Dave1963

Has all the trouble at Bittell calmed down now, and the person described above moved on?.......we have been looking at mooring there, that is till i saw this post.

Hi there, i'm contemplating a trip to the River Medway as i now work in Kent. I know a few people have taking there boats through the Thames Estuary and to the Medway and survived the outing. I have a pilot in place who will meet me at Limehouse to guide me through, with all the necessary things we need on board like radio's, lifejackets, etc. I know we will have to wait for the right conditions to make a safe trip. What is worrying me though engine wise is, i have a 22hp Kelvin j2 with a hydraulic gearbox. I have been told that maybe my engine won't be powerful enough to pull through the currents, as the hydraulic box takes some of the horsepower away from the engine. I'm in a bit of a dilemma as to which way to approach this. I have had a quote for transportation by road from where my boat is moored on the Grand Union, including craning from its current position to Allington Lock on the non tidal side of the Medway. The price of transportation by road including craning either side isn't cheap but, of course a vintage Kelvin engine would be much more to replace. What are your views on this and has anyone done the trip before ?