Silver Wind London depature time changes!

OMG. I just spotted something in those timings. Tower Bridge has a Silversea bonanza on the 11th June

Silver Cloud departs Tower Bridge at 6 am and Silver Wind arrives at 1400 so might pass each other somewhere in the Thames estuary??

I know it takes about 2 hours from the Dartford Crossing Bridge to the Tower, so will be 2 hours further downstream from there. Looking on google they will probably pass beyond Southend and Sheppey so pretty much open water.

What a site that would have been had it been further upstream!

I think I will have an appointment with them both at Dartford bridge and the drone. Happy days.

I am unclear why tide times per se are the cause of SS rescheduling arrivals and departures at Tower Bridge.

First, the ship is moored in the river during low tide. Granted, it presumably turns through 180 degrees from arrival to departure.

We arrive on June 11 at 20.00, a recent change from the brochure's advertised 16.00. High tide is shown as 18.13. So if tide times were relevant our revised arrival time ought to be closer to 18.00.

The ship is due to sail on June 13 at 07.30, whereas SS's brochure shows it as 06.00. High tide is 07.50. Why should SS show a less convenient time in the brochure than the latest planned departure?

Last year at least one cruise into and out of Tower Bridge had its timings changed twice.

The foregoing indicates the decision on timings rests solely with the Port of London Authority.

Kindest regards

Master Echo

They are not. That's the point. No rescheduling should be required due to tide times.

No one has ever suggested that it is anyone other than thr PLA that defines arrival or deprture times. The PLA are not however responsible for what cruise lines choose to publish in their brochures.

Jeff

I am unclear why tide times per se are the cause of SS rescheduling arrivals and departures at Tower Bridge.

 

First, the ship is moored in the river during low tide. Granted, it presumably turns through 180 degrees from arrival to departure.

 

We arrive on June 11 at 20.00, a recent change from the brochure's advertised 16.00. High tide is shown as 18.13. So if tide times were relevant our revised arrival time ought to be closer to 18.00.

 

The ship is due to sail on June 13 at 07.30, whereas SS's brochure shows it as 06.00. High tide is 07.50. Why should SS show a less convenient time in the brochure than the latest planned departure?

 

Last year at least one cruise into and out of Tower Bridge had its timings changed twice.

 

The foregoing indicates the decision on timings rests solely with the Port of London Authority.

 

Kindest regards

 

Master Echo

If that was the case, why wouldn't SS say its the Port of London Authority why have forced the change rather than "the tides have changed"?

The lifts for Tower Bridge lifts are booked months in advance and published online. It doesn't sound feasible they would accept a booking and then change their mind.

There are NO FEES involved in the lifting of the bridge and from what I've seen, several lifts are permissible in any given day. In these instances (and indeed every time), the Wind is the only vessel going through on the day.

Its far more feasible that nice times sell cruises..... and once all the money is collected, hit punters with the real times knowing there is zero anyone can do about it. I agree that 7.30am is nicer that 6am, so yes, its very odd.

One thing it is isn't is "a change of tide" which is the official reason so definitely not truthful on that front. I've never taken much notice to look at the tides when it comes through, but at its highest, I suspect there is a danger of the top of the bridge being hit and lowest hitting the floor.

Your ship will come through the bridge forward facing on the upstream journey being pulled by a tug before coming to rest. When it departs, its pulled through backwards. Its impossible to turn where it moors. The turning occurs just after Canary Wharf and before Greenwich and then continue under its own steam but marshalled by two tugs for at least another hour to 90 minutes. On the way in, the tug "meets" just before the Dartford Crossing. (Ive witnessed the tugs waiting there for the Cloud to arrive a few times). I'm unsure from which point the tug takes control, but I'm pretty sure it will be at the same point as it turns on its way out. I say that because I know its pulled from Canary Wharf as I've seen it - and there's no reason to be pulled a great deal more before there and it makes sense to do so at a wide stretch of river.

I'm envious, it is a truly lovely experience.

This is a clip I took of

And

Its an awesome site!

We so love the Tower Bridge sailaway. There is one advantage to an earlier sailaway...when comparing my pictures from the two we've been lucky enough to be on, there are far fewer people blocking my view at 4AM compared to 6PM! ;)

Les beat me to it with his spot on description of the ship coming in frontward, then being pulled out backward, and not turning around until nearly Greenwich.

All this talk makes me want to book another London sailaway. No time this year, though... :(

Thanks les37b - those videos are wonderful.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Thank you to Les for the two clips of Silver Cloud arriving and leaving from Tower Bridge. To a "London" girl who has been under Tower Bridge many times, it is a dream to be able to arrive with the bridge lifted! I think that one of my ancestors was part of the bridge construction team adding further to the poignancy of being able to sail through, not something that many people will be able to say. On a ship like the lovely Silver Wind it will just be the icing on the cake!

Captain Arma has told us previously that manoeuvring onto the berth can be extremely tricky if river conditions are averse, not least because of the flow rate of the River Thames, where a narrowing channel is receiving the same volume of water as downstream.

To all who are sailing into London, both on this date and subsequent occasions I hope you enjoy it as much as I hope to.

Bon Voyage,

Kindest regards

Master Echo

Thanks les37b - those videos were wonderful

Thank you. Glad you enjoyed. I have a few others posted. A monster 22 minute transit of the Kiel Canal is nice and also leaving amsterdam to the North Sea including a masterful 3 point turn (with hand brake on and in one movement!) A masterful price of seamanship!

I will be adding lots more in a couple of weeks from the Med.

Thank you to Les for the two clips of Silver Cloud arriving and leaving from Tower Bridge. To a "London" girl who has been under Tower Bridge many times, it is a dream to be able to arrive with the bridge lifted! I think that one of my ancestors was part of the bridge construction team adding further to the poignancy of being able to sail through, not something that many people will be able to say. On a ship like the lovely Silver Wind it will just be the icing on the cake!

 

Captain Arma has told us previously that manoeuvring onto the berth can be extremely tricky if river conditions are averse, not least because of the flow rate of the River Thames, where a narrowing channel is receiving the same volume of water as downstream.

 

To all who are sailing into London, both on this date and subsequent occasions I hope you enjoy it as much as I hope to.

 

Bon Voyage,

 

Kindest regards

 

Master Echo

You are certainly correct that it is a special experience. You're also correct that the river undercurrents are very treacherous and also the tidal range is one of the largest in the world. (I think its about 26') Its quite incredible looking out from my window at the night time tour boat moored opposite, which disappears out of site of the side to loom over the top.

On that subject, about 8 weeks ago as I looked out the window (its difficult not to sometimes!) and I saw what looked like a person in the water being carried by the current. And it was. He was only about 15' from the edge but helpless and just being carried in the freezing water. I watched as he tried to make a grab for the London Bridge platform (that you can see at the bottom of the time lapse), but failed and got carried under the platform. I watched helpless as it unfolded. The man was very lucky. He was seen by someone on the platform and the managed to get a life ring to him which he managed to get. There were 3 police launches there within 90 seconds of me spotting him. I can only assume it was an attempted suicide and he jumped from London Bridge. Its a notorious place - and those undercurrents usually do the trick! The man was dragged from the water and soon covered. He was certainly glad to get out of the water and it was an exceptionally cold day and just above freezing. He's the second person I've seen in the water from my desk! I think the first one wasn't so lucky as a few days later, I walked over the bridge and there were flowers rested at the point he jumped from.

Anyway - enough of the morbid stuff! Just saying its a dangerous river with very strong currents!

You will enjoy getting on the Wind too. You will use the ramp down to the tour boats on the North side of the river right outside the tower of London. Down the ramp, you turn right and go through customs and security and a tender will take you over to the opposite side. Once there, you board HMS Belfast, the old WW2 war ship permanently moored as a floating museum, up the ramp and a platform over to your home for the next week or so. So even this is fairly unique!

Obviously depending on your timings, I'd thoroughly recommend a trip up the sky gardens, which is the large walkie talkie shaped building in the timelapse. Its free to get in (and offers near as good a vantage point as the shard - but without their £30 fee!) You do have to pre book and ticket times are released on a Monday about 2 weeks in advance. So if its feasible, its well worth it as the view of your ship will be impressive.

We did a London-London cruise around the British Isles and Iceland in July 2013. The sail away was fantastic, except i was running around London trying to get my camera fixed and my wife was a nervous wreck hoping that I'd make it back.

The return to London had the time changed as it was the day of a rather large bike festival (Prudential) in London. They had to get us off the ship before they blocked roads off. We ended up sailing in very early in the morning (or late at night) and it was cold, but very fun nonetheless. My wife slept through it.

Sometimes stuff happens.

Hi Lawrence, absolutely our sail away was fantastic, pix below of the Cloud approaching the Tower Bridge with all of us on board:

Les,

For a while, I use to work in the Bowring Building just over the other side on Tower Hill. The great joy in those days was at lunch watching the tourists watch the escape artist on Tower Hill. All those chains and sacks.

I was once invisted into the Tower after closing to a party and the experience inside the walls at night is something I won't forget.

:)

Jeff