Help with planning a trip

[BillyBloater]

Sleeping aboard is possible but will be a tad uncomfortable for all three of us for three nights. If I can get a good nights sleep at / near to Teddington then would not be to worried about sleeping aboard at limehouse or Gallions.

Following the advice regarding VHF I have just ordered a Cobra Handheld 300 (reasonable price, write up and it has a 12V charging lead). I have also ordered Imray C2.

Cheers

 

[mjf]

Very interesting thread.

I went from Hammersmith to the Barrier a couple weekends ago (when some daft buggars were running round the streets).

The advice listed is good IMHO. There is nothing like traversing the City in your own boat. We did nearly 60 miles taking the ebb with us and came back on the flood same day.

There is so much so see that going too quickly will spoil it. That said the advice on the sightseeing boats is excellent. Before 1000hrs all was calm - save what looked like a tidal wave by Vauxhall Bridge. On the return the poor seamanship and wash by the too many sightseeing boats made me give up at Tower Bridge and I went along the embankment to Westminster Bridge at 30 Knots as it was safer frankly. Then back to cruise and enjoy the scenary. I was surprised at the number of rowers past Wandsworth and again past Canary Wharf. There are lots of them. I too was overtaken by a police rib and the RNLI (no lights) at 30Kn+ but they kept well away so no wash.

You will be surprised at the size and amount of 'stuff' on / in the water. I'm jolly pleased I got some forum advice and steered away from a jet drive...........

 

[jaws]

Well i've learnt something. I didn't even know Gravesend had a marina!

 

[apollo]

Yes, but maybe not quite what you might expect by a marina, more of a canal basin.

There used to be a canal as well that came out just by Rochester Bridge
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/john.epton/tmca/canal_history.htm

 

[MiskinDriver]

The cheapest hotel in the area - at least with any kind of reasonable accommodation - is the Holiday Inn Express on The Highway. About 10 mins walk from Limehouse, DLR or cab from Gallions or St Katherine. Otherwise you're into the hotels around Excel, again a cab ride from anywhere and not exactly atmospheric - find em on the Excel web site.

Limehouse is by far the best bet for food etc. There are several places to eat on Narrow St (including Gordon Ramsay's first gastropub - though I doubt you'll get a table unless you're really lucky) but The Grapes has a great fish restaurant and is right on the river - and very Dickensian!

15 mins walk from Limhouse - 10 mins from St Kat's - and you're into Wapping. Prospect of Whitby - last pewter bar top in London, beer's good, food OK at best. Wapping Power Station - the old hydraulic power station - fantastic place to eat in minimal conversion and a real sense of drame - though £120 for two incl drinks. Rhodes bar B Q joint, Lillies, coupla Italians, Town of Ramsgate - beer and food good but a longer walk. (Has the advantage of being nextr door to Helen Mirren's gaff though!) all on Wapping Wall/ High St. Have a great time!

 

[Brayman]

Ah, the Grapes, the best chips, just like mum used to make, cooked in real dripping.

 

[oldgit]

"Though the PLA claim you should stay at 10 kts even in the derestricted bits, nobody (least of all the police) takes any notice"

Recently watched a man and his wife desperately attemping to physically hold their nice boat off the pier at Chelsea harbour in order to prevent serious damage, while several gin palaces merrily powered on up stream ignorant of the problems they caused.

 

[oldgit]

Cannot comment on the launching end of things,but St Kats is still my favorite bolt hole.The big posh hotel next door does occasionly do weekend deals at sensible prices.In my humble opinion there is no where nice to stop below Limehouse and the total area out to the estuary after Greenwich is dull dull dull apart from the opportunity to push the throttles up to the stops and go for a blast.
If you are brave (and have enough fuel) the next decent stop will be the MDL marina at Chatham 2 hours later . /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
As others have said the ideal time to go thru London is early morning or late evening it is not that wonderful experience during the day.
However far you go it is cracking experience and I always look forwards to going through the pool of London.

Just off Southend.

And of course it is always that calm /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[MiskinDriver]

Chelsea is within the speed limited zone - I was referring to past thge limited zone into the Pool where there is no formal speed limit, but the PLA says there is normally no reason to exceed 10 kts. So, leaving aside the poor seamanship which leaves you hanging on to anything, the area I was doing 30 kts in was a legal area - ie downstream of Tower Bridge. Realistically, that's the first place to open the throttle(s), because, before then, there are moored/manoeuvring boats etc.

Please don't come over all sanctimonious on me......

 

[oldgit]

Please don't come over all sanctimonious on me......

Sorry,the post was merely comment on the four large boats which having left St Kats powered up past Chelsea Harbour causing considerable wash and having been passed very closely indeed by a large Fairline Phantom doing 20 knots while passing through the actual piers of the barrier last year,one does question wether some boat skippers have any consideration for other river users ay all.

 

[markosy]

What dates are you planning in July, We did River wey(Papercourt Lock ) to St Kats 2 years ago left at 6am Sunnday morning and arrived at Tower Bridge at 2.00 pm, the next 2 days we spent via the canals via Limehouse back to Brentford and then home