Moorings just above Teddington Lock

[ThrilloPads]

We're going for a short, hopefully pleasant, trip upriver next week. From the Monday to the Friday. We'll likely only a little above Teddington. Hoping to stay a couple of nights at Teddington Lock, and then a few nights at Hampton Court Palace.

We're a bit new to this, having only recently passed our ICC, but we're keen to keep practising. I was wondering if anyone has any idea how busy these moorings might be next week? I managed to find a thread from ten years ago, started by BoatOne, saying HCP was very busy, but I understand the rules may have changed a bit since then...

My other question: In the worst case scenario where we can't find any mooring whatsoever - what's the backup? Can we drop anchor if we keep ourselves to the side of the river?

Any help greatly appreciated!

 

[Actionmat]

Hi,
No, you can't anchor and you'll find the opposite bank to the Palace very shallow.
If the weather's good, HCP can be very busy, its pot luck I'm afraid. If the river's not too busy, you might be able to stay above or below the lock if you ask the Lockie or try further up past Molesey Lock, on your port side past the sailing club are 24hr EA moorings.
There are a couple of places you can bang a mooring pin in, before HCP, between the island and the pub on your starboard side. If you want to spend a few nights at HCP, you will get on eventually.
The handy thing about Molesey Lock is it's one of the few places for filling up with water and a pump out.
Good luck!

 

[oldgit]

Have never failed to find mooring at Teddington and as mentioned the lockies have on occasion allowed us to moor between footbridge and lock.
If Hampton Court is full,we have overnighted ,with permission, on the left bank just below Molesley.
Basically lockkeeper said OK to stay over night, but if you are still there in morning, going to charge for mooring.
We departed 30 secs before the lock opened.

 

[ThrilloPads]

Hi all, thanks for the kind responses. OK, it does sound like there are a couple of other options if HCP fails. Time to invest in some mooring pins as well then!

 

[Actionmat]

Check the opening times, but you should be able to buy a set of pins at the Boat Shop by Teddington Lock. The owner's a nice bloke and an ex Lockie.
Don't forget that you'll also need a lump hammer!

 

[Lower Limit 1909]

Time to invest in some mooring pins as well then!

.

Also strongly suggest passing your ropes back inside the boat and equipping your smart phone with a gps alarm. Most of the natives are friendly in this part but sadly not all.

 

[AuntyRinum]

You can anchor on the non tidal Thames for up to 24 hours in one place, as long as you don't cause an obstruction.

 

[ianc1200]

I too was wondering why Actionmat was saying you couldn't anchor - surely that's one of the rights we do have, as long as out the fairway & max 24 hours.

 

[Actionmat]

I too was wondering why Actionmat was saying you couldn't anchor - surely that's one of the rights we do have, as long as out the fairway & max 24 hours.

Where do you suggest the OP drops anchor? I'm not being confrontational, just interested. The are a lot of passenger boats and rowers, i think I'd feel I was in the way anywhere but tied to the bank.

 

[ThrilloPads]

Hi all, thought I would follow up on this, just to share my experience. Overall, it was a lovely trip, with a few "learnings"

We stayed one night at Teddington lock, as we were told it was 24 hours - lunch to lunch. Unfortunately, because I had to go to work during the day, it meant we had to depart at 6AM!!

We got to HCP and saw that it was jam-packed. Since then I've been told that if we'd arrived around 9-10AM then many of them would have moved on.

In a slight panic, as we didn't really know where else was easy to get to, we travelled back towards Teddington. We then realised there were a few moorings in Kingston, and ended up spending a few nights on Barge Walk, which was quite pleasant! I'd previously thought it was mooring pins, but realised actually we could use rings. We hadn't managed to get to the boat shop in Teddington, because of its opening hours.

Thanks again for all the tips!

 

[Actionmat]

Teddington Locks new mooring rules are a pain. You can stay for more than 24 hours, but they expect you to move your boat first i.e five mins up the river and back and then hand over your hard earned for another ticket. Farcical.
How's that going to work during the drain off?

Then there's HCP. I was there for a few hours yesterday, only when moving off did I notice the new signs which expect the boat owner to have a smart phone and an internet connection to register on line and register arrival, or expect a £100 parking ticket through the post. Still free for 24hrs(if you jump through their hoops), but the second night has gone up from£5 to £8. No doubt to cover the cost of the new scheme. It must only affect those with a legal registered boat and a postal address, because HCPs Kingston moorings are still bristling with the same liveaboards.

 

[oldgit]

Thanks again for all the tips!

We usually go by the cunning plan of start early and finish early, say mid afternoon.
However if stopping at the extreme end of the day at around dusk,there is normally space to be found most anywhere, all the public mooring clogging day out boats will have scuttled back to the safety of their marinas to avoid having to work locks themselves and to avoid being underway after dark.