Access to the Bristol Avon at Netham
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The Bristol Channel has one of the highest tides in theworld and this tidal stream flows up the Bristol River Avon to Bristol. Most spring tides over-top Netham Weir, and highest spring tides also over-top Hanham Weir.
The highest spring tide this autumn was on Wednesday, 30thOctober - the tidal prediction for Avonmouth being 14.10 metres at 08:24 GMT. Our plan was to launch in the Avon just upstream of Netham Lock, immediately after the tide over-topped Netham Weir. We would then have the benefit of a strong upstream surge up to Hanham lock and weir. Hopefully, the tide would have over-topped Hanham weir as well, thus facilitating a further assisted upstream paddle to Keynsham. By this time we got to Keynsham, the tide would be ebbing – possibly giving us the benefit of a favourable current back to Netham on thereturn leg.
There is no tidal data published for Netham, so the question was, what time to launch? The Bristol Harbour website gives the high tide at Cumberland Basin entrance lock as being ten minutes later than Avonmouth. I reckoned on a further five minutes for the tide to reach Netham, so high tide there should be about 08:39 GMT. However, Netham Weir should be over-topped quite a bit before high tide, so I decided on a 07:30 GMT launch.
Unfortunately, I had to cancel this trip, as my canoeing mate couldn’t make it. My canoe is 17ft 3ins long and is difficult to paddle solo - and in any case two are needed for car-topping and portaging. Notwithstanding this setback, I decided to go there anyway just to make a recce. It had been 24 years since I’d paddled this part of the river and the access situation might have changed in that time. I was also interested to find out if my estimate of the Netham Weir over-topping time was correct.
I arrived at Netham at 07:30 GMT to find that the current in the Avon was moving slowly downstream. However, I didn’t have to wait very long, as the direction of the current reversed at 07:45 GMT and began to flow upstream. I then checked the access situation only to find that a barrier fence had been erected since I was last here. Not only that, large bushes had grown up behind the fence making access impossible to anyone not equipped with a chainsaw!
Undeterred, I decided to look for alternative access - and I found it. There are twin bridges at Netham lock. Accessing the Avon would require a portage under the upstream bridge on the north bank of the lock cut:
The portage clearance on the quay under the bridge is about 1.5 metres (5ft) although it looks to be a lot less on the image!
After the bridge, there is a short section of gently-sloping bank (without any bushes) and a steel ladder (this ladder is not visible in the above picture as it’s obscured by the bridge) You would need to lower your canoe with bow and stern painters, then secure both painters to the ladder. Having done this, you could descend the ladder, board the canoe, detach the painters and paddle out of the lock cut into the Avon. I can’t be sure about this, but I would guess that this ladder would give access to the water at various states of the tide.
I then got to thinking that there might possibly be access directly into the Avon. So I crossed Netham Bridge to the north bank of the Avon. No access there. I then crossed the arched suspension bridge to the south bank.
Just after the end of the bridge is a footpath on the left-hand side.
I followed this footpath for a couple of hundred metres and found a suitable ingress point. No ladder by this one, so I guess it might only be useable at high tide.
I’m sorry to have missed out on a paddle, but at least I discovered some information which hopefully might be useful to others. …
The highest spring tide this autumn was on Wednesday, 30thOctober - the tidal prediction for Avonmouth being 14.10 metres at 08:24 GMT. Our plan was to launch in the Avon just upstream of Netham Lock, immediately after the tide over-topped Netham Weir. We would then have the benefit of a strong upstream surge up to Hanham lock and weir. Hopefully, the tide would have over-topped Hanham weir as well, thus facilitating a further assisted upstream paddle to Keynsham. By this time we got to Keynsham, the tide would be ebbing – possibly giving us the benefit of a favourable current back to Netham on thereturn leg.
There is no tidal data published for Netham, so the question was, what time to launch? The Bristol Harbour website gives the high tide at Cumberland Basin entrance lock as being ten minutes later than Avonmouth. I reckoned on a further five minutes for the tide to reach Netham, so high tide there should be about 08:39 GMT. However, Netham Weir should be over-topped quite a bit before high tide, so I decided on a 07:30 GMT launch.
Unfortunately, I had to cancel this trip, as my canoeing mate couldn’t make it. My canoe is 17ft 3ins long and is difficult to paddle solo - and in any case two are needed for car-topping and portaging. Notwithstanding this setback, I decided to go there anyway just to make a recce. It had been 24 years since I’d paddled this part of the river and the access situation might have changed in that time. I was also interested to find out if my estimate of the Netham Weir over-topping time was correct.
I arrived at Netham at 07:30 GMT to find that the current in the Avon was moving slowly downstream. However, I didn’t have to wait very long, as the direction of the current reversed at 07:45 GMT and began to flow upstream. I then checked the access situation only to find that a barrier fence had been erected since I was last here. Not only that, large bushes had grown up behind the fence making access impossible to anyone not equipped with a chainsaw!
Undeterred, I decided to look for alternative access - and I found it. There are twin bridges at Netham lock. Accessing the Avon would require a portage under the upstream bridge on the north bank of the lock cut:
The portage clearance on the quay under the bridge is about 1.5 metres (5ft) although it looks to be a lot less on the image!
After the bridge, there is a short section of gently-sloping bank (without any bushes) and a steel ladder (this ladder is not visible in the above picture as it’s obscured by the bridge) You would need to lower your canoe with bow and stern painters, then secure both painters to the ladder. Having done this, you could descend the ladder, board the canoe, detach the painters and paddle out of the lock cut into the Avon. I can’t be sure about this, but I would guess that this ladder would give access to the water at various states of the tide.
I then got to thinking that there might possibly be access directly into the Avon. So I crossed Netham Bridge to the north bank of the Avon. No access there. I then crossed the arched suspension bridge to the south bank.
Just after the end of the bridge is a footpath on the left-hand side.
I followed this footpath for a couple of hundred metres and found a suitable ingress point. No ladder by this one, so I guess it might only be useable at high tide.
I’m sorry to have missed out on a paddle, but at least I discovered some information which hopefully might be useful to others. …