River Thames Source to Sea

Time of year traveled: July 2015

Total approximate distance: Kemble to Southend – 206 miles / 330 kms

Speed of our journey: Endurance (9-13 hr days on the water)

Why?

Are you looking for a SUP adventure where you start at the source of very beautiful river and follow it all the way to the sea? Wildlife, riverside pubs, villages and goes houses, wild camping, many conversations with water people (anyone on the water) and ramblers, plus the joy of paddling past epic sites such as Big Ben and the London Eye… this is an adventure not to be missed!

NB: The source of the River Thames is near Kemble Station (Thames Head), in a field marked by a stone. It is approximately 36 kms from this stone, to a suitable SUP start point in Lechlade where there is enough water to launch from.

OUR PLAN

Day Approx Distance(kms) Start Point End Point Accommodation Notes
0 - - - Tavern Inn at Kemble Train to Kemble the night before starting
1[a] 36 Thames Head Lechlade N/A Completed on a bike
1[b] 10 Lechlade Radcot Bridge Ye Olde Swan Tipi Villiage (opposite Ye Olde Swan Pub) Switched bikes for SUP (had support crew)
2 27 Radcot Bridge Eynsham Lock Campsite at Eynsham Lock on the Island Facilities available at Eynsham Lock
3 32.5 Eynsham Lock Clifton Lock Bridge House Campsite -
4 30 Clifton Lock Whitchurch Wild camping between Goring Lock at Whitchurch We wanted to sleending-point at Goring, however there were no wild camping or riverside accommodation, so we continued to Whitchurch. It was a little tricky to find a wild camping starting-pointot, so explore the area to see if there is anything new that's opened up.
5 27 Whitchurch Henley-on-Thames Camping on the grounds of Henley Sea Cadets We were fortunate to meet an organised group of kayakers who had arranged to stay on the grounds of the Henley Sea Cadets. You would need to contact them to see if possible to stay, as it has great access to the river, or find alternative accommodation.
6 26 Henley-on-Thames Bray Lock Amerden Caravan and Campsite -
7 34 Bray Lock Sunbury Lock Wild camping There were no campsites and we didn’t want the expense of a hotel on the river, so we ate at The Weir Hotel and discretely set up our tent in the grass area next to the property of the pub.
8[a] 13 Sunbury Lock Teddington Lock N/A The last section of the tidal Thames.
8[b] 19 Teddington Lock Putney Foreshore (before the Bridge) Premier Inn London Putney Bridge

(SUP boards stored at a rowing club on the foreshore - arranged prior to arriving) 		Once you reach Teddington Lock, the Thames becomes tidal, so plan your day according to the tide times.



From Teddington to Putney Bridge, there are no restrictions to you being on the water with a paddle board.
9 27 Putney Foreshore North Woolwich Travel Lodge London Woolwich (SUP boards stored at the hotel) Onwards from Putney Bridge, you need prior permission to paddle with the Port of London Authority.
We would recommend making first contact with the PLA at least 3 months before your journey commences.
10 25 North Woolwich Gravesend A hotel in Gravesend (can't recall now). SUP boards stored at XXX, near the riverside and arranged prior to arriving. -
11 30 Gravesend Southend Pier Train along Southend Pier, followed by a train back to London and home. This was the plan. In reality on the day we had to break up the 30 kms over two days and exit at Hole Haven, due to a storm approaching, which would have made it dangerous for ourselves and the safety boat to remain on the water.

OUR KIT LIST

Board Kit Camping Kit Personal / Other Kit
Inflatable SUP board with bungee cords attached Light weight tent Two changes of paddle clothes (items dependent on season)
Carbon paddle (preferable) Sleeping mat Waterproof jacket
Pump Sleeping bag and liner Warm clothes for in the evening
Fin + screw Torch Swimwear
Spare screw First aid kit Water shoes
Leash Gas cooker & matches Trainers
Bouyancy aid Bouyancy aid Toiletries
Rope (at least 4m for each board) Plate/s Hand Gel
Cutlery Travel towel
Eco friendly washing liquid Chargers
Swiss army knife Camera
Water bottle River Thames Map
Bladder (to carry extra water)
Waterproof bags
Food and snacks

RIVER REQUIREMENTS

NON-TIDAL THAMES

Requirements
You are required to hold a British Canoeing license, which means you are insured as a paddler on the non-tidal Thames.

Lock Guidance
The Environmental Agency has issued guidance for SUP users when approaching a lock.

In our experience, if your SUP board is fully loaded, portaging 45 locks will feel quite painful and tiring. If you speak to the lock master and suggest kindly that you either pull your board through the lock with a long rope attached, or go into the lock on the board yourself (on your knees) and hold onto the chains as the water is released slowly out, they may allow you to do this. It’s always worth asking.

TIDAL THAMES and CENTRAL LONDON

Teddington to Putney Bridge
On a paddle board, you do not require permission to paddle board between Teddington Lock and Putney Bridge, however you must comply with the Paddling Code developed by the Port of London Authority.

Putney Bridge to Tower Bridge
On a paddle board, there are strict rules in place if you wish to paddle board between Putney Bridge and Tower Bridge. Please refer to the Paddling Code for details. If you don’t comply, you won’t be authorised or allowed to make the journey.

Tower Bridge to Southend
You must contact the PLA to discuss the rules they have in place, if you wish paddle beyond Tower Bridge.

WHAT DID WE DO TO PADDLE BOARD FROM PUTNEY TO SOUTHEND PIER?

Prior to our Source to Sea journey in July 2015, the law for stand up paddle boarding in Central London was very different - it was illegal. The Port of London Authority stated at the time, that "stand up paddle boarding will not be permitted in any circumstances on the Thames in central or east London.”

Mel and I wanted to positively challenge that statement and therefore worked very closely with the PLA over 3 months to find a solution to make the journey possible and of course safe for ourselves and any other river craft on the Thames in Central London. We spent many hours researching the hazards on the Thames from Central London to Southend Pier, on foot and on a PLA boat. We needed produce detailed documentation, including a detailed passage plan, maps for every section of the river detailing the entire route - including all hazards and potential exit points, and a detailed risk assessment. In addition to this, we needed to employ a safety kayaker to travel with us while on our SUP boards from Putney Bridge onwards and hire a safety boat fitted with AIS to travel with us from Tower Bridge, escorting us to the sea. With everything in place, we were granted written permission from the PLA to make the journey.

We proudly and safely completed the first paddle board through Central London to Southend Pier (in many, many years), showing the paddle boarding community and more importantly, the PLA that safe passage on a paddle board was possible through the busy waters of the River Thames in Central London. The PLA has since worked collaboratively with many organisations who use the river recreationally, to produce new guidance for paddling this section of the Thames and have engaged with Tideway and Active360 to grow the use of the Thames through Central London, for paddle board and rowing enthusiasts. Look out for some exciting events that will take place on this stretch of the Thames in coming years.

RESOURCES USED

RESOURCES

Map of the River Thames (Imray) - a MUST buy!
Thames Lock Info (water, toilets, camping etc.)
Thames21 and Citizen Science
Tideway
Active360
Gravesend Sea Cadets
River Thames Tide Times
Windy - a great weather app
PLA
Paddle Code
melandmichelle's Passage Plan for Central London (to in uploaded)
melandmichelle's Risk Assessment for Central London (to be uploaded)

A FEW MORE WORDS ABOUT OUR JOURNEY

OTHER NOTES FOR YOU, FROM OUR JOURNEY

  1. We planned our dates for our route, based on the permissions from the PLA. Once permission was granted for the dates to SUP through Central London, and reviewing tide times, we plotted our route and timetable backwards, therefore knowing what date needed to start our journey.

  2. We have attached our Passage Plan for Central London and Risk Assessment under the Resources section, so you can see the level of detail required at the time. If you are looking to make a similar journey, please do use our documents if it would help and check with the PLA what they now require in case details have changed since we made the paddle.

  3. We were supported through London by Harry Wheelan our Safety Kayaker and the Gravesend Sea Cadets and funded these costs ourselves. If you would like their contact details, send us an email and we will happily provide these to you.

  4. We didn’t plan accommodation for all 11 days in advance. Where we could, we used Google Earth and booked campsites before the trip where possible, however we mainly relied on the good will and advice of others, where it wasn't obvious where our nights sleep would be.

  5. We carried all our food and equipment on our boards and had friends bring us extra supplies in Bray. Along the river you are never too far from a riverside pub, so there was never a worry about going hungry.

  6. We were able to top up our water at the many locks and pubs along the river, always making sure we had at least 2L of water each.

  7. A journey with purpose was really important for us. We linked up with Thames21 to become citizen scientist volunteers, where we were trained to test the water quality of the river, for their Thames River Watch Citizen Science project. We carried a small water testing kit on the journey and took samples and recorded our results. All it took was 10 minutes per day.

  8. We raised £810 for Tree Aid, where £1 = 1 tree, supporting villagers in Africa's dry-lands to unlock the potential of trees sustainably.