Clevedon Marine Lake Webcam – Tidal Pool and Promenade

The Clevedon Marine Lake Webcam looks along the seawater lake on the seafront at Clevedon, North Somerset, toward the wooded headland of Wain’s Hill. The upper promenade crosses the foreground, where walkers and children on scooters pass a low stone wall, and the lake’s long outer wall draws a straight line between the calm water and the Bristol Channel. A pebble beach lies outside that wall, and the open channel fills the right of the frame out to a hazy horizon. Swimmers are often out on the lake, and the charity that looks after it tells them to check this camera and the tide times before they visit. On the biggest spring tides the sea can spill over the wall and top the lake up, and on sunny afternoons the low sun sits ahead of the lens and turns the water to silver glare.

About Clevedon Marine Lake

Clevedon Marine Lake opened on 30 March 1929 as a purpose-built tidal lake, for safe sea bathing away from the channel’s strong currents. It holds about 15,000 square meters (3.7 acres) of seawater behind a wall that the largest tides overtop roughly every two weeks, on spring tides of 12.6 meters (41 feet) or more. The tidal range here reaches 14.5 meters (48 feet), second only to the Bay of Fundy.

In its early decades the lake had a timber clubhouse, high diving boards and springboards, a bathing raft, deckchairs, a row of bathing huts and a bandstand. Visitor numbers fell away in the 1970s, and by the early 2000s the lake was in disrepair. Local residents formed MARLENS, short for Marine Lake Enthusiasts, in 2004, and a 2015 refurbishment paid for by the Heritage Lottery Fund, North Somerset Council and local donations desilted the lake, repaired the walls and improved safety. The charity still runs the lake on volunteers and donations, and its website carries this camera as the official lake cam.

Wain’s Hill, the wooded headland at the far end of the frame, carries the remains of an Iron Age hill fort about 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) south-west of the town. Clevedon had 21,398 residents at the 2021 census, and its Grade I listed pier stands about 900 meters (0.6 miles) up the seafront to the north. MARLENS also drains the lake from time to time for dredging and repairs. One drain-down was scheduled for 18 to 26 October 2026, and while the lake is empty the camera can show the exposed lake bed until the tide refills it.

Weather and Climate in Clevedon

Clevedon has a mild, damp maritime climate. Long-term averages from Yeovilton, the nearest weather station to neighboring Weston-super-Mare, give January highs of about 8.5 C (47 F) with lows near 3 C (37 F), and July highs near 22 C (71 F) with lows around 13.5 C (56 F). Rain totals roughly 900 millimeters (35 inches) a year, with about 1,540 hours of sunshine. Winter brings the strongest winds, mostly from the south-west, and storms can drive the sea over the outer wall.

The lake water follows the air more closely than the open sea does, and typically ranges from 3 C (37 F) in winter to 19 C (66 F) in summer. Warm weekends are the busiest time on camera, with paddleboards, kayaks and swimmers on the water and a steady stream of people along the promenade. Cold-water swimmers keep coming through the winter, when the charity’s Polar Bear Challenge runs.

Things to Do Near Clevedon Marine Lake

Swimming, stand-up paddleboarding, kayaking, crabbing and model boating all happen here, though powered craft and large inflatables are not allowed and diving is banned. From April to September, Clevedon Sailing Club holds weekly sessions for novice sailors, with a floating rope keeping swimmers at the island end. Clevedon Miniature Golf sits right beside the camera, its kiosk and greens in the lower left of the frame, and the children’s splash pool is at the lake’s shallow end. The MARLENS website posts live water temperatures from deep and shallow sensors.

Clevedon Pier, opened on Easter Monday 1869, runs 310 meters (1,020 feet) into the channel, and John Betjeman called it the most beautiful pier in England. In the other direction, the Poet’s Walk footpath loops around Wain’s Hill and Church Hill, past the hill fort and St Andrew’s Church, the burial place of Arthur Hallam. The walk is named for the poets drawn to the town: Samuel Taylor Coleridge spent some months in a Clevedon cottage, and Alfred Tennyson visited in 1834. The charity’s yearly Light up the Lake event brings illuminated paddleboards, music and entertainment.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

For more open water and seafront views in southern and south-west England, try these cameras.

• Cheddar Reservoir Webcam
• Dawlish Webcam
• Bournemouth Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Clevedon Marine Lake located?

The lake sits at the south-western end of Clevedon seafront, off Old Church Road (postcode BS21 7TU), in North Somerset, England. It lies beneath Wain’s Hill on the shore of the Bristol Channel, about 19 kilometers (12 miles) west of central Bristol in a straight line.

What can you see on the Clevedon Marine Lake Webcam?

The camera looks from beside the miniature golf course along the upper promenade and across the lake to Wain’s Hill. The outer sea wall runs diagonally across the frame, with a pebble beach and the Bristol Channel beyond it, and a tall pole stands in the right of the picture.

What is the weather like in Clevedon?

Mild and often breezy, with January averages of about 3 to 8.5 C (37 to 47 F) and July averages of about 13.5 to 22 C (56 to 71 F).

Can you swim in Clevedon Marine Lake?

Yes. The lake is free and open 24 hours a day, but there are no lifeguards, changing rooms or public toilets at the water, so everyone swims at their own risk. Most swimmers get in from the steps at the wooded end and swim along the sea wall.

How deep is Clevedon Marine Lake?

Two thirds of the lake is under 1.5 meters (5 feet) deep and the edges are only about 1 meter (3.3 feet). The deepest water, more than 2 meters (6.6 feet), runs along the sea wall at the Wain’s Hill end.

How often does the sea refill Clevedon Marine Lake?

About every two weeks. Spring tides of 12.6 meters (41 feet) or more, around the full and new moon, overtop the outer wall and refresh the lake with water from the Bristol Channel.

Are dogs allowed at Clevedon Marine Lake?

Not at the lake itself, where a No Dogs order protects water that people swim in every day. Dogs are welcome on the upper promenade, the Poet’s Walk and the nearby beaches if owners clean up after them.

Who runs the Clevedon Marine Lake Webcam?

The camera streams on the Clevedon Marine Lake Web Cam YouTube channel and is the live lake cam on the website of MARLENS, the registered charity that cares for the lake.

Source: Clevedon Marine Lake (MARLENS)