Swin Spitway and Bradwell Creek

[FulmarJeddo]

A few boats from our club on the Medway are heading up to Bradwell next weekend. It looks as though we will be at the spitway around low water. The predicted tide should be 1.2m at low water, so assuming the weather is reasonably settled, according to my reconning there should be enough water to get through with my draft of 1.2m. I take it, as there has been nothing mentioned here, that there has not been any significant changes over the winter.

Also is Bradwell creek still much the same? Again there should be more than enough water by the time we get there. Although probably not significant on next weekends tide, is the best water still on the wrong side of the red cans? I found that to my peril a couple of years ago when I left it a bit late going in on a falling spring tide. I only spent 2 hours parked next to one of the withies.

One final question, is the Green man still the best option for eating in the evening?

 

[MoodySabre]

I assume you've seen Tillergirl's chart for the Spitway. I imagine that's still good so there should be plenty of water at neaps
http://www.crossingthethamesestuary.com/page6.html

Bradwell Creek hasn't changed significantly and a couple of hours after LW there will be plenty of water in the marked channel. Nearer the cans is better than nearer the withies but TG's chart still works.

They are still working on the baffle and there are some yellow exclusion zone buoys in place.

I haven't eaten at the Green Man this year. The marina bar food has a wider choice than previously but remains adequate - what you'd expect from pre-prep frozen. Doom Bar now on tap - that's the good news.

 

[tillergirl]

When I went through the Spitway on the way to and from the SW Sunk, I hoovered up some data which I overlaid on the 2012 chartlet. On the way out (SE) I did my usual 'what safe water marks' and when diagonal; on the way back I deliberately went from buoy to buoy. You can see that the better depth was to the east and that on the line twix the buoys it looked a little shallower. 2014 data in Magenta. Hope you can see it? BUT! two cautions to this. On the way back I was sailing and having the wind on the port side (and my transducer on the starboard side), the tendency would have been for the depth-o-meter to underread because of the heel (the wonky bit is I think when I dropped the biscuit!). The second caution is that I didn't have the best live tide data to reduce the data to chart datum so there might be two or three tenths of a metre inaccuracy.

I think it is little changed and if you add on height of tide as you are doing then with that draught, you do not have (IMHO) any problems. Ditto with Bradwell since you will be carrying a couple of hours of flood by the time you get there. But I haven't done Bradwell this year. I might just trundle over there this week.

 

[Firefly]

Went into Bradwell a few weeks back in a Sadler 32 with 5' 6" draft about 2 hours after low. No trouble but it did get shallow about two red cans in. The Green Man food was good as was the beer.

'

 

[MoodySabre]

But I haven't done Bradwell this year. I might just trundle over there this week.

I'll be doing jobs there tomorrow. F31 for a cuppa.

 

[tillergirl]

Good idea. I'll see how the knee is.

 

[Cantata]

If you need any further reassurance re the Spitway, I've crossed it many times in the last few years around LW (by virtue of also being based on the Kent coast!) with a draught of 1.2m and never been worried. Never tried on a rough day though.

 

[Bru]

Came out of Bradwell yesterday 2.5hrs after LW springs and there was plenty of water. Could've got away half an hour earlier if not sooner (although I didn't need to anyway).

 

[FulmarJeddo]

Thanks for the reassurance. I have been through the spitway a few times and into Bradwell twice (if I did mess up on the last time). Just wanted to make sure no extra bumps had appeared through the winter. I will print off the new spitway chartlet, thanks TG. Just have to hope the weather is reasonable for the weekend.

 

[Ianqv]

If you are going through the spitway at low water, if it starts to get a bit shallow for you.... just banana off to the east...... theres loads of water there!!

 

[tillergirl]

If you are going through the spitway at low water, if it starts to get a bit shallow for you.... just banana off to the east...... theres loads of water there!!

Yes, that's the thing to do. I think the point is there are no sudden shocks to be expected.

 

[ex-Gladys]

My observations this year is that the steep reduction in depth coming south to north followed by a gentle increase quite quickly is no longer the case. The top of the shallower bit seems flatter and longer this year. However, as has been said here unless there's a big sea, I go through at LW with 1.5 draft with impunity. Two weeks ago the least I saw was 2.3 depth of water at about LW-30 min Whittaker

 

[Vamoose]

Eating in Bradwell

A


One final question, is the Green man still the best option for eating in the evening?

Have been twice this year (so far) green man is still good, the marina bar is not bad either . If you want a drink Bradwell Quay Yacht Club is very welcoming to visiting yachts and will even let you use their bbq facilities by prior arrangement as long as you wash up and clear up after.

 

[stevebrassett]

I went into Bradwell about a month ago, and tried to exit near low tide on the starboard side of the buoys. Even though local chartlets show more water that side, I contacted something quite solid (I draw 0.8m) before I even reached the buoys, so crossed to the marked channel. At least you only contact mud that side. This has happened twice to me now. Incidentally, don't get too close to the red buoys. We watched a RIB go aground right next to a buoy at about 9:00 PM - about an hour and a half before low tide. He had a long and dark wait for the water to come back.

 

[FulmarJeddo]

After a drift up on Saturday, we went through the spitway about an hour after LW. I took the straight line between the two safe water marks and saw a minimum of 1.6m under my 1.2m keel. Which implies slightly less water than charted, or lower tide.

On the approach, we did try and cut the corner over the end of the Whiticker spit. The charted depth at the point we tried to cut across showed about 1.6m. I bottled out when my echo sounder was reading 0.5 under the keel. Strangely on Sunday on the way back, the barge Edith May, also from Lower Halstow followed us through the spitway and cut across the Whitacker spit at what seemed to be about the same spot we tried, and got across.

 

[ex-Gladys]

Big high pressure on Sat and Sun, 1026 on my baro = 13cm reduction in tidal height