up the Thames and into the Kennet and Avon canal

[Grantie]

Hiya to you all!!

I have spent hours scouring the net for any information on taking our liveaboard yacht up thru the Thames...without success!!!

i would be greatly appreciative if anyone has ANY advice whatsoever on the subject of taking our yacht from Southampton to Newbury!!..especially with regard to bridge heights thru London(where to lower the mast[as it's on a tabernacle],and any other info on going from the sea to Maidenhead!)

The boat itself is a 1963 Waterwitch which has a draught of 3'6'',and a length/beam of 30'/9'6'' so canals should be no problem...

I'm certain someone has made this journey before but i'm really struggling to find any info on the net with regards to sailing up the Thames!!!

thanks guys

Grant and Karli
ayboygrantie@hotmail.com

 

[teddington_lock]

Are you saying you want to proceed by sail all the way ?

If it draws 3'6" you will have trouble on the canals , and 9'6" beam will be far too much for pretty much any canal lock , you'll be OK on the River Thames though.

Whats the air draught with the mast up ?

Try this page , gives you all the bridge heights as far as Teddington ...

http://www.pla.co.uk/display_fixedpage.cfm/id/174

Bridge heights upstream of Teddington can be found on pages 35 to 42 of this publication .

http://www.visitthames.co.uk/uploads/a_users_guide_to_the_River_thames.pdf

Think you'll struggle to sail a 30 foot boat upriver to the T and K , has it not got an engine at all ?

 

[BrendanS]

The post says the mast comes down on a tabernacle (easy to lower), so mast height isn't a problem, the air draught with mast down would be more important.

 

[Forbsie]

My mate is currently at Gt Bedwyn, west of Hungerford on the K&A with a 35' x 10'-ish harbour launch where all the beam is high up. He didn't even have to take his wheel-house down.

 

[Grantie]

Thanks for all your help dudes.......invaluable...as for the air draught....i'm not sure as it's not listed in the boat's details....having checked with the canal authorities i'm pretty confident that a draught of 3'6 and a beam of 9'6 should get us as far as Newbury.......we will see soon!!!!!...can always turn around!!

 

[Andrew_Fanner]

As long as there is water in the K&A 3'6" should be OK, but as the banks can be shallow, mooring could be awkward at times. Have a gangplank to hand. All the locks are borad so your beam won't be an issue. The first real pinch point on air draught is Newbury High St these days so Newbury Wharf ought to be OK.

 

[angelaquayle]

Check for any stoppages/closures before your trip - I picked up on Friday that County Lock on the K&A is shut for about a month from now. River Thames info is on the visitthames site, BW stoppages are on Waterscape.com.

 

[miket]

I would be very surprised if you can get a boat with 3ft 6inches draft very far up the Kennett & Avon towards Newbury.
There is very little boat movement and appears to be quite weedy and I suspect silted. What movement there is, is by canal boats that draw about 18 inches and have totally flat bottoms and protected prop'.
Good luck.

 

[Grantie]

i'm hoping!! the boat has a steel hull and a triple keel with the ability to take ground very well should we run into trouble~(not that i'm hoping to of course!!)...as for the prop i may fabricate some sort of protectin afore we enter the system..

thank you for all your advice so far...it's a little contradictory at times but overall has been a massive help,,,as it's hard to plan this from the Isle of Man!!!!

 

[MiskinDriver]

I spent years on the canals with a boat drawing a little under 3ft, only had occasional problems, and then on 'known' difficult stretches.

Most of the old working boats draw around 3 ft and more when loaded and they manage to get around, so I'd just be careful with a 3'6" draft.

Broad locks no problem, so go for it ....... and let us know how you get on!

 

[Chris_d]

You will have to step you mast before Tower Bridge, would be best to motor from there onwards. I've done the K&A up to Newbury in a crusier that drew nearly 3'6" and we did touch the bottom quite a few times, but it is doable.
The K&A is very nice but a bit slow going, allow at least 2 days to Newbury from Reading, have to ask though why not continue up the Thames? you'll be missing some of the best bits /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[Grantie]

i have a bit of work and lots of friend around Newbury so that would be 1st port of call for a month or three....then back to the Thames for a foray upstream for a few more months...stopping at Widsor racecourse on May 9th to get married,leaving the boat tied up at the jetty,as we spend the day in the marquee(and most of the night!).....to sail away down thru the french canals and into the med for as long as our journey takes.....this is the plan so far,,,but as you know, plans are more of a rough guide!!!! the only thing i can guarantee is the May 9th....it's booked!!!

 

[Chris_d]

Sounds like a great trip, good luck /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[MiskinDriver]

You could always book a Tower Bridge lift and then step your mast in the Upper Pool. There's nothing quite like having Tower Bridge opened for you ..... and you're guaranteed to end up in lots of tourists pictures!

 

[Grantie]

if i feel mischievous enough i might just do that!!!! the very fact that a little boat with a Manxie at the helm is going to sail up thru the middle of London Village is exciting !