About
Marks Point Marina at a glance
Family-run marina on Belmont Bay with state-of-the-art Bellingham floating concrete berths for vessels to 20m, swing moorings and jet ski pontoons. Offers a large slipway, shipwright and mechanical repairs, fuel dock (diesel and premium ULP), chandlery, laundry and CCTV security; onsite marine tenants.
Service area: Lake Macquarie
- Marina type
- full-service marina
- Operator
- Marks Point Marina (family run)
- Region
- Lake Macquarie
- Water body
- Belmont Bay, Lake Macquarie
- Maximum vessel
- 20 m
- Berth types
- casual berthing, permanent berthing, swing moorings
Facilities and services
- fuel
- slipway
- repairs & maintenance
- chandlery
- 24/7 security
- power & water
- showers & laundry
- jet ski pontoons
- marine engineering tenant
- boat sales tenant
- upholstery and covers tenant
- slipway antifouling
- spray painting
- onsite accommodation
About Marks Point Marina
Marks Point Marina occupies a sheltered elbow of Belmont Bay on the western shore of Lake Macquarie, a position that puts it close to the Swansea Channel and the ocean entrance while staying out of the weather. It is a family-run operation, and it shows in the way the place is organised: berths, moorings, a working boatyard, a fuel wharf and a chandlery all compressed into one compact waterfront, with the owners priding themselves on a one-stop approach for the lake's boating community. The marina's floating concrete dock system by Bellingham takes vessels to about 20 metres, and alongside the walk-on berths there are swing moorings and dedicated jet ski pontoons, an honest reflection of how Belmont Bay is actually used, by sailors, fishos and PWC riders alike. The yard side of the business is equally important to its identity. A large slipway handles antifouling and refits, and the on-site tenants turn the marina into a genuine service hub: ACME Marine Engineering for mechanical and welding work, BUYABOAT for boat sales, and Coast Covers for upholstery, covers and trimming. The surrounding suburb is unpretentious lakeside country, with the Belmont Golf Club, cafes, beaches and bush tracks within walking distance, and the better-known Belmont 16ft Sailing Club just along the shore. The clientele is overwhelmingly local: Lake Macquarie keelboat owners, trailer boat families from the western suburbs of the lake, and a steady flow of coastal boats that have nipped in through Swansea Channel and want fuel, a berth for the night or a slip before heading further. It is the sort of marina where the staff know the regulars' boats by name, and it functions as the practical, grease-under-the-fingernails counterpoint to the lake's newer resort-style developments.
Marina facilities
The berthing core is a Bellingham floating concrete marina rated for vessels to 20 metres, with power and water at the berth, full CCTV coverage and gates closed to the public, which gives permanent berth holders a level of security unusual for a yard of this size. Swing moorings and jet ski pontoons broaden the storage options, and casual berthing is available for visitors. The fuel wharf sells diesel and premium unleaded, and a well-stocked chandlery on site carries mainstream brands, with staff happy to advise on what suits a particular job. The boatyard is built around a large slipway used heavily for antifouling, and the in-house shipwright team handles spray painting, fibreglass and timber repairs, plumbing and general refurbishment, while a marine mechanic services a wide spread of inboard and outboard engines. The three on-site tenants fill the remaining trades: ACME Marine Engineering covers mechanical and welding, Coast Covers does upholstery, canopies and trimming, and BUYABOAT runs brokerage sales from the marina. Amenities are practical rather than glossy: showers and toilets, a laundry with a coin-operated washing machine and a complimentary dryer and ironing board, and on-site car parking, all available to anyone berthed at the marina. Accommodation can be arranged through the marina for owners whose boats are in the yard, and the location puts charter operators, dive charters, scenic lake cruises and jet boat rides within easy reach for visiting crews. Berthing enquiries and bookings are handled directly by the family team rather than through a corporate switchboard. Altogether it is a genuine full-service yard: a boat can arrive on the lake, fuel up, berth securely, be slipped, antifouled, re-trimmed and mechanically serviced, and its owner can sleep, shower and do laundry without leaving the waterfront.
Local sailing knowledge
Belmont Bay is one of the friendliest pieces of water on Lake Macquarie, a wide, mostly sheltered bight on the lake's western side with the entrance channel at Swansea only a short run away. Boats arriving from the ocean transit the Swansea Channel, which is dredged and marked but shallow in patches and best worked with the tide; the Swansea Bridge at the channel's northern end opens for vessels that need the air draft. Once inside, the lake opens out into roughly twice the area of Sydney Harbour, and Belmont Bay's shores give good protection from the summer north-easters and the westerlies that blow off the Watagan ranges. Depths across the lake are modest, so keelboats stick to the marked channels on the longer legs south toward Wangi Wangi or across to Toronto. Fishing is the other religion here: the bay and the channel mouth produce flathead, bream and whiting, and the beaches at Blacksmiths and Redhead are minutes away for crew who want surf. Ashore, Belmont township covers the essentials, with supermarkets, bakeries, pubs and the landmark Belmont 16ft Sailing Club, a huge licensed club that welcomes visiting boaties and sits right on the water a short distance north. The Belmont Lagoon and the Fernleigh Track rail trail give off-boat exercise, and the Green Point foreshore reserve at nearby Valentine is a popular picnic run by dinghy. Marks Point itself is quiet suburbia, which is precisely its appeal after a boisterous night at the sailing club. For coastal crews, the marina makes a sensible first port inside the lake: fuel, a secure berth and a mechanic all at the threshold of the lake, before deciding whether to cruise south into the lake's quieter reaches.