Liverpool Pilot Notes & Charts

PILOTAGE NOTES.
The River Mersey is well buoyed and marked but it should be remembered that the river is still a busy commercial port and due care should be taken when navigating within the confines of the port.

It is recommended that Admiralty Chart No 3490 “Port of Liverpool” is carried on board and that Mersey Radio are contacted on VHF Ch 12 on entering the river a they will pass on information about traffic movements and navigational hazards etc. The entrance to the Liverpool Marina is via the Brunswick Lock which is located one nautical mile south from the well known and easily recognizable Liver Buildings. From seaward, follow the buoyed river channel until you are abeam of the Plockington Bank cardinal buoy marked ‘PB’ with the Tranmere Oil Terminal to starboard. The lock entrance is to port on an approximate transit between these two points, and is identified by the usual three red/green docking signals.

The lock sill is 4.5 metres above Chart Datum and the lock is operated when there is at least 2 metres of water over it i.e. 6.5 metres of water or more above Datum. (There are sight boards in the entrance indicating depth over the sill). It is your responsibility to ensure that you have enough water under the keel before using the entrance – particularly on a falling tide!