Marina Blankenberge

The old fishing port has developed into a fully- fledged marina since 1953 .

Closing the old lock with a sluice to serve as a new marina was too expensive. Therefore an open marina was chosen. The dykes were strengthened and a promenade created, dredging carried out and from 1955 footbridges were built on the east side. 5 piers were added on the west side in the 1980s.

An extension was soon necessary. A new framework was added, but this too proved inadequate. In the second half of the 1960s , the idea of using the basin as a marina grew again . The work for this was completed in 1980. From then on, the Blankenberge marina could accommodate 750 boats . In 2000 , the port was expanded further, so that 250 more ships could dock .

Blankenberge Marina has a short, narrow and shallow harbor entrance near the sea that fills up in a very short time. Annual storms and increased sand transport due to severe erosion of Wenduine Beach result in rapid silting of the harbor channel, creating a dangerous situation for pleasure craft. This, along with the dredging, makes access to the marina difficult. A new western dam is being built to prevent the Blankenberge harbor channel from silting up. In 2021 it is still being discussed whether this should be publicly accessible and thus come to light... To be continued

Willem Vandenameele