We are planning to bring our boat from Croxley Green to Broxbourne early November and would appreciate advice on planning the route and more specifically where to stop!

First day would hopefully be 4 hours cruising before nightfall I presume that might get us somewhere near Denham am I likely to find anywhere to moor? wherabouts?

After that given the short days in November and unwillingness to cruise after dark I am assuming 8 hours maximum per day.

So next day Little Venice, I have booked a visitor mooring, whereabouts on Delamere terrace are the bookable ones - am I likely to find it vacant or are these regularly squatted on?

After that if the Hertford Union is open suggestions please as to likely places on the Lea presumably around Tottenham?

If the Hertford union is not open I assume Limehouse is the best bet?

Thanks

43' x 10'

17 minutes ago, Phoenix_V said:

We are planning to bring our boat from Croxley Green to Broxbourne early November and would appreciate advice on planning the route and more specifically where to stop!

First day would hopefully be 4 hours cruising before nightfall I presume that might get us somewhere near Denham am I likely to find anywhere to moor? wherabouts?

You might struggle to find a mooring in Uxbridge, but Denham should be fine - either above or below the lock. Whereabouts? You just moor on the towpath side.

Below Denham Deep lock in 2008. It might be a bit more crowded these days.

Edited October 2Oct 2 by blackrose

Keep an eye on the restriction at widewater lock, Harefield.

Eight hours a day in November is ambitious. You'll find you need to stop along the way for water, toilet, shopping, diesel, lunch etc. The Delamere Terrace moorings are well signed on the right hand side before you get to Little Venice. If you've booked a space it will most likely be available. Canalplan.org.uk is a good planning web site.

Edited October 2Oct 2 by Alway Swilby
corrected VM site.

2 minutes ago, Alway Swilby said:

Eight hours a day in November is ambitious. You'll find you need to stop along the way for water, toilet, shopping, diesel, lunch etc. The Rembrandt Gardens moorings are on the far side of the pool from where you come in. If you've booked a space it will most likely be available. Canalplan.org.uk is a good planning web site.

Yes ambitious but doable boat will be stocked with water diesel etc, as far as I could see there are bookable moorings actually on Delamere Terrace which if usable would mean less faffing about at Rembrant Gardens, yes I have used canalplan ac but it does not talk about conditions on the ground. Talking of which I see there is a new stoppage at Widewater lock what are the chances it will be fixed by november?

Depends on what is broken. What bits Need to be made

44 minutes ago, Phoenix_V said:

Yes ambitious but doable boat will be stocked with water diesel etc, as far as I could see there are bookable moorings actually on Delamere Terrace which if usable would mean less faffing about at Rembrant Gardens, yes I have used canalplan ac but it does not talk about conditions on the ground. Talking of which I see there is a new stoppage at Widewater lock what are the chances it will be fixed by november?

Widewater lock is available for widebeams on Tuesdays and Thursdays as of next week but they must be booked in advance. It’s available for narrow beams as of today. Was a bit worried when I saw it mentioned above cos I’m due to be moving a boat up from London next week.

On 02/10/2026 at 08:06, Phoenix_V said:

We are planning to bring our boat from Croxley Green to Broxbourne early November and would appreciate advice on planning the route and more specifically where to stop!

First day would hopefully be 4 hours cruising before nightfall I presume that might get us somewhere near Denham am I likely to find anywhere to moor? wherabouts?

After that given the short days in November and unwillingness to cruise after dark I am assuming 8 hours maximum per day.

So next day Little Venice, I have booked a visitor mooring, whereabouts on Delamere terrace are the bookable ones - am I likely to find it vacant or are these regularly squatted on?

After that if the Hertford Union is open suggestions please as to likely places on the Lea presumably around Tottenham?

If the Hertford union is not open I assume Limehouse is the best bet?

Thanks

43' x 10'

There's currently a whole load of people who appear to be AirBnB'ing their boats more or less permanently moored on the paid for Little Venice visitor moorings for a few months now. There's a fleet of 4 more which have been on there 7 day moorings just west of there for a few months now. Unsure if the ones on the visitor moorings paying to be there or not, but one of the 7 day mooring AirBnB owners is extremely rude and entitled.

Reported to the CRT, local council and AirBnB multiple times but they still remain; it seems no one cares, sadly.

Anyway. I'd recommend doing Croxley to Uxbridge in one day, there's always moorings there or a bit lower down near Cowley Lock. There's a water point and Elsan at Cowley too. If you moor just below Denham it's a long unlit walk to any shops! From Uxbridge, then do a long jump to Perivale. Don't stop near Bulls Bridge, that's a hotspot for crime.

A good next journey would be Perivale to Little Venice or thereabouts. After that, take the next available mooring which will probably be Angel or around Broadway Market in Shoreditch. Assuming the Hertford Cut is open, you could do a little cruise to Victoria Park for a night, followed by a journey to Ponder's End. And then one more trip to get you to Broxbourne!

On 02/10/2026 at 08:27, blackrose said:

Below Denham Deep lock in 2008. It might be a bit more crowded these days.

I think that's the most crowded I've seen it! Came through there heading north a month ago.

Edited October 3Oct 3 by cheesegas

You might want to edit the title Croxley Green to Watford is only about a mile!

On 02/10/2026 at 08:51, Phoenix_V said:

Yes ambitious but doable boat will be stocked with water diesel etc, as far as I could see there are bookable moorings actually on Delamere Terrace which if usable would mean less faffing about at Rembrant Gardens, yes I have used canalplan ac but it does not talk about conditions on the ground. Talking of which I see there is a new stoppage at Widewater lock what are the chances it will be fixed by november?

Conditions on the ground?

3 hours ago, cheesegas said:

There's currently a whole load of people who appear to be AirBnB'ing their boats more or less permanently moored on the paid for Little Venice visitor moorings for a few months now. There's a fleet of 4 more which have been on there 7 day moorings just west of there for a few months now. Unsure if the ones on the visitor moorings paying to be there or not, but one of the 7 day mooring AirBnB owners is extremely rude and entitled.

Reported to the CRT, local council and AirBnB multiple times but they still remain; it seems no one cares, sadly.

Anyway. I'd recommend doing Croxley to Uxbridge in one day, there's always moorings there or a bit lower down near Cowley Lock. There's a water point and Elsan at Cowley too. If you moor just below Denham it's a long unlit walk to any shops! From Uxbridge, then do a long jump to Perivale. Don't stop near Bulls Bridge, that's a hotspot for crime.

A good next journey would be Perivale to Little Venice or thereabouts. After that, take the next available mooring which will probably be Angel or around Broadway Market in Shoreditch. Assuming the Hertford Cut is open, you could do a little cruise to Victoria Park for a night, followed by a journey to Ponder's End. And then one more trip to get you to Broxbourne!

I think that's the most crowded I've seen it! Came through there heading north a month ago.

Would it be better to book a mooring in Rembrandt Gardens than little Venice then? I thought 4 days was doable I am not looking to sightsee. Do you think that's too ambitious?

12 minutes ago, Phoenix_V said:

Would it be better to book a mooring in Rembrandt Gardens than little Venice then? I thought 4 days was doable I am not looking to sightsee. Do you think that's too ambitious?

Ah if you’re not looking to sightsee then you can do it in much less time! I once did Cheshunt to Three Bridges in a day, but that included cruising after dark.

A lot of West Drayton and the Paddington Arm has no moored boats and the banks are Armco so you can go at a decent speed. Start at first light and you’ll get to Cowley easily, or Engineers Wharf in Yeading if you push on quickly. Plenty of mooring in both.

After that, don’t bother trying to moor in Little Venice or pay for it - go straight through Camden and moor up at the first possible place as mentioned. Be prepared to go as far as Broadway Market.

Then, do another long day on day 3 and you’ll get to Broxbourne.

8 minutes ago, cheesegas said:

Ah if you’re not looking to sightsee then you can do it in much less time! I once did Cheshunt to Three Bridges in a day, but that included cruising after dark.

A lot of West Drayton and the Paddington Arm has no moored boats and the banks are Armco so you can go at a decent speed. Start at first light and you’ll get to Cowley easily, or Engineers Wharf in Yeading if you push on quickly. Plenty of mooring in both.

After that, don’t bother trying to moor in Little Venice or pay for it - go straight through Camden and moor up at the first possible place as mentioned. Be prepared to go as far as Broadway Market.

Then, do another long day on day 3 and you’ll get to Broxbourne.

That sounds good but we will only be able to start about midday first day hence I thought Denham ish first day then 2nd day little Venice ?

Just now, Phoenix_V said:

That sounds good but we will only be able to start about midday first day hence I thought Denham ish first day then 2nd day little Venice ?

Plus after l Venice we hit the locks at night

16 hours ago, Phoenix_V said:

That sounds good but we will only be able to start about midday first day hence I thought Denham ish first day then 2nd day little Venice ?

Plus after l Venice we hit the locks at night

Camden Locks are currently last entry at 3.30pm

Don’t expect to easily find anywhere to moor between Little Venice and Hackney Wick, especially with a wide beam. The best bet for an overnight stop when crossing London are the bookable moorings at Kings X and Angel. Otherwise there’s some fierce mooring behaviours on the stretch through Islington and Hackney...

As I said we are moving the boat not sightseeing and intend traveling all the hours of daylight in November (and maybe a little into the evening) our concern being the chance of finding a mooring when we do decide to stop.

The first day is half a day and from the comments above it seems feasible to reach somewhere around Denham Uxbridge (or Widewater lock if still needing to be booked for widebeam) and moor.

Second day, noted that the Little Venice bookable moorings are currently squatted so will re book for Rembrant Gardens. This leaves Camden lock to be done early morning that should be no problem even with the current early closing. Then if the Hertford Union is open by then will need a mooring somewhere on the lower Lee would be grateful for any advice on likely spots there? If the Hertford Union is still shut then down to Mile End (if that has shut for the day presumably can stay on Lock landing??? )otherwise Limehouse. Final day up the Lea to Broxbourne.

Hope that makes sense, should appreciate any further advice/comments on feasibility.

If the Hertford Union is still closed then there’s always plenty of places to moor on the Limehouse Cut, with mooring rings. You may wake up to find the side of your boat splattered with mud from the passing cyclists on the raised towpath (perhaps why there’s always space to moor there!)

If the HU is open, there’s normally somewhere to moor within a mile or so north of the Homerton Road bridge.

In areas of higher demand for overnight mooring (and elsewhere) many boaters cruise in the am and them moor up for the pm so that if you only start to seek a space at nightfall, you may have to travel further than you wish or accept a mooring you might otherwise leave for someone else.

So planning needs to take into account the availability of moorings ahead of where you pan to stop, in case you have to carry on looking. In some contexts this can mean having a necessary extra hour or so as there are none at all. For example we have just (well almost when the Northampton Arm opens) completed the Anglian Waterways (Nene, ML and Gt Ouse) and on many days this was an important factor in deciding when to stop. Long stretches have nowhere at all to moor even though the designated places were often empty. One of the new MLC Rural Moorings had room for just one boat! So you can arrive somewhere and look to see if either empty or full, nothing in between!

2 hours ago, Mike Todd said:

In areas of higher demand for overnight mooring (and elsewhere) many boaters cruise in the am and them moor up for the pm so that if you only start to seek a space at nightfall, you may have to travel further than you wish or accept a mooring you might otherwise leave for someone else.

So planning needs to take into account the availability of moorings ahead of where you pan to stop, in case you have to carry on looking. In some contexts this can mean having a necessary extra hour or so as there are none at all. For example we have just (well almost when the Northampton Arm opens) completed the Anglian Waterways (Nene, ML and Gt Ouse) and on many days this was an important factor in deciding when to stop. Long stretches have nowhere at all to moor even though the designated places were often empty. One of the new MLC Rural Moorings had room for just one boat! So you can arrive somewhere and look to see if either empty or full, nothing in between!

All very true, but we need to move the boat so after dark mooring is on the cards

9 hours ago, Phoenix_V said:

All very true, but we need to move the boat so after dark mooring is on the cards

I was not trying to tell you what to do more a matter of warning what the consequences of some decisions might be!