Limehouse basin is at the end of the Regent’s Canal. It used to be part of the historic Thames Docks, Nowadays, its a marina full of some mighty fine boats. Surrounded by some pretty impressive apartments. We wanted to be assured of an overnight stay so I enquired about paying for a marina berth…. £9/m per night… and we are 18.3m long….
Fortunately CRT retain the use of “the wall” with free 24 hour mooring, as its where the canal network is able to join the River Thames via a tidal lock. Originally we had hoped to join a flotilla of boats to do this and cruise with the tide, past the iconic sights, the Houses of Parliament, the London Eye, Tower Bridge etc, back towards Brentford and the Grand Union Canal
However our forward planning left a little to be desired and this would become be a trip to look forward to another year. Instead we left Firecrest in the basin and went for a walk along the river, to see what we could see.
The Thames in London has quite a significant tidal drop, so the footpath is along dedicated walkways and interconnected bridges spanning the creeks. How it must have changed over the centuries,
When we looked to the right, we were treated to a view of the city skyline
And towards the left we could see the financial district of Docklands and Canary Wharf
We decided to walk towards Docklands and in amongst the architectural megaliths
the landscapers saw fit to gentrify the navigation into a modern play pen,
well don’t we all need somewhere to park a super yacht
But it wasn’t just big boats, there were BBQ boats
and weirdest of all a jacuzzi boat. For £225 up to 7 people can have the privilege of taking this electric bath tub full of warm water for a spin, whilst they sip prosecco.
They certainly seemed to be enjoying themselves, so we left them to it, whilst we went into the Docklands Museum. Frustratingly we only had half an hour to take in the 3 floors of fascinating history charting the fortunes and failures of London’s East End, as it morphed from being a hub of imports and exports to becoming the financial capitol of our country. We wandered back to Limehouse basin via one of the local parks, where we were overshadowed by St Annes Church
This is one of the 12 “Queen Anne’s” churches built in the 18th century. Its proximity to the river made it the ideal location for captains to record and register significant events encountered at sea. Queen Anne also granted permission for this church to fly the second most senior ensign of the Royal Navy, the White Ensign. And with its prominent tower and golden ball on the flagpole, it is still a visible “landmark” and became a Trinity House “sea mark” marked on navigational maps. It is still permitted under the Queen’s regulations to fly the white ensign 24 hours a day 365 days a year.
We made it back to Limehouse basin just before dark, but enjoyed our evening meal surrounded by big boats and twinkling lights. And determined to come here again and explore this historic area more.
For anyone needing a calculator, our marina fees would have been £171.
