Thames Report 2

15 October 2008

by Martin Longhurst

Monday 29 September 2008 saw Waverley off service at Tilbury. On the Tuesday the steamer had been due to sail upriver from Margate but sea conditions caused a coach substitution to join the ship at Whitstable. The paddler then sailed upriver calling at Southend, Tilbury and Tower Pier. She then retired to Tilbury for an off-service day on Wednesday.

Waverley was back at Tower Pier bright and early on Thursday for a round trip to the Medway. Calls were made at Tilbury and Southend before the non-landing sector, turning off Gillingham with aid of tug Nippashore. On the return call at Tilbury some 40 catering staff (with associated stores and equipment) were embarked to make preparations for a prestige evening charter from Tower Pier. Friday's cruise was cancelled in advance for operational reasons.

Saturday was Whitstable day with Waverley sailing from Tower Pier with 505 on board calling only at Southend en route. Leaving the Kent port, the ship was virtually full, having filled up with one-way passengers. The day stated off fine but the weather gradually deteriorated with a chill breeze blowing stinging drizzle into passengers' faces on the return voyage. Nevertheless many braved the open deck and were rewarded with views of the Greenwich Meridian laser beam and the floodlit Tower Bridge.

Having spent the night alongside Tower Pier, the steamer took over 300 one-way passengers to Southend before offering a non-landing round trip to the Upper Pool, calling at Tilbury. This was also a popular trip despite continuing unpleasant weather.

After dropping her passengers at Southend, the steamer returned to Tilbury for bunkers. Thus on Monday, Waverley sailed east from Tilbury to Southend and Clacton for a River Blackwater cruise. Thence light to Harwich for the night. If conditions had allowed, the paddler would have departed early in the morning for Southwold for a London trip. But they didn't, so the Suffolk passengers were coached to join the ship at Harwich. The only other call was at Tilbury where 9 joined the steamer.

After another night at the Tower, Waverley headed back to the Harwich calling at Tilbury, Southend and Clacton. This cruise was undertaken under blue skies and unbroken sunshine with smooth seas. A River Orwell cruise was offered from Harwich before the steamer spent the night alongside Halfpenny Pier.

Thursday took the paddler back to the capital, while Friday saw a daytime round trip from Southend to the Upper Pool (non-landing) followed by an evening show boat back to the Tower with coach return.

Waverley was thus positioned for her weekend sailings. Saturday was Thames Forts day and the perfect conditions continued, although it was a little misty, as the steamer visited Red Sands, Shivering Sands and Knock John Forts. A train load of passengers from Birmingham joined the paddler at Southend, as did a civic party led by the Deputy Mayor.

Sunday morning saw a return of the fog brought on by the autumnal conditions of clear skies. The River Thames was sufficiently clear at Tower Pier for us to depart but further downstream banks of fog were rolling across the waterway. Suddenly the paddler slowed down as a message had come through saying that navigation through the Thames Barrier was closed owing to limited visibility. Jeremy Gold announced that tug Revenge, which had turned us in the Pool of London, was to overtake us to put a ropeman on Greenwich Pier so that Waverley could tie up there and await clearance of the fog.

Explanation of the foggy conditions from George Hood

In meteorology, two temperatures are measured, one using a dry bulb thermometer, the other a wet bulb. Basically the difference between these tells us about the character of the air, whether it's dry air, or wet. When the skies are clear, and the nights long, the wet bulb thermometer holds its reading, whilst the dry bulb thermometer's reading falls and, when the two readings, the dry and the wet converge, the relative humidity becomes 100%, and fog forms. This is called 'Radiation Fog', since it's caused by the heat radiating away from the surface of the earth. If this fog moves from its place of formation, to another, it changes its name to 'Advection Fog'. It can become patchy during its clearance, because denser patches can form, resulting in a slow clearance, or, as wind currents increase after dawn, the fog becomes more mobile, thus reappearing in a location previously cleared.

 

In the event, navigation was resumed before the steamer reached Greenwich although the fog lights on the Barrier were illuminated as we passed through. In Barking Creek conditions were such that Waverley's whistle was called upon to give fog signals. As a result of the conditions, the paddler was about 20 minutes late leaving Tilbury and further fog off Coryton brought about further reductions in speed.

Visibility gradually improved and landfall was successfully achieved at Southend. A large number of passengers disembarked, some on one-way trips, but a larger number joined the ship for the afternoon cruise. Soon Waverley was heading south for the River Medway passing Ever Summit at the Thamesport container terminal.

Approaching Gillingham a dinghy race was encountered. While most sailors managed to keep out of the paddler's way, one didn't and Captain Clark had to ring for Full Astern. Soon Kingswear Castle was spotted coming downstream. Tug Christine turned the larger steamer just off the Bull Nose (the lock entrance to Chatham Docks) while another dinghy became becalmed just ahead of our return course. Its crew tried desperately to paddle their craft out of the channel but fortunately a Safety Boat arrived and towed them clear.

Now the Parade of Steam could start. Waverley soon overtook the KC but further manoeuvres were deferred until we were clear of the dinghy action, downstream by Kingsnorth Power Station. KC overtook the Waverley, changed sides of the channel, and then the mighty paddler then overtook again.

All too soon it was over, KC turning back for Chatham while Waverley increased speed for Southend. An evening cruise to Tower Pier and Tilbury with coach return was offered and about 100 availed themselves of this option. Over 80 more passengers joined the steamer at Tilbury on the warm and balmy evening for the last round trip to Tower Pier for 2008.

On her return to Tilbury the paddler took bunkers before setting course for Weymouth (for more bunkers) where she arrived about 1600 on Monday 13 October.    By 2130 she was approaching Start Point in Devon and she rounded Lands End about 0500 the following morning.   She arrived home  in Glasgow at about 0930 on 15 October.

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