The River Medway, Part 1

It's a sad fact, but Kent just doesn't have any wilderness. Not any! But it's where I live, and so naturally where I do most of my paddling. So I’ve decided that it’s my mission to prove that there are some places to paddle down here in the SE of England.

Kent does have some rivers which you can paddle on (not bad for England), the largest and most important of which is The Medway, and if it is a little short on wilderness, it is mostly quite pleasant, and full of history, particularly on the tidal reaches. Medieval castles, Napoleonic forts, naval dockyards. You name it. The non-tidal reaches in contrast meander lazily through rural Kent. Managed by the Environment Agency, they comprise a number of locks and weirs. The towpath is walkable, and the river pretty and pleasant.

My plan this year is to slowly paddle the entire river from Tonbridge (the start of its legal navigation) down to the sea. Most of my outings are only half a day at a time, so it will take a while to do this. And besides, I think I must be a pretty lazy paddler, as I never seem to get that far.
So here is my beginning. A very short paddle on Sunday from Teston Lock down to Farleigh Bridge, just a couple of miles there and the same back. This time last week, the river was higher and faster than I have ever known it, but that was all just a memory this weekend, and it was back to its normal lazy state, with no discernible current. Plus about two feet lower.

It is a pleasant section of the river, and though you’re never far from road (and rail, which follows the river here), they don’t intrude much. Lots of walkers and the odd angler, plus a few cruisers. There is a fair amount of wildlife, kingfishers, water voles, as well as the usual ducks and geese.
The put in a Teston lock involves a walk of about 100-200 yards with the boat from the car park to the river. Can sometimes be tricky to find a good spot to put in, as the anglers tend to nick all the easy places. Not a problem this week though, as they haven’t really got going yet. From there I paddled up to the lock for a warm up, before heading down through the medieval stone bridge, and on towards Farleigh. Mostly it was pleasant and peaceful, the only intrusion being a line of three cruisers (doing more than the 5mph limit I’m certain) giving me the fun of their hefty wakes to bob up and down on. An hour’s paddling later I passed under the 14th century Farleigh Bridge, tied up next to the lock and had a very pleasant lunch.

The return trip was much the same. Uneventful, some might say dull but the glassy river surface offers a peace that is hard to find elsewhere in this part of the country. On passing back under Teston Bridge I paddled right up to the weir to have a good look. Surprised by how little water was coming down it now. Kept away from the dead sheep adorning the tree nearest the weir though, courtesy of last week’s flood no doubt? Practised a few strokes from "Path of the Paddle", sculling draws, circle strokes etc. Hey some of them even worked!

So that’s it. Much of The Medway is pretty similar, but I’ll likely bore you with it all in time.


Teston Lock and Weir


Teston Bridge


A peaceful River Medway


Farleigh Bridge (OK so they all look the same!)


Lunch stop.


Weir watching - so shallow I think I could've walked up it. A big change from last week!