Friday 1 May 26
Hendrina is almost 100 years old, is 19.75m long, 3.73m wide and weighs around 45 tons (and could take another 50 tons of cargo). She travels quite slowly, 7 knots maximum (around 13 km/h) but we usually travel much slower to conserve diesel and avoid overworking the engine. This means the tides and winds can have a massive effect on travel times, especially on a long-distance trip like we were planning to undertake.
The Thames is tidal along the stretch we be were going to be travelling so we needed to time it to set off two hours before peak tide, punch through the last of the incoming tide, catch the slack tide in the region of Tower Bridge - a notoriously turbulent area - and then use the receding tide to draw us down to the estuary.
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| On our way at last! |
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| The Clock Tower with Big Ben |
This meant we could only set off around lunchtime and faced the prospect of a late finish. Going through central London was certainly a challenge I would only consider doing it with an experienced captain like Nathan, as he regularly pilots these waters; he has the added advantage of usually getting treated considerately by the other captains, most of whom know him.
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| Tower Bridge |
The Thames winds back and forth slowly, around Canary Wharf you can motor for 10 km along the water and only move 5km closer to the sea - very slow going.
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| Canary Wharf |
The further we moved from London, the fewer boats were buzzing around us although those moored on the shores loading or unloading were getting bigger and bigger. At one stage we were tracking two huge ferries bearing down on us from behind but luckily we branched off on a side-channel just before they caught up. At this stage, the Thames was more than wide enough for them to over-take us but it would have been a bit bumpy crossing their wakes.
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| Approaching the Thames Barrier |
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| A rare over-taking by Hendrina. Nathan got permission to use an alternative channel through the barriers to pass the slow-moving barge |
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| We would prefer to avoid meeting one of these monster vessels behind us on the Thames |
It was getting late by the time we entered the Medway estuary and we then turned into The Swale, a narrow waterway around the Isle of Sheppey. From there it was a shortish run to Queenborough, our destination for the night.
Nathan had pre-arranged mooring and we had been advised to moor on the pontoon, a long floating jetty. When we arrived in the evening gloom we couldn't even see the pontoon, the entire area covered by boats. Nathan phoned again and we were told to pull up alongside another barge and make fast. It turned out to be an Australian couple on their way to Calais.
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| Approaching the Dartford crossing |
We were exhausted after a long day's concentration but the excitement was palpable. The weather was still looking favourable but you never know what the conditions are going to be like until you get on the Channel.
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| Avoiding the Yasmine, a huge ferry bound for Zeebrugge |
We knew the next day would be another long day. We would have an early start, hoping to the tide to pull us through The Swale and then track along the coast past Margate and the across to Nieuwpoort, Belgium. If the going was too rough or too slow, we would consider making for Dunkirk or Calais but the preference was Belgium as the customs process was a bit more simplified there.
Some iconic London views
A quick supper, short sleep and we would be away at six the next morning.
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