St Kats

[No Regrets]

No restrictions on speed below Wandsworth bridge I believe, beyond what is safe and some ease Dow rextrictions at certain points eg Wapping near the residential moorings, the river police, and places where people are boarding vessels.

When we venture upriver we will back off to below 12 knots past tower.

Oh dear oh dear oh dear!!

Regardless of the speed limits, which are 12knts below Wandsworth down to around the Thames Barrier, and 8kts above Wandsworth, there are some residential areas where you may need to be going under 4kts to avoid excess wake.

And thats without the (resists urge to say 'Cretins in rowing boats') Rowers, who must not be sunk, yet venture out onto the tideway with 3/16th" freeboard.

Our old boat did 8kts flat out, and was as fast as any from point to point......

 

[oldgit]

H,mm

Don't be daft ! Most of us can't get below Shepperton because of lock closures and if you think St. Kats prices provide a refuge from EA registration fees you must be losing the plot ....

Picked up a 2014 price list.
St Kats.Annual fee up to 10m boat £ 5600.00.Inc VAT.
Less £500 for BSS ?
Under £95.00 pounds a week.
How much is a berth for a 10M boat in Bray or Penton. ?

 

[Ramage]

My Birchwood 33 (ie 10 metres or 10.50 including bathing platform) costs £3775.80 Inc VAT. EA licence £650. plus BSS.....

So at least £1000 less.

 

[No Regrets]

Scand 32 (Or scand 29 as I like to call it when booking berths...)

MDL £3500
EA £550

BSS £35pa approx.

As much as St Kats appeals, it's £1500 too much!

Bear in mind the additional fuel if you want to go anywhere....:disgust:

 

[boatone]

Wot about car parking ? Bet that costs more than the berthing if you want to leave the car there awhile !

 

[oldgit]

Wot about car parking ? Bet that costs more than the berthing if you want to leave the car there awhile !

Annual car park fee works out around £25.00 quid a week,have no idea where it is though !
Quite frankly and all joking apart compared to what a flat would cost you in the area,its bargain price if you want a long term stay.
Much as we love Bray,the view of derelict shed masquerading as a restuarant or for a extra fiver a day Tower Bridge out of ones porthole is not a difficult choice.

 

[MinorSwing]

Annual car park fee works out around £25.00 quid a week,have no idea where it is though !
Quite frankly and all joking apart compared to what a flat would cost you in the area,its bargain price if you want a long term stay.
Much as we love Bray,the view of derelict shed masquerading as a restuarant or for a extra fiver a day Tower Bridge out of ones porthole is not a difficult choice.

Unfortunately, you'll only be able to see the Tower Hotel.

 

[Chris_d]

Suppose it depends if you want a cheap London pad or to go boating, its a great place to stay in London and do the town but if you want to use the boat as a boat forget it.
Lock only opens twice a day and the time window is not enough to pop out and do much more than turn around and go back in again, anywhere worth going to stay out is 3-4hours
away. Having said that it would be great for a year maybe.

 

[No Regrets]

While St Kats is a great Marina, lets be fair the surrounding area is a bit of a Toilet at least in one direction.

I could manage it for a month, before tiring of the vast amount of jaded concrete and generously priced businesses in the area. There's only so much sightseeing one can do....

If you're serious about boating, why on earth would you want to pitch up there anyway!? It's hours away from the coast, and hours away from the pretty upriver stretches too!

Lovely place to visit though...

 

[oldgit]

Unfortunately, you'll only be able to see the Tower Hotel.

Still at least as good a view as the car parking snuggled next to the dumpsters one end of Bray or the aggregate yard nicely forming a backdrop to the toilet block at the other
Not sure what the old shipping container is used for . .

H,mm might need to nip past a bit smartish and under cover of darkness on the trip round this year. !

 

[NickTrevethan]

You have a bigger lock window at limehouse, around +-4 hours of high water. South Dock, the cheapest is, +1.5 -2 hours of HW Tower pier.

Cant recall teh St Kat's window, but it was less than Limehous I think.

Limehouse area pretty bland, although Commercial road can be ummm exciting, on a Friday night.

On the speed thing, the 12 knot restriction is upstream from the Hermitage wharf, where a bunch of larger, older boats are moored. Some liveaboard I think, and it makes sense to slow at wapping in case your wake knocks one of the river police into the water.

Down from there until you near the barrier its safe speed criteria. Check out how the clippers behave, they hit 30 odd knots down to Canary wharf, Greenland pier and beyond.

 

[Chris_d]

On the speed thing, the 12 knot restriction is upstream from the Hermitage wharf, where a bunch of larger, older boats are moored. Some liveaboard I think, and it makes sense to slow at wapping in case your wake knocks one of the river police into the water.

Down from there until you near the barrier its safe speed criteria. Check out how the clippers behave, they hit 30 odd knots down to Canary wharf, Greenland pier and beyond.

I think you will find that has all changed, it used to be 12knts to Hermitage wharf but now its mandatory 12knts to Margaretness, only craft with a certificate of competence and AIS tracker and flashing light can exceed it, which all the Clippers etc.. have. So its a definate no to 20knts from South Dock to Limehouse.

 

[Ramage]

Sigh. Just to repeat in case you missed it:

Please refer to Port of London Thames Byelaws 2012 for the full limitations, however in summary;



vessels are not to exceed a speed of 8 knots above Wandsworth Bridge, in all creeks linked to the tidal Thames and off Southend. The limit is advisory at Coryton and Thurrock when gas tankers are berthed.

There is a mandatory 12 knot speed limit which applies to vessels navigating above Margaretness unless a valid Certificate of Compliance has been issued by the Port of London Authority for the areas between Margaretness and St Saviour’s Dock, and Lambeth Bridge and Wandsworth Bridge.

 

[NickTrevethan]

Good lord, such passion.
My mistake. There is a map on the PLA website that shows a line at Hermitage, saying speed limit upstream is 12knts. There is an equivalent 8kt at Wandsworth. There are no similar lines downstream.
BUT now having printed the document out rather than looking on a small screen, there is a box below the map on the far side quoting the 12kt bylaw upstream of Margeretness.
To be honest I think the PLA speed map is a little confusing – I know understand that the limit applies to all vessels up from there, however it isn’t very clear.
Certainly the RIB that shot past us was not following the rule (and no that’s no excuse on my part either, nor is the fact I was keeping station with another private vessel about a ¼ mile ahead of me)
Even the PLA confirmed there was a 12kt limit upstream of Hermitage. Only when I pressed him did he mention the bylaw that says it also applies downstream too.
Anyway lesson learned.

 

[Chris_d]

There is nothing that raises more passion than speed limits

 

[No Regrets]

Good lord, such passion.
My mistake. There is a map on the PLA website that shows a line at Hermitage, saying speed limit upstream is 12knts. There is an equivalent 8kt at Wandsworth. There are no similar lines downstream.
BUT now having printed the document out rather than looking on a small screen, there is a box below the map on the far side quoting the 12kt bylaw upstream of Margeretness.
To be honest I think the PLA speed map is a little confusing – I know understand that the limit applies to all vessels up from there, however it isn’t very clear.
Certainly the RIB that shot past us was not following the rule (and no that’s no excuse on my part either, nor is the fact I was keeping station with another private vessel about a ¼ mile ahead of me)
Even the PLA confirmed there was a 12kt limit upstream of Hermitage. Only when I pressed him did he mention the bylaw that says it also applies downstream too.
Anyway lesson learned.

Not passion, it's just old news!

Some vessels are exempt, such as 'Those Ribs' which have to display orange '**** lights' and are licences to do WTF they want to......

You and I are not however. (Unless you work for the PLA....LOL)

PLA website is all you need, and of course, your responsibility as a Skipper :sleeping:

 

[Ramage]

Good lord, such passion.
My mistake. There is a map on the PLA website that shows a line at Hermitage, saying speed limit upstream is 12knts. There is an equivalent 8kt at Wandsworth. There are no similar lines downstream.
BUT now having printed the document out rather than looking on a small screen, there is a box below the map on the far side quoting the 12kt bylaw upstream of Margeretness.
To be honest I think the PLA speed map is a little confusing – I know understand that the limit applies to all vessels up from there, however it isn’t very clear.
Certainly the RIB that shot past us was not following the rule (and no that’s no excuse on my part either, nor is the fact I was keeping station with another private vessel about a ¼ mile ahead of me)
Even the PLA confirmed there was a 12kt limit upstream of Hermitage. Only when I pressed him did he mention the bylaw that says it also applies downstream too.
Anyway lesson learned.

No Nick, not passion. I just don't want to see anyone get nicked because they dont realise the Bylaws have been changed.

And I still wonder if Mr Clarkson's "Race" to London City Airport might have aggravated the powers that be....

 

[DogsBody]

And I still wonder if Mr Clarkson's "Race" to London City Airport might have aggravated the powers that be....

You mean the race where Clarkson managed to ridicule London's "integrated" transport system by proving that the fastest way across London in the rush hour was via a private boat - thus avoiding all the queues, taxes etc? If I recall correctly, Hammond came second on a push-bike, further proving that London's transport system sucks big time!

No, I can't see how that would have upset the powers that be at all...