Inspired by an article of mine published in Canal Boat April 2022 entitled "Riding The River" referring to the lack of skill of 'boaters' in dealing with the tidal Trent and their 'fear' of tidal water in general. The Thames is my favourite stretch of UK tidal and I have extensive experience of it ()H().
The tidal Thames has three distinct sections:-
Brentford-Teddington,
Limehouse-Brentford
Gravesend-BowCreek.
Between Trinity Wharf and Limehouse, (Greenwich Reach and the Lower Pool) is not included for purely logistic reasons.
Brentford - Teddington has been navigated by hundreds of leisure boaters to access the freshwater River Thames []P[] from the Grand Union and, in the other direction, to make landfall at Brentford Sea Lock []P[].
A nice adventure for any brave boater who can sort out tides and opening times and do the bit of planning needed to have a memorable day out is to leave Brentford on an appropriate day, proceed through Richmond til the tide turns (or is about to) and return to the Sealock and the safety of the semi-tidal []P[] using tide power only.
The tidal Thames has three distinct sections:-
Brentford-Teddington,
Limehouse-Brentford
Gravesend-BowCreek.
Between Trinity Wharf and Limehouse, (Greenwich Reach and the Lower Pool) is not included for purely logistic reasons.
Brentford - Teddington has been navigated by hundreds of leisure boaters to access the freshwater River Thames []P[] from the Grand Union and, in the other direction, to make landfall at Brentford Sea Lock []P[].
A nice adventure for any brave boater who can sort out tides and opening times and do the bit of planning needed to have a memorable day out is to leave Brentford on an appropriate day, proceed through Richmond til the tide turns (or is about to) and return to the Sealock and the safety of the semi-tidal []P[] using tide power only.
I am not going to deal with anchors, VHF, life jackets, weather and lock booking locks because, in the final analysis, they are not important issues. The most important issue by a nautical mile is to make sure your fuel tank is clinically clean and topped up []P[]. The worst thing that can let you down is an engine failure and pretty much the only way this can happen is to get a clogged filter on the supply line or leave with an empty tank.
Forget about Canal Plan too. I checked canal plan once to 'plan' a trip to Dartford from Bow Lock and it totally missed the tide. You can only complete that trip by taking a falling tide to Crayford Ness and ramming the boat up the entrance til you slam into the mud with the tide falling away. You then wait four or five hours for the next tide to lift your up the Darenth in its own time. Canalplan also fails to take river flow into account or human frailty.
Or 'exigencies' such as Rising Tide: watch for condition of water under bridges
Daylight: Hours of availability at sea locks at Brentford, Bow and Barking
Getting out. Getting in. Weather, Tide, Anchor, Radio, Due Diligence
Forget about Canal Plan too. I checked canal plan once to 'plan' a trip to Dartford from Bow Lock and it totally missed the tide. You can only complete that trip by taking a falling tide to Crayford Ness and ramming the boat up the entrance til you slam into the mud with the tide falling away. You then wait four or five hours for the next tide to lift your up the Darenth in its own time. Canalplan also fails to take river flow into account or human frailty.
Or 'exigencies' such as Rising Tide: watch for condition of water under bridges
Daylight: Hours of availability at sea locks at Brentford, Bow and Barking
Getting out. Getting in. Weather, Tide, Anchor, Radio, Due Diligence
