The River Thames - photos and stories

[surreybrowncap]

A cruise ship coming up the Thames to Tower Bridge tomorrow, Saturday 18th if anyone's interested and in the area ...

Cruise ship to pass through Tower Bridge

A note that a large cruise ship, the Silver Wind will pass through Tower Bridge today.

www.ianvisits.co.uk

With a bit of luck I may be cycling back around that that time through that area.
Really to see Tower Bridge being raised - quite a sight...

 

[editor]

Look at this monstrosity parked up by City Hall

 

[A380]

Look at this monstrosity parked up by City Hall

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What an example of where you can get with honest hard work, or something...

There's never a Tigerfish around when you need one.

 

[surreybrowncap]

Look at this monstrosity parked up by City Hall

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Sadiq Khan's plan to beat tube strike next week...

 

[editor]

Well, this was nice

In photos: All aboard the Fabio and Grooverider drum & bass boat trip along the River Thames!

Yesterday we joined a select group of partygoers and enjoyed a trip along the River Thames accompanied by banging tunes from two of the greatest DnB DJs, Fabio and Grooverider.

www.brixtonbuzz.com

 

[blossie33]

Well, this was nice

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In photos: All aboard the Fabio and Grooverider drum & bass boat trip along the River Thames!

Yesterday we joined a select group of partygoers and enjoyed a trip along the River Thames accompanied by banging tunes from two of the greatest DnB DJs, Fabio and Grooverider.

www.brixtonbuzz.com

Great stuff!
I remember seeing them in the dance tent at Glastonbury some years ago

 

[Puddy_Tat]

came up on teh tweeter

 

[Puddy_Tat]

 

[brogdale]

Went as far North as it's possible to go in South London today:



We had our foil-wrapped sarnies by the main outfall apron of the Crossness sewage works looking over to Ford's Dagenham plant; who says I don't know how to show a girl a good time?

Started round at Erith; in all my 40 years living in London this was my first visit...liked the pier with it's glorious views down to the Dartford crossing.



Well impressed that my poo from Wallington gets all the way up to Crossness!

 

[ska invita]

Went as far North as it's possible to go in South London today:

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We had our foil-wrapped sarnies by the main outfall apron of the Crossness sewage works looking over to Ford's Dagenham plant; who says I don't know how to show a girl a good time?

Started round at Erith; in all my 40 years living in London this was my first visit...liked the pier with it's glorious views down to the Dartford crossing.

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Well impressed that my poo from Wallington gets all the way up to Crossness!

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Did the erith to greenwich path earlier this year...let's face it it's grim. Barely a pub on the way, stopped at the shittest zero windows pub in thamesmead struggled to find anything else. Any psychogeographic romantisization is just bleak-porn. Imo.

Did see a young couple kissing by bazelgettes sewer works which was kind of sweet..

 

[brogdale]

Did the erith to greenwich path earlier this year...let's face it it's grim. Barely a pub on the way, stopped at the shittest zero windows pub in thamesmead struggled to find anything else. Any psychogeographic romantisization is just bleak-porn. Imo.

Did see a young couple kissing by bazelgettes sewer works which was kind of sweet..

Well...depends what you’re after, I suppose. Personally, I like seeing the ostensibly “grim” bits of the river where the important stuff happens and the infrastructure is on view. The pub issue doesn’t bother me much as I don’t drink until after 5 anyway. Each to their own, eh?

 

[Puddy_Tat]

Started round at Erith;

did you visit the fish roundabout?

 

[ska invita]

Well...depends what you’re after, I suppose. Personally, I like seeing the ostensibly “grim” bits of the river where the important stuff happens and the infrastructure is on view. The pub issue doesn’t bother me much as I don’t drink until after 5 anyway. Each to their own, eh?

sorry appreciate my post came across grumpy...its just surprising to me how little riverside life there is on miles and miles of the thames path out east...i know its always been a sewer but it really needs a bit of reclaiming

 

[ska invita]

talking of east thames i read this last year

The Way to the Sea: The Forgotten Histories Of The Tham…

Caroline Crampton was born on the Thames Estuary to par…

www.goodreads.com

i cant recommend it, its pretty annoying IMO, but i find most books about London are, so not that unusual maybe. however it is focussed on this unloved bit of the thames out to the Isle of Grain, and so appeals anyway if you are drawn to this bit of the river
i just wish this bit of the thames was better than it is...it shouldnt take much to make it more accessible to locals

a couple of photos from last trip







ETA:
goodreads has lots of 5 star reviews of that book - i agree with this though:



cynical fist bump

 

[brogdale]

did you visit the fish roundabout?

Yep, on way from station to pier

 

[Puddy_Tat]

erith has a sort of edge of the world feel to it.

the town centre was comprehensively buggered in the mid 60s (one of the first acts of the new london borough of bexley when erith borough got merged in to it) - akin to the most concretey bits of thamesmead

that got swept away maybe 10 - 20 years ago

 

[ska invita]

ive got a friend who lives in erith - its incredible how dreary it is tbh
also you have to watch which way the wind blows or else you get a nose full of stink from one of the sewage works

theres quite a good walk of nature reserve to the east between erith and the dartford crossing -a mixture of beautiful marshland and industrial silos on the horizons

Dartford Creek Barrier is a highlight of sorts

 

[Maggot]

Did a bike ride from Dartford to Bermondsey once, along the river. It's a good way to do it as you can get more of a variety in scenery, and can go to nicer pubs.

If you get the chance to visit the original Crossness Pumping Station, it's quite beautiful.

Home | Crossness Engines Trust

Crossness Engines Trust Pumping Station Joseph Bazalgette Sewer Drainage Victorian Cathedral Steam Engine James Watt Beam

www.crossness.org.uk

 

[brogdale]

Did a bike ride from Dartford to Bermondsey once, along the river. It's a good way to do it as you can get more of a variety in scenery, and can go to nicer pubs.

If you get the chance to visit the original Crossness Pumping Station, it's quite beautiful.

Home | Crossness Engines Trust

Crossness Engines Trust Pumping Station Joseph Bazalgette Sewer Drainage Victorian Cathedral Steam Engine James Watt Beam

www.crossness.org.uk

Yes, we went pass the old pumping station yesterday and resolved to go back for one of the open days; magnificent victorian architecture.

 

[ska invita]

On Minster beach today, isle of sheppey....made me think, 1 where does the Thames officially stop and the sea begin, and also 2 which is the nearest "proper" beach to London (hard to define what counts as proper, but I think we know what we mean)?

 

[TopCat]

Canvey Island is where it blurs.

 

[Puddy_Tat]

On Minster beach today, isle of sheppey....made me think, 1 where does the Thames officially stop and the sea begin, and also 2 which is the nearest "proper" beach to London (hard to define what counts as proper, but I think we know what we mean)?

there are stones marking the limit of the thames

Crow Stone, London Stone and an Estuary Airport - A London Inheritance

The London Stone at Yantlet Creek and the Crow Stone at Southend form a boundary of the City of London's historical authority on the River Thames

alondoninheritance.com

 

[brogdale]

On Minster beach today, isle of sheppey....made me think, 1 where does the Thames officially stop and the sea begin, and also 2 which is the nearest "proper" beach to London (hard to define what counts as proper, but I think we know what we mean)?

The arbitrary line of demarcation is between the Crow & London stones respectively on the Essex coast at Southend and Yantlet creek on the Isle of Grain. So, today on Minster beach, you were officially in the sea!

 

[brogdale]

Canvey Island is where it blurs.

Oil City Confidential; close.

 

[Puddy_Tat]

and i think all hallows on sea claims to be the closest seaside to london

had the 1939 war not happened, it might be a major resort

Allhallows, Kent - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[brogdale]

and i think all hallows on sea claims to be the closest seaside to london

had the 1939 war not happened, it might be a major resort

Allhallows, Kent - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I bet Canvey would challenge that!

 

[brogdale]

The arbitrary line of demarcation is between the Crow & London stones respectively on the Essex coast at Southend and Yantlet creek on the Isle of Grain. So, today on Minster beach, you were officially in the sea!

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If I were to be able to choose the arbitrary line between estuary and sea I'd put it more between Sheerness and Shoebury ness myself.

 

[Puddy_Tat]

I bet Canvey would challenge that!

may depend on whether you measure by road, rail, or as the crow seagull flies...

 

[brogdale]

may depend on whether you measure by road, rail, or as the crow seagull flies...

Well...obviously by helicopter; that's how the billionaire pleasure seekers would make their way to either Canvey or Allhallows!

 

[teuchter]

If a "proper" beach means one where you'd actually want to hang out and where you might want to go into the water, and if "closest" is measured by "quickest time to get there on public transport from south London" then investigations carried out be me in the past have determined Whitstable as the one on the south side and Chalkwell (Southend-on-sea) on the north side.