Marina service
The Quarterdeck Marina (Narooma)
About
The Quarterdeck Marina (Narooma) at a glance
Small marina at Forsters Bay on Wagonga Inlet, Narooma (formerly the Narooma Marina), with hire boats and moorings; the nearby town wharf hosts Narooma's offshore charter fishing and whale watching fleet. NSW Government lists site as 'The Quarterdeck (ex Marina)' - no longer operates as a marina; now the Quarterdeck restaurant/bar (Merivale) at 13 Riverside Dr, Forsters Bay. Berthing/moorings in Forsters Bay now offered by nearby Narooma Marina (full-service marina with 24hr security, power and water)
Service area: South Coast
- Marina type
- full-service marina
- Operator
- The Quarterdeck
- Region
- South Coast
- Water body
- Wagonga Inlet
Facilities and services
- restaurant and bar (Merivale)
- historic jetty
- former pump-out site
- kayak landing
- boat hire (former)
About The Quarterdeck Marina (Narooma)
The big red boatshed on Forsters Bay has had several lives, and the marina chapter is now closed. Built over the water at 13 Riverside Drive on Wagonga Inlet, the shed began as an oyster grower's working building, then became a fish and chip takeaway with boat hire and a tackle shop attached, and spent roughly two decades as the Quarterdeck cafe run by Chris and Robyn Scroggy, where customers fed fish from the jetty and drank house-roasted coffee above the tide. For a period the site also operated as the Narooma Marina, with hire boats and moorings on Forsters Bay, and NSW Government pump-out directories still list the address as The Quarterdeck (ex Marina), a label that captures its current status precisely. In 2021 Sydney hospitality group Merivale bought the property, chief executive Justin Hemmes having holidayed in Narooma for years, and the venue now trades as the Quarterdeck restaurant and bar, pouring tiki drinks and local seafood over the inlet. Boats still tie up here informally and the jetty remains a landmark on the Forsters Bay shoreline, but there are no longer managed marina berths, fuel or marine services at the site. Visiting craft looking for berthing in Narooma now use the nearby Narooma Marina, which offers secure berths with power and water, or the town wharf precinct on the other side of the bridge. The red boatshed remains one of the most photographed buildings on the Eurobodalla coast, and its evolution mirrors Narooma's own shift from working waterfront to tourism town. Its position on the inner inlet, where the water runs clearest and the oyster leases sit closest to town, has kept it central to local life through every incarnation.
Marina facilities
As a marine facility the Quarterdeck is best described honestly: it no longer operates as a marina. The services that once made it useful to boaters, boat hire, moorings, a tackle shop and a working jetty, have given way to a licensed restaurant and bar under Merivale ownership, open for lunch and dinner with local seafood, tapas-style plates and live music across weekends. What remains of direct value to boaters is the setting itself on Forsters Bay, a sheltered arm of Wagonga Inlet where kayaks and dinghies can still nose up to the shore, and the site's role as a waypoint in the inlet's small-craft culture. The NSW Government's pump-out facility listing historically flagged this location, but mariners needing pump-out, berths or fuel today should plan around the working alternatives: the Narooma Marina nearby in Forsters Bay offers berthing with 24-hour security, power and water, and the town wharf on the northern side of the inlet provides moorings for the offshore charter fleet plus casual fishing and snorkelling access. Boat launching is available at ramps around the inlet, including the Old Punt ramp near the highway bridge on the south side, which has parking and a fish-cleaning table, and Apex Park and Mill Bay facilities on the town side. The Quarterdeck's jetty still hosts the daily theatre of pelicans and stingrays working the shallows, which is worth the paddle on its own. The practical takeaway for boaters is to plan Narooma services around the surviving operators: the nearby Narooma Marina handles berthing and security, council ramps handle launching, and tackle, bait and licence needs are met in the town centre along Wagonga Street. The Quarterdeck's phone number still appears in older boating directories, which causes occasional confusion for visitors expecting marina bookings.
Local sailing knowledge
Narooma's boating revolves around Wagonga Inlet and its bar, and any skipper using the area should treat the entrance with respect. The bar between the twin breakwalls, built from 1976 to 1978, is still rated among the most dangerous on the NSW coast when swell meets an outgoing tide, with standing pressure waves that appear over shifting sandbars; local practice is to watch conditions from Bar Rock Lookout, log in and out with Marine Rescue Narooma on VHF 16, and pick a flood tide. Inside, the inlet is a different world: clear, calm water winding past oyster leases up to the historic cemetery, with Forsters Bay the most sheltered corner for small craft. The Quarterdeck sits a short paddle from the town side, where the Mill Bay boardwalk and Apex Park give easy landing spots. The town wharf, around the bend towards the entrance, is the working hub: charter boats run from there to Montague Island for seal snorkelling and to the continental shelf for marlin and tuna, and whale watching runs from September to mid-November. Narooma's name is said to mean clear blue waters, and the town backs it with the Oyster Festival each May and a main street of seafood cafes within walking distance of the foreshore. The Quarterdeck, for its part, has simply moved from servicing boats to feeding the people who sail them. Paddlers working the inlet should time the run past the bridge on a flood tide, as currents through the rock-lined channels near the entrance run hard on the ebb. The Quarterdeck's frontage on Forsters Bay stays calm in almost all weather, making it a favoured rest stop on the inlet paddling circuit, and seals occasionally haul out on the lower timbers.