Beautiful evening on the Thames - mad plan

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roblpm

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On a clipper up from the o2 to central London. T shirt weather, its bizarre!!

So after a g&t from the onboard bar here is the mad plan......

No good for this year as the marina fees are paid.

I am in Port Edgar on Edinburgh, but hail from London.

How about after East Coast Sailing Week next year I head South. Park in gallions or south marina for the winter. Use the boat as a floating hotel (has a nice eberspacher) and take the kids and friends on motoring trips up past parliament etc.

Wife doesn't like heeling, so motoring up and down central London might go down well!

Are there any rules up the Thames?

Am I mad??

Have I been affected by the unseasonably warm temperatures!??!!
 
We had a boat in our marina that had over wintered in St Kate's with their children and had a whale of a time. Could be a great experience.
 
Just gone under Tower Bridge at dusk. Its amazing. I did used to live 500 metres from here so not new! But would be good to do it on my boat! Need to spend some time reading the pla guidelines, i have never had reason to figure out the height of my mast!!
 
johnalison said:
We had a boat in our marina that had over wintered in St Kate's with their children and had a whale of a time. Could be a great experience.
Click to expand...

I have a feeling that i read a thread that st kats had become more difficult for small boats to over winter?? I am 28 feet!
 
roblpm said:
How about after East Coast Sailing Week next year I head South. Park in gallions or south marina for the winter. Use the boat as a floating hotel (has a nice eberspacher) and take the kids and friends on motoring trips up past parliament etc.
Click to expand...

Did a lot of investigating London marinas this year. Gallions Point has less of the "Hotel" and more of the "Detention Centre" about it. YMMV. South Dock supposedly have a policy of not letting visitors stay for more than 3 weeks at a time. That's not to say things are different in practice but that was their line and thy were sticking to it. Visitors are charged weekly so it would be expensive. There's a huge waiting list for permanent berths and an effectively infinite wait for liveaboard berths. I've been on the list for the latter for 7 years, but at the current rate of berths coming up I'm looking at another 400 years before I get one.

Who knows how things work at Limehouse. I put my name down on the waiting list 7 years ago. They seem to have lost the list and could offer me nothing this year but I know at least one other forumite is there and maybe putting your name down now would get you a winter spot next year.

St. Kats is pricey and they're a little vague on how long they'll let you stay. A month yes. More? It depends. On what they weren't so clear....
 
I popped in to Gallions Point a couple of weeks back for a recce.

I have a trailer boat and I am planning to do the Thames run next year and like to have a "look before I launch".

The pictures below focus on the slip as that is my main interest. However they also show the marina. A couple of point to consider:

1. It is DIRECTLY under the London Docklands airport flight path, and I mean DIRECTLY. The planes pass a couple of hundred feet over the tops of the boats.

2. As it is next to an open airfield area the wind can really blow across the marina, it was very windy and exposed on the day I was there.

3. there are no facilities at the marina and nothing much within a reasonable walking distance. They have closed the foot pontoon bridge to a restaurant area so you have to walk a long way around to the restaurants you can see from the marina.

However its convenient and the staff seemed pleasant.

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laika said:
Did a lot of investigating London marinas this year. Gallions Point has less of the "Hotel" and more of the "Detention Centre" about it. YMMV. South Dock supposedly have a policy of not letting visitors stay for more than 3 weeks at a time. That's not to say things are different in practice but that was their line and thy were sticking to it. Visitors are charged weekly so it would be expensive. There's a huge waiting list for permanent berths and an effectively infinite wait for liveaboard berths. I've been on the list for the latter for 7 years, but at the current rate of berths coming up I'm looking at another 400 years before I get one.

Who knows how things work at Limehouse. I put my name down on the waiting list 7 years ago. They seem to have lost the list and could offer me nothing this year but I know at least one other forumite is there and maybe putting your name down now would get you a winter spot next year.

St. Kats is pricey and they're a little vague on how long they'll let you stay. A month yes. More? It depends. On what they weren't so clear....
Click to expand...


Get the boat in under false pretences, tell them a week 10 days max, once in buy the staff coffee and doughnuts everyday and then tell them about the engine 'problem' and the parts are coming from China....before you know it you'll be in for good??
 
That is a BAE 146 landing. An interesting design in being unusual having 4 engines on a relatively small jet. In the early stages they were known as BAE bring another engine. There were engine problems but then the engines were american anyway. The advantage of 4 engines is that they can operate from shorter strips the theory being that you set performance requirments for loss of one engine. Loss of one engine out of 4 is far bettert than loss of one engine out of 2 hence able to operate safely on shorter strips. Ideal for london Docklands airport. The strip has to be long enough that if you lose an engine on take off (worse case scenario) you either have enough speed to climb out on remaining engine(s) or have room and brakes to stop on the ground.
By contrast many airlines operating long distances are moving to 2 engines for less operating costs. 2 are more efficent and cheaper to maintain. However to maintain safety margines with one engine dead is interesting. On one engine they still have to have an alternative electric generator and hydraulic system. They often have a ram air turbine (wind generator to you boaties) that provides electrics and hydraulic power when all else fails. Then they have to carry enough fuel to allow for increased fuel consumption on just one engine at lower altitudes. It is all very complex.
On the other hand in the 14 seater category the Pilatus PC 12 is very popular around here.A sophisticated pressurised high speed plane with a single prop jet turbine up front. Engines are so reliable these days that one engine can be very safe. Of course electric generator etc are duplicated
Not boaty and definite fred drift but I would think interesting to boaties as prolems can be similar. olewill just waffling
 
yes you should do it

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines, Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. Twain
 
A brilliant and comprehensive set of pics, I sailed in and out,and worked in there in the fifties and the general outline has hardly changed,back then there was every type of service you could wish for,including an hotel, now part of a modern housing complex, within easy reach including at least four pubs! Now however it is quite remote,only disturbed as has been described by the airport flights. A good set of legs, or a bicycle is required for a stay there it is, I believe, all tide working,as long as the staff are there to operate the lock---Roger---
 
Limehouse and St. Kats can be difficult for over wintering, South Dock are more accommodating if approached in the right manner (PM me if you want more detail) as for Galleons, all I have to say is I will not even work there let alone park there (boat or car). Imperial wharf is a nice location but quite bumpy even for large boats. Other places to consider if you don't want to go in and out regularly are Poplar and Blackwall.
 
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