The bay is clear of obstructions, except for the dangerous Saint Anthony Rock and the wreck of a 19th-century iron-hulled sailing ship named the Irex that sank here. The easily identifiable Saint Anthony Rock lies just inside the 2-metre contour, 160 metres west by southwest of Scratchell's Bay's Sun Corner. The more hazardous wreck of the Irex poses a challenge as it lies out over the centre of the bay. However, it is nearly aligned with Saint Anthony Rock, located 200 metres west by southwest of it. Both can be easily avoided by staying clear of the bay's eastern end on approaches approximating the location of the Irex by identifying Saint Anthony Rock.

How to get in?

Guidance and a tidal timer for a Western approach can be found in Western Approaches to The Solent and the run-up to Southampton . South Around the Isle of Wight offers an east-west tidal counter and navigational guidance for the southern side of the island.




The distinctive chalk cliffs overlooking Scratchell's Bay, immediately southeast of the Needles, will most likely be the first visible point seen from seaward on a western or southern approach. On closer approaches, the three very distinctive rocks called the Needle Rocks, with a striking red and white striped lighthouse positioned on the outermost rock, will be seen jutting out from the Needle Point.




The Needles – lighthouse Oc.(2) RWG.20s 24m 17-13M position: 50° 39.734'N, 001° 35.500'W


Vessels approaching from the southeast will see the white chalk of Scratchell Bay begin to dominate the island's eastern clays and sands at Freshwater Bay about 3 miles east of Needles Point. The chalk cliffs commence in the middle of Freshwater Bay, where they are low at first and climb magnificently. Vessels that stay out in the 5 metre contour or beyond 250 metres of the cliffs will find no dangers along this coast.




The Initial fix is set in about 3 metres of water and about halfway between the Needles Lighthouse and the position of the wreck of the Irex. The wreck dries to 0.5 metres LAT and is only awash on a low spring tide. Unmarked, sitting immediately outside the centre of the bay and reaching up from deep water, the wreck is very dangerous for leisure craft.




The less dangerous of the bay's two dangers is the inshore Saint Anthony Rock, which has a drying height of 0.6 metres. Saint Anthony Rock lies just inside the 2 metre contour, 160 metres west by southwest from Scratchell's Bay's Sun Corner, following the eastern cliff face line leading to the corner. It is always visible or awash and usually very easy to pick out. The Irex wreck lies along about the same line of alignment, 200 metres west by southwest from Saint Anthony Rock. The key to operating in the bay is to identify the wreck's location and work around it.




The objective of the initial fix is to sound your way northeastward into a suitable depth for anchoring while setting up an 'eye ball plot' upon Saint Anthony Rock. With this point of reference, the general position of the Irex wreck may be safely approximated. Once Saint Anthony Rock has been clearly identified, it is possible to pass 50 to 100 metres westward of Saint Anthony Rock safely clear of the Irex wreck that is 200 metres away from it, and then on into the bay. It is likewise safe with a sufficient rise to pass midway between Saint Anthony Rock and an inshore rock and then Sun Corner on the eastern shoreline, but some may find this daunting.

A local set of transits for those who want to more precisely define the position of the Irex wreck is to align the crown of Saint Anthony Rock with the small cave on the shore in Sun Corner's Needles Cove, where this line of bearing is 085°M. The intersection of this line of bearing with the broken eastern dry moat wall, which can be seen jutting out over the top of the cliff from the Old Needles Battery at 027°M, marks the location of the Irex wreck.




The bay is shallow a long way out from the foot of the cliffs, with the two metre contour about 220 metres out from the cliff face. Hence, keel boats will only be able to come in close on neaps or the top half of the tide. There is only about 1 knot of tide close to the shore.




Anchor according to draft in sand, shale and loose boulders. Land by tender on the shingle beach.

Why visit here?

Scratchell's Bay derives its name from Old Scratch or Mr. Scratch used to describe the Devil. It is believed to be derived from the Middle English name scrat, the name for a demon or goblin, which itself stems from the Old Norse word skratte.




It was most likely that the bay acquired the name because of its position. A vessel that misidentifies The Needles channel, or loses control over The Bridge, would find Scratchell's Bay awaiting in the guise of a deadly lee shore. This was very much the case with the sad tale of the Irex, which to this day remains one of the bay's primary dangers to leisure craft.




Irex was a Glasgow-built, three-masted, 92-metre-long steel-hulled ship that launched in October 1889. She sailed out on her maiden voyage on Christmas Eve of 1889 with a cargo of 3,600 tons of iron sewerage pipes bound for Rio de Janeiro. The ship encountered furious winds shortly after departing and was forced to take shelter in Belfast Lough. Irex set off again on January 1st, 1890, only to be caught in hurricane-force conditions south of Ireland a couple of weeks later. These conditions were so bad that it forced the ship to run off up the English Channel. The captain tried to take shelter in Falmouth but was not able to secure a pilot boat and had to continue the run up the channel. Approaching the Needles, the ship's captain then made the fatal error of mistaking the light from a pilot boat for that of the Needles Lighthouse.




At 10 p.m. on January 24th, the Irex ran up on Satchell's Bay before he could correct the error. Its steel hull smashed onto the chalky plateau of Satchell's Bay, started to flood, and it was immediately clear that the schooner was finished. With the Atlantic waves breaking over the ship, the Captain gave the order to abandon ship. He and the First Mate set about launching the lifeboat and were quickly carried away and killed by an enormous wave. Almost at the same time, another huge wave stoved in the wheelhouse, drowning the Boatswain who had returned there to secure the ship's log. The rest of the crew took cover as best they could.




At 9 a.m., the soldiers of The Needles Battery saw the wreck and alerted the Totland lifeboat. The lifeboat launched and came to the scene by noon, where it was assisted by a steam collier Hampshire who had also spotted the foundering Irex and had come to offer assistance. The storm-tossed seas overpowered both vessels, and in the event, none could come near the Irex. A large wave then smashed the lifeboat into the bow of the Hampshire and caused such damage that the lifeboat had to abandon the rescue attempt, and then had to be towed back to port by Hampshire.




At 1:15 p.m., the Coast Guard launched a rocket from the battery over the wreck situated 300 metres offshore. The rocket carried a line from the shore that, unfortunately, became entangled in the rigging. The survivors then climbed the rigging to retrieve the line, with one of them falling to his death in the process. Finally, after two hours of courage and desperation, the line was secured and a hawser was sent out. This ultimately enabled 29 survivors, from a crew of 36, to be winched by chair from the ship to the cliff-top. The Irex remains, to this day, the largest sailing ship to be wrecked on the Isle of Wight.




Today, a leisure craft visiting Scratchell's Bay on a fine day can expect a vastly different experience. In fine weather, this destination invites one to marvel at the bay's immense concave recess and towering chalky cliffs. The flint-defined stratification in the chalk, at approximately 45° compared to the near-vertical strata of the Needles stacks, enhances the beauty of its bold and varied outline.




On a beautiful day, the contrasting colours between a burnished blue sky, the white chalk of the bay's magnificent imposing arch, the grey flint pebbles on the beach and crystal clear translucent waters offer a truly unique experience.




The fact that it is the reserve of the cruising vessel along with the guillemots, ravens and razorbills soaring up its 120 metre cliffs, only adds to its unique appeal to stop for lunch or come ashore for a short stroll.

What facilities are available?

This is a remote bay that has no facilities except for its shingle beach on which to land.

Any security concerns?

Never an issue known to have occurred to a vessel anchored off Scratchell’s Bay.

With thanks to:

Peter Lemonius of Needles Pleasure Cruises, who visit the bay several times a day during the season.