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The Estuary Code Of Conduct | |
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This, we hope, is a common sense guide to how it’s best to act whilst out and about on the Medway Estuary. It’s not written from an official or governmental point of view, rather the perspective of people who spend a fair amount of their time canoeing and walking the area.
We realise that some of you can't be bothered to read lots of rules or advice, so here's a quick summary. Leave any place you go in the estuary as you find it. Except if you find it dirty or damaged, in which case either clean it up or report it to your local council. That's it. This is something we can all understand, we hope.
Now if you've got the time, please read on. We’ve seen a number of Codes of Conduct here and there that try to tell you what to do and how to act whilst on the estuary. The problem with many of them (at the moment, although we hope our website will encourage them to re-think their approach) is that they spend most of their time dealing with the situation as they’d like it to be, rather than the situation as it really is. One example of this is that they tell you not to land on any of the estuary islands for fear of disturbing the birds. This is all very good, except it doesn’t take into account that many people do land on the islands, have been doing so for a great many years and will no doubt continue to do so, regardless of what the authorities say, especially since the authorities have no manpower or money to enforce their laws. So, rather than ignore the facts as they stand, we’d rather deal with the situation as it is and use our experience to help both human visitors and wildlife alike. Here goes... Most islands and marshy coastline are privately owned. It’s very unclear as to whether it’s permitted to land on them or not as signs are almost non-existant, except on Hoo Ness Island where they are large signs saying ‘Trespassers will be prosecuted’. In reality, many people do land. Some because they are curious. Some because the weather has turned bad, the estuary is too rough to canoe in and they need safe refuge. Some because they want to have a real wild camping experience, which is increasingly hard to get in What does ‘leave the island as you find it’ mean? It means that... 1/ You should take all of your rubbish home with you. 2/ If you must have a campfire you should place it well away from bushes or grass, and when you’re not sat around it, put it out with water so it doesn’t burn out of control whilst you’re sleeping (you’ll find blackened areas surrounded by stones on many islands where many people have camped before you; use these areas to light your fire in, it’s safer that way). 3/ When you go to toilet then either take the paper home with you or burn in on your campfire (talking of toilet, when you go do it below the high tide mark, that way it gets washed away naturally by the tide, and you’ve no need to dig a hole to bury it). 4/ You should not dig! We’ve seen many people digging for fun, trying to find old items of value perhaps, on the islands and this isn’t good. It weakens the structure of the islands, and makes it easier for the tides to wash them away. 5/ If you forage for wild food such as samphire, purslane and sea beet, do it sensibly. The roots of these plants hold the islands together; if you harvest the plants, just snip the leaves off and leave the roots in place and untouched (for more good information on this, check out the website http://www.wildmanwildfood.com and see the links at the left hand side of the page entitled 'foraging and the law', 'the countryside code' and 'sustainability')
You do need to be careful of the birds when you approach an island. Our experience tells us that the only island that is in any way safe to land on during the nesting season (that’s approximately the start of April to the start of August) is Darnet Island, and even then it’s best to stay up the west end of it, by the fort, where you can land behind the concrete barges, as the central and eastern end are heavily used by many varieties of birds. Please take our advice on this. If you interrupt birds whilst they are nesting (and you can interrupt them simply by walking to within a few hundred metres of their nests) a couple of things can happen. One is that the adults will fly off the nest in alarm, which allows waiting gulls to swoop in and eat the young. Another is that the adults are so alarmed that they fly away, leaving the young to starve. Either way, it’s not good. One of the best things about being on the estuary is hearing and seeing the birds, there’s no advantage to be gained from driving them away from safe nesting areas just so you can have a look round. That’s not to say you can’t have a look round. But please save your wanderings until August comes around each year. After that, during the fine weather months of August, September and, if you're lucky, October, you can explore pretty much anywhere you want, subject to the landowners permission... When you come across seals, you’ll probably want to get a bit closer to have a look. They’re lovely animals; it’s only natural that you’d want to spend some time near them. We’d say that you should not paddle directly at them, always give them room to swim away from you, don’t get closer than about 30 metres (they’ll probably swim away before you get this close), and don’t try to feed them. Some people have tried to feed them in the past, please don't. All it does is potentially poison them (depending on what you feed them) and also makes them dangerously blase about humans. Unfortunately not all people who use the estuary are animal lovers. Apart from the wild-fowlers who love to shoot birds, there’s also some others who aren’t too fond of seals, and if a seal were to approach their boat thinking that they might get fed, who knows what might happen to the poor animals. So, if you see seals, just keep your distance and stop paddling/cut the engine, for a while. Chances are they’ll come to take a closer look at you anyway (if you want them to come closer an old trick is to gently tap out a waltz or similar classical rhythm on the side of your canoe or boat; seals and dolphins tend to be attracted to this).
As you become more interested in the estuary, you will read many leaflets and websites that tell you to keep away from the wildlife and islands of the estuary. We believe that this is an unsustainable and unenlightened approach that needs to change. The real threat to the wildlife of the Medway estuary does not come from a handful of sightseers but from the local authorities, and other landowners, who refuse to sure up the islands' sea defences.
Imagine what would happen if tourists were not allowed to go into game parks in Africa and look at the lions and elephants. There's little doubt in the mind of conservationists that if this were the case then for various reasons (one of which is the normal human attitude that for animals to survive they have to be of some use to us humans, and if they're not, then it's ok to poach/disregard them) the animals would be extinct in no time at all. Tourism has saved many species of animals, that's for certain.
And it is tourism that is one of the things that can save the islands, and thus the wildlife that lives on them, of the estuary. The future of the Medway estuaries wildlife does not only lie in the hands of the people at the RSPB and other official bodies, but also with us, the public. If nobody goes out onto the Medway Estuary to enjoy the wildlife and environment then there won't be anybody around to stand up and shout about the islands washing away because the local authorities can't be bothered to sure up the sea defences (the official policy at the moment regarding the estuary is to let the tides wash away what they will until there is nothing left, and this will only change if there is extreme pressure applied by us, the public). The best way we can help is by getting out there and enjoying the place, responsibly. Only when it's seen to be (and proven to be) a place that is useful, even essential, to our physical and mental health will the local authority begin to treat it as a place worth saving from tidal erosion, and perhaps commercial exploitation. Who knows what money the government might save on crime and social spending if more people got out into our wild places and let the tranquility of nature replace anger and fear in their hearts! Get out there! We haven't much time. Another few years worth of rising tides will see many of the nesting spots underwater. And when that happens, we can say goodbye to the local birdlife, and to the opportunties we humans have of enjoying a wonderful bit of local island hopping. OK, rant over. Back to our Code of Conduct. Most islands are surrounded by mud flats. This means that pretty much the only way you’ll be able to get on them is either by canoe or flat bottomed boat. Don’t try to get near in a boat which needs deep water, you might get stuck in the mud. We’ve seen this happen lots of times, especially in the channel between Darnet and Nor. The tide goes out very quickly on the estuary. Take note of the tides, get yourself a decent tide timetable (but bear in mind they are only guides, and they are sometimes wrong. At spring tide, for instance, the tide can be a metre higher than the timetable predicts, depending on the state of the moon)) and take notice of it. The tides will dictate when you can land on and leave an island without getting covered in mud; usually that’s about two hours either side of high tide.
If you’re a jet-skier, bear in mind that your craft gives off a more difficult type of wash to deal with than a large container ship. This may seem absurd, but it’s the truth. A large ship gives off a gentle, regular wash that a small craft such as a canoe can turn into and deal with safely. A jet-ski gives off a sharp, irregular wash that can cause some nasty surprises. So please ease off the throttle if you see another craft, a seal or a porpoise. There’s loads more very useful information for jet skiers available on the MSEP website Here (download the document labelled ‘Riding Personal Water Craft in
If you are driving a motorised craft, you should observe speed limits, navigation rules and byelaws. You must always observe local water safety regulations but, as a general rule, you shouldn’t exceed a speed of 8 knots/10mph when your craft is within 300m of the shoreline, unless otherwise stated.
And don't drink and drive. A couple of G&T's and a sail around the estuary may seem like a good idea, but it won't feel so great after you run aground or caused damage (we've had many a near miss when irresponsible, or drunk, boat/jet ski owners come too close to the canoe). If you’re a walker then similar common sense rules apply for the estuary coastline as do for any outdoors environment. Take your rubbish home with you. Leave the place as you find it. Close gates after you. If you’ve got a dog, don’t let it bother either livestock or wild animals, and if you’re in any doubt as to whether there are any animals about, please keep the dog on a lead. If you’re a fisherman then observe any local regulations when digging for bait. Only take what you need and ensure that you backfill any dug holes. There are several good places to launch a canoe from on the estuary. You can find out about them in the canoe trail section of this website. Try to stick to them. Using ‘new’ places just erodes the shoreline. If you see anybody acting badly out on the estuary, driving craft recklessly or endangering other water users or animals, please do us all a favour and report this by contacting the Kent Police on 01622 798565 (Marine Unit) or 01622 690690.
Likewise, if you experience any land owners acting in a way that could endanger you or other waterway users, such as, for instance, if they're demanding a canoeist leave their land even if the canoeist is too tired, or the weather's too rough, to do so, then call the police on the number above. Don't be bullied into risking your life! In an emergency contact the Coastguard on 999 or VHF channel 16. We will update the information on this page as we learn more. If you want more detailed information on the estuary and what it has to offer, you can download a free brochure from the MSEP website called 'Discover the Medway Swale Estuary', Here
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