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Hurley to Hambleden, Hurley to Marlow, Environment Agency 'Out and About' Guides
Maps
Right bank, tel: 01628 824334, length: 130'8", width: 19'11"
Hurley Weir for canoists.
See also.
CANOISTS:
Hurley is arguably the UK's premier play boating venue.
Its attractions include its convenient location,
the power and consistency of the Hurley wave and the fact that the weir is freely available
7 days a week for up to 9 months a year.
...
There are in fact 3 weirs at Hurley, which link islands immediately north of the lock and lock cut.
The downstream weir, the 'buck gates', nearest to the lock consists of radial gates
but this should not be confused with the main weir - whilst rodeo competitions have been held here,
the weir is extremely dangerous.
This is because the weir pool is heavily eroded,
causing a retentive stopper to form between the concrete stanchions between the gates.
The next (middle) weir upstream consists of vertical sluices, which are not usually of interest.
The main attraction is the furthest, most upstream weir.
This consists of 4 radial style gates, situated between concrete shelving.
Flow over the northern most shelving is controlled by a row of small radials -
and the gate nearest to the radials is usually left shut to protect the eddy.
The southern shelving extends downstream of the gates by about 10 ft, boxing in the weir at one end.
The river level drops by just under 4 ft at Hurley - one of the smallest drops of any Thames weir -
however, with a shallow weir pool, the result is a shallow angled flow of water
that produces a wave with a smooth green trough and white, breaking peak, about 3 ft high.
The gates, with concrete stanchions in between, create a unique series of waves/ holes.
| GATES: | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| River rising: | 30 cumecs | 50 cumecs | 70 cumecs | 105 cumecs | |
| River falling: | 30 cumecs | 45 cumecs | 65 cumecs | 140 cumecs |
The above table of how the gates are likely to open in relation to the river flow comes from
Thames Valley Freestylers.
The above illustrates how different the river can be depending on ones particular interests!
CAMPING: On lock island. (Weir pool above lock). As directed by the camp commandant.
£7 + £10 deposit for keys. Hurley Lock, Mill Lane, Hurley, Maidenhead, Berks. SL6 1SA.
01628 824334. 10 pitches, 1st April to 30th September, WC, Showers, wash basins, shaver points,
shop, fishing. Canoe landing point.
1826: Hurley in the Henley Guide. Full text and prints
... near
the banks of the Thames, stand the pleasant village of
Hurley, and the large and handsome mansion, called
Lady Place.
The beauty of the situation and the loveliness of its prospects, are the theme of universal admiration.
...
The valley, in which this mansion forms a prominent object,
is adorned with numerous seats, and some of the most
majestic windings of this "King of Rivers".
Opposite to Hurley, Harleyford, the mansion of Sir
William Clayton, backed by woods, and half hidden by
majestic elms, appears in singular beauty, and forms a fine
fore-ground to the justly celebrated vale of Marlow ; a
district which yields to none, in the beauty of its woods,
the splendor of its seats, or the fine undulations of its hills.
Geoffrey de Mandeville, who, in reward for his gallant,
behaviour at the battle of Hastings, received the manor of Hurley from the Conqueror, founded this monastery
for Monks of the Benedictine Order, and annexed it as a
cell to Westminster Abbey. In 1553, the revenues were
valued at £121. 8s. 5d. per annum. At the dissolution
of the religious houses, the site, (called Lady Place, from
the Virgin Mary to whom the monastery was dedicated,)
was granted to Leonard Chamberlayne, and shortly afterwards
came into the possession of Richard Lovelace. The
present mansion was built by his grandson, Sir Richard
Lovelace, who went on an expedition with Sir Francis
Drake. His son in 1626, was created Baron Lovelace of
Hurley.
During the reigns of Charles the Second and
James the Second, a vault beneath this house was the
scene of frequent meetings of some of the principal
nobility, who assembled to ascertain the measures necessary
to be pursued for re-establishing those liberties,
which the insidious hypocrisy of the one, and the more
open despotism of the other, had completely overwhelmed
and destroyed. By an inscription in the dark recess at
the end of this vault, it appears that the principal papers
productive of the revolution of 1688, were signed here.
On this account the Prince of Orange when he had obtained
the crown, visited the vault, and it was visited by
General Paoli in 1780, and by his late Majesty in 1785.
John Lord Lovelace, Captain of the Band of Gentlemen
Pensioners to William the Third, fitted the mansion up with the greatest magnificence ; but by his prodigality
and splendour, so reduced his fortune, that he was obliged
to sell this estate. After passing through a number of
proprietors, it came to G. A. Kempenfelt, Esq. brother
of the unfortunate Admiral Kempenfelt, of the Royal George, who lost his life at Portsmouth, by the sinking
of that vessel, June 28, 1782. The last proprietor,
Mr. Troughton, is lately deceased. The manor belongs
to Viscount Ashbrook.
The mansion has not been inhabited for many
years, and is now in a bad state of repair. The front
presents a very handsome elevation. It consists of a
centre and two projecting wings. The entrance is
through a porch, ornamented with columns and pilasters,
having on each side a very fine bay window of two stories[sic], which light the hall and saloon. The hall and
stair-case are very magnificent. On the principal story
is a very large and handsome saloon, the pannels of
which are decorated with landscapes, about 50 in number,
said to have been painted by Salvator Rosa. They
are not superior to the numberless landscapes to be seen
in houses fitted up about the same time ; and from the
soffits of the windows, which are of stucco, being evidently
painted by the same hand, the supposition that
they were sent to Italy, is incorrect.
In the cellars beneath the house, three bodies in Benedictine
habits have been found. To the west of the
mansion, numerous traces of the monastic buildings are
to be seen. These form a small quadrangle. The stables
exhibit the remains of the refectory. The windows were
built in the time of the Conqueror, and though only
of chalk, are as fresh as if the workmanship was modern.
The parish church was originally the chapel of the monastery.
The south and east sides are more modern,
but the west and north walls are part of the original
building, which was consecrated in 1086, by Osmond
the Good, Bishop of Sarum. The west door-way and window, are round headed, and ornamented with Saxon
columns and zigzag mouldings. In the church is a brass
plate to the memory of John Doyley, Esq. and some
monuments of the Lovelace family.
1580: Bishop – “Newlock” belonging to Mr. Bowde and
Mr. Lovelace.
1628: Agreement between Sir Myles Hobarte of
Harleyford and Lord Lovelace of Hurley regarding the repair of that portion of
the weir called New Lock which was in the parish of Marlow.
1773: A Pound Lock was constructed
1774: A small wooden house for the keeper was built
1780: The pound lock works “in very shattered condition”
1783: The “lock-shutter” was in trouble for
allowing the water to rise above high water mark, causing floods above;
instructions were issued to pull up “the
sluices and floodgates of the bucks, the overfalls and watergates and standards
of the old flash locks, whenever necessary"
1785: Poundlock reconstructed. Mr. Pengree, owner of the flashlock, was
warned to have his tackle in good repair during this period, so that barges
might pass over it without hindrance in the ancient fashion, if requisite.
1791: More poundlock repairs.
1825: It was decided to make the pound lock “a
close Pound like unto Hamelden”. (It had open sides previously).
1888: John Scott, lock keeper, once told Fred
Thacker of the story of his little son, missing one day, and discovered
contentedly floating on his back in the millstream beside the lockhouse.
[ Throughout I have been resisting adding the appalling list of lock-keepers and others,
drowned down the years. This story has a refreshing difference! ]
Hurley Lock, Henry Taunt -
Hurley Lock, Henry Taunt
© Oxfordshire County Council Photographic Archive; HT2102
1885-95: Hurley Lock -
Hurley Lock
© Oxfordshire County Council Photographic Archive; D250323a
1891: A boatslide was promised “next year” – it never came.
1886: A Shower Song, Hurley Lock, June, J Ashby-Sterry -
My heart was light and whole aboard –
As I sculled swift by Harleyford
The rain began to patter –
But when I saw in Hurley Lock
That Naiad in the gingham frock,
‘Twas quite another matter !
The banks are soft with mud and slosh,
And shiny is each mackintosh,
Each hat and coat well soaken:
My spirits droop, and as I scan
That beauty in a trim randan,
I fear my heart is broken !
She hath a graceful little head,
Her lips are ripe and round and red,
Her teeth are short and pearly;
And on a rosy sun-kissed cheek
Her dimples play at hide-and-seek,
Within the lock at Hurley !
I strive to make a mental note,
The while she lounges in her boat
Beneath the big umbrella.
I wonder if she’s Gwendoline,
Or Gillian or Geraldine,
Or Sylvia, or Stella?
Is she engaged to Stroke or Bow?
I would they could assure me now
She loves to flirt with others !
Will stalwart Sculls e’er claim her hand?
How gladly would I understand
Her crew are naught but brothers !
Her hat with lilies is bedight
Her voice is low, her laugh is light,
Her figure slight and girly.
How cheerfully I’d take a trip,
With such a Pilot for my ship,
And sail away from Hurley !
I wonder if her heart is true?
I know her eyes are peerless blue,
Long lashes downward sweeping;
A snow-white ruff around her throat,
Beneath her pouting petticoat
A little foot out-peeping.
O, is she wooed and is she won,
Or is she very fond of fun?
I make a thousand guesses !
A sweet young face, so full of hope,
A dainty hand on tiller-rope,
And raindrops in her tresses.
Three tiny rosebuds lightly rest
Within the haven of her breast –
Her locks are short and curly.
The sun is gone !
Down comes the rain !
I leave my heart cleft well in twain
Within the Lock at Hurley !
[ The cold shower was invented for the likes of Joseph Ashby-Sterry ]
1910: Fred Thacker –“one of the oldest looking [locks] on
the river, with timber sides like Day’s”.
Hurley Lock, E A Ferriby
1906: G.E.Mitton -
Beyond the lock there is a sheltered channel with the quaintest old-world flavour about it, a flavour which grows yearly more and more difficult to find as it melts away before the onward sweep of the advertising age. A strip of green turf is lined by an old brick wall with lichen and moss growing on its coping, so that when the sun catches it, it is like a ribbon of gold. Tall gate piers, crowned by stone balls, frame a bit of the excellently kept velvet lawns of Lady Place. There are many of these old piers and balls, and nearly all are overgrown with roses.
Map: Hurley Lock Cut Upper Footbridge
Right bank
Before 1827: a swingbridge
1827: A timber footbrdge
1884: Another timber footbidge
1890: Hurley Lock from the bridge, Francis Frith -
1890: Hurley Lock from the bridge, Francis Frith
Hurley Lock Cut Upper Footbridge, 1999
Hurley Lock Cut Upper Footbridge, Doug Myers © 2005
Map: Hurley small slipway
On the right bank above the lock, on the lock cut, opposite a side weir.
Map: Hurley weir, Left Bank
Map: Hurley Winch
1898: A dispute between the Conservancy and the landowner of the left bank just above the weir. There was an old winch used for winching barges up the flash lock which was next to it. It was said to be the last surviving on the river. The Conservancy claimed the winch and the land on which it stood and the “two plots of land forming the old flash lock”. The Conservancy had to admit defeat and requested that the antique relic should be preserved. Fred Thacker wrote -
The relic is covered with a climbing rose, under whose disguise the old hardswearing and much enduring bargemen would be puzzled to recognise it.
1910: Fred Thacker has this picture –
Old winch at Hurley, 1910
This left bank above Hurley Weir is owned by SAS UK who own the Wittington Estate -
The Wittington Estate includes the riverside strip below the cliffs -
bought by Kearley to annoy his next-door neighbour, Robert Hudson of Sunlight Soap fame,
who had acquired the Danesfield estate in the 1890s. This effectively denied Hudson
access to the river - a situation that still exists today. Kearley and Hudson had
both previously lived in Medmenham, a mile to the west of Wittington, and this
is where their rivalry started. Hudson was responsible for building the current Danesfield
House, which is the second time the house has been rebuilt.
The Thames at SAS UK also features a flash-lock capstan, said to be the only one left in
the whole of England. Restored in 1999, it was originally used to pull river barges
up the flash-lock prior (and for some time after) the pound lock was built in 1780.
Kearley restored and repaired it from time to time from estate oak.
SAS UK now maintains this historic site.
2006: The winch rotated at the touch of a finger -
Old winch at Hurley, 2006
[ But of course its not a drum winch with a big handle that the name winch had led me to imagine.
In naval terms, the difference between a capstan or windlass
and a winch is that a capstan or windlass has a vertical axis of rotation,
while a winch has a horizontal axis of rotation.
However this "winch" has a rotating vertical shaft (presumably well sunk down into the ground)
with six horizontal beams. The line might either
have been wound up on the vertical shaft as it was rotated by pushing round the
beam, or maybe there were just several turns on the shaft and the line then led
off to be laid out ready for use? Either
way the thought of pulling a heavily laden barge up that weir by this method
makes me devoutly thankful for pound locks with keepers and hydraulics.
See WHITCHURCH LOCK for the use of such a winch. ]
Map: Wittington Estate & Danesfield House Hotel
Map: Riverside Park Slipway & Camping
Estate Office, Hurley Farm, Hurley, Berks. SL65NE. 01628 823501
Email enquiries
80 pitches, 1st March to 31st October, WC, Elsan disposal, showers, laundry, wash basins, shaver points,
shop, fishing, SLIPWAY (light boats only), disabled facilities.
Upstream to Medmenham Abbey
Estuary
PLA
QEII Br
Barrier
Tower Br
Custom Ho
London Br
; Frost Fairs
Cannon St Rb
The Great Stink
Southwark Br
Millenium Br
Blackfriars Rb
Blackfriars Br
Waterloo Br
Charing Cross Rb
Westminster Br
Lambeth Br
Vauxhall Br
Victoria Rb
Chelsea Br
Albert Br
Battersea Br
Battersea Rb
Wandsworth Br
Fulham Rb
Putney Br
Hammersmith Br
Barnes Rb
Chiswick Br
Kew Rb
Kew Br
RICHMOND
Twickenham Br
Richmond Rb
Richmond Br
TEDDINGTON
Kingston Rb
Kingston Br
Ditton Slip
Hampton Br
MOLESEY
SUNBURY
Walton Br
Desborough Cut
SHEPPERTON
Chertsey Br
CHERTSEY
M3 Br
Laleham Slip
PENTON HOOK
Staines Rb
Staines Br
Runnymede Br
BELL WEIR
Magna Carta Is
OLD WINDSOR
Albert Br
Datchet
Victoria Br
Black Potts Rb
ROMNEY
Eton
Windsor Br
Windsor Rb
Windsor Slip
Elizabeth Br
BOVENEY
Dorney Lake
York Cut
Summerleaze Fb
MonkeyIsland
New Thames Br
BRAY
Bray Slip
Maidenhead Rb
Maidenhead Br
Below Boulters
BOULTERS
Cliveden
Hedsor
COOKHAM
Cookham Slip
Cookham Br
BourneEnd RFb
Quarry Woods
A404 Br
MARLOW
Marlow Br
Bisham
TEMPLE
HURLEY
Medmenham
Culham Ct
Aston Slip
HAMBLEDEN
Temple Is
Fawley Ct
Remenham
Regatta
Phyllis Ct
Henley Slip
Leander
Red Lion
Henley Br
Angel on Br
Landing
Hobbs Boatyard
Hobbs Slipway
MARSH
Hennerton
Bolney
Wargrave
Shiplake Rb
R.Loddon
SHIPLAKE
Sonning Br
SONNING
Dreadnought
K&A Canal
CAVERSHAM
Reading Br
Caversham Br
Reading Slip
Purley
MAPLEDURHAM
Hardwick Ho
Whitchurch Br
WHITCHURCH
Hartswood Reach
Gatehampton Rb
Goring Gap
Goring Br
GORING
Swan
CLEEVE
Moulsford
Moulsford Rb
Papist Way Slip
Winterbrook Br
Wallingford Br
BENSON
Shillingford Br
R.Thame
DAYS
Burcot
Clifton Hampden
Clifton Church
Clifton H Br
Barley Mow
Long Wittenham
CLIFTON
Appleford Rb
Sutton Courtenay
Sutton Br
CULHAM
Culham Cut Fb
Abingdon Slip
Abingdon
Abingdon Br
ABINGDON
Nuneham Rb
Nuneham
Nuneham Park
Radley Boats
SANDFORD
Rose Island
Kennington Rb
Isis Br
Iffley Mill
IFFLEY
Oxford Rowing
Isis
Donnington Br
Riverside Slip
Boathouses
Punting
Lower Cherwell
Upper Cherwell
Islip
Head of River
Salters Steamers
Folly Br
Bacons Folly
Oxford Fb
Osney Fb
Weir stream
Osney Rb
Bullstake Stream
Osney Marina
OSNEY
Osney Br
Four Rivers
OLD RIVER
CANAL
Medley Weir Site
Medley Fb
Bossoms
Perch
Trout
GODSTOW
Godstow Nunnery
Godstow Br
Thames Br
KINGS
River Evenlode
EYNSHAM
Swinford Br
Oxford Cruisers
PINKHILL
Farmoor
Stanton Harcourt
Bablock Slip
Arks Weir Site
NORTHMOOR
Harts Fb
//Rose Revived
Newbridge
//Maybush
River Windrush
below Shifford
SHIFFORD
Shifford Fb
Tenfoot Fb
Trout Inn
Tadpole Br
RUSHEY
Old Mans Fb
RADCOT
Radcot Cradle Fb
Swan Inn
Radcot New Br
Radcot Old Br
GRAFTON
Eaton Hastings
Kelmscott
Eaton Fb
BUSCOT
Bloomers Hole Fb
Trout Inn
St Johns Br
ST JOHNS
Halfpenny Br
Marina Slip
LIMIT
Inglesham
Hannington Br
Kempsford
Castle Eaton Br
Marston Meysey
A419 Br
Cricklade
SOURCE?
THAMES HEAD
SEVEN SPRINGS