A new guide to Newport Harbor

Never have locals and visitors alike had a chance to turn to one resource for everything they’d ever need to know about Newport Harbor.

Need to know who can tow your boat? Where are the harbor’s pumping stations? Where can you pull up and grab a quick bite and sail off into the sunset?

This guide has it.

Now available on the Newport Beach website and scheduled to come out in a 16-page color brochure in just a couple of weeks, the Complete Cruising Guide to Newport Harbor is offering sailors from far and wide a single, thorough guide to all things in the harbor.

“The idea is to try and present it from the boat’s perspective on what they would see from the water,” said Harbor Resources Manager Chris Miller. “We’re really excited about it. It’s designed to be a fluid document. It’s not going to be put on a shelf and forgotten about.”

The city spent about $12,000 putting the guide together and printing it, Miller said. It’s 16 pages, and the city is printing 5,000 copies, most of which will go to local businesses, but some will be distributed to yacht clubs up and down the California coast.

“We’re trying to make Newport Harbor a more user-friendly harbor,” Miller said. “There hasn’t been a comprehensive guide like this before. There’s been other guides, but they’ve all had different ideas and different layouts.”

The guide offers welcoming words from Mayor Ed Selich and Lt. Mark Long, the Orange County Sheriff’s Harbor Patrol harbor master. The brochure highlights features of the harbor and the Back Bay, one of the largest coastal wetlands in the region.

What most visitors to the harbor may find helpful, though, is the map that shows the layout of the harbor with a key marking eight “Dock and Dine” restaurants like Woody’s Wharf and the Bluewater Grill. Public docks are highlighted as well as yacht clubs that sometimes offer temporary slips.

It’s not just about getting around in the harbor, though; it’s about what to do once you anchor.

Attractions and entertainment like Big Corona and the Pirate’s Cove beaches are highlighted, as is the iconic Balboa Pavilion.

In about two weeks, the brochure should be available to check out at most Harbor area stores and shops like West Marine.

To see it before print, go to NewportBeachca.gov; then, under the “visitors” tab, go to Harbor Guide.