CA Winter Warmer, Whistlestop Tour of Europe, 13 April

Dawn Owl

Charlie
Charlie

Clifford Mickleburgh on DAWN OWL with Charlie on a whistlestop tour of Europe from the Netherlands north to Copenhagen and then south through the Kiel Canal, Frisian Islands and the European rivers and canals to Switzerland and back down the Rhine through Germany to Friesland in the Netherlands. Find out about the boat lifts and the inclined planes!

Non CA members are welcome. There is a charge of £3 for the talk, which starts at 8pm. The pub offers a special menu for these events so come to eat at 7pm. Call the Dog and Bear, Lenham, on 01622 858219 by 5pm to book your meal.

Rochester Bridge span closures, 3-5 Feb – UPDATED

Peel Ports have issued a Notice to Mariners concerning structural inspection works and span closures on Rochester Rail Bridge. Inspections and subsequent span closures will be carried out on a span by span basis:

  • 03-02-2016 low water slack at 0040hrs Rochester span
  • 04-02-2016 low water slack at 0207hrs Span 2
  • 05-02-2016 low water slack at 0328hrs Span 3 and Sole street span

Only one span will be closed to navigation at any one time. It is estimated that span closures will be between 1 hour before LW and 2 hours after LW.  A closed span will be identified by the suspension of three RED disks at the points of an equilateral triangle with the apex downwards and the base horizontal; by night by three RED lights in a similar position to the discs exhibited by day. The RED disks or lights will be suspended from the centre of the span. The safety boat ‘Dentex II’ will be in attendance during the diving operations and will maintain a listening watch on VHF Ch74.

The Gates are Open in Faversham Creek

LFaversham Creek Gatesast week, the gates at the entrance of the Basin were opened in a joint exercise between Peel Ports and the Faversham Creek Navigation Co. A large amount of accumulated rubbish was removed from behind the gates enabling the right hand gate to be fully opened but the left hand gate can only be half opened due to a problem with the hinges. However, this is enough space for the some dredging equipment to be brought through, so that dredging operations can start in the next few weeks. Read more…

Swale Estuary declared an MCZ

Today the Government has declared the “Swale Estuary” among 23 new Marine Conservation Zones.  This designation is intended to protect fragile environments, ecosystems and threatened species though no management measures have been agreed or even proposed so it is impossible for boating organisations to know how they will be affected and to comment in any useful way. The Medway Estuary was previously declared an MCZ in Tranche 1. Read more…

Nick Ardley: A Barging Childhood and Beyond, Thurs 14 Jan

Nick ArdleyThis month’s Winter Warmer is brought to you by the Cruising Association Kent Section is by Nick Ardley – A Barging Childhood and Beyond: The Story of an Essex Sailor. This talk will take you on a journey which began in the early 1950s when Nick’s parents bought a spritsail barge to live and go yachting on. She was the May Flower, built in 1888. The tribulations and joys of a barging childhood are looked at before, with time moving on, Nick leaves home, first, as an engineer officer at sea, then for married life too. His girl, a Midlands’s maiden, was soon introduced to the silt laden waters of the Thames estuary.

We then follow Nick and his mate on a passage around the East Coast’s rivers between North Kent and mid Suffolk aboard their Finesse 24, Whimbrel. As they weave in and out of muddy creeks, Nick watches as the world passes slowly by, wondering. Once at anchor, we find that Nick is just as likely to continue exploring in a gunter dinghy, sometimes ‘dragging’ his mate with him, to search for the lost world that rests amongst our salt marsh and mud.

Non CA members are welcome. There is a charge of £3 for the talk, which starts at 8pm. The pub offers a special menu for these events so come to eat at 7pm. Call the Dog and Bear, Lenham, on 01622 858219 by 5pm to book your meal.

Sun Pier update

Hayley Taylor of Medway Council informs us that WPH Marine will be commencing the works to Sun Pier on Monday 11 January and the barge will be arriving around midday.  As advised previously, the barge will be moored on the old dolphins adjacent to the pier. The works are scheduled to take place over a 9 week period, and during this time access to the pontoon will not be obstructed.