Boat spotting

One of the highlights of a visit to Maldon is seeing some of the historic boats – you can see them in the river by Promenade Park, along Hythe Quay, and all the way along the banks to Fullbridge.

In fact, Maldon is one of the best places in the country to see the majestic Thames barges with their traditional red sails. Today there are only around 50 surviving vessels from the 2,000 that were registered in 1900 and just 34 of those are rigged and in regular sailing order, so it is a special experience to see so many of these historic boats together – and you may even be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of them out racing in the estuary during the Blackwater Barge Match.

Some of the barges are moored here all year round, while others visit regularly to offer boat trips and chartered cruises. As well as the barges, look out for the Steam Tug Brent, one of the last of its kind, as well as some other notable boats in the area. You can even stay for the weekend on a historic boat!

Here are some of the interesting or historic vessels you might be able to spot moored or on the water at Maldon:

Blue Mermaid

This vessel was built in 2016 but is a faithful replica of the original Blue Mermaid, built in 1930 but lost during the Second World War. It has a steel hull and deck, but with all the traditional rigging of a sea-going Thames Barge and no engine. The vessel is used for sail training with Sea-Change Sailing Trust and sails cargo from Gt Yarmouth to Dover, helping to deliver the Seamanship Scholarship Scheme that trains young people for marine careers. The trust is currently raising funds for a feature length film about the artistry of engineless sailing by film maker Huw Wahl, which would be shown aboard the yacht as it travels around the east of England. www.seachangesailingtrust.org.uk.

Brent

Team Tug Brent is one of the very last of a long line of steam powered tug boats which trace their origins back to the first use of steam power in the 1840s. She was built as part of the War effort in 1945 for the Admiralty, but never saw war service and was sold to the Port of London Authority, who used her to tow lighters and barges in the Royal Docks. The Steam Tug Brent Trust is raising money to restore her, and there are occasional open days. www.steamtugbrent.org.

Centaur

Owned by Thames Sailing Barge Trust, Centaur was launched in 1895 from Harwich and is a 25m coasting barge, made of wood and large enough to cross the Channel. Her working life was spent moving timber, sugar beet and cement until she became a leisure boat in the 1960s. She now provides weekend sailing trips, lunchtime cruises and charters. See www.bargetrust.org.

Firefly

Firefly is a 10.5m wooden sailing yacht built in 1922 with a reduced draught for shallow Norfolk broads. Although she was originally built with an engine, she is now solely powered by sail, and looks a little like a miniature Thames barge with her red sails. She is privately owned in Maldon.

George Smeed

The recently restored George Smeed was built of wood in 1882 and is the oldest full-sized barge in sailing condition - it has never had an engine. The 24m spritsail barge, which was built to take cargoes of bricks around the country and across the channel, is now privately owned and sailed, and is currently for sale.

Hydrogen

Owned by Topsail Charters Ltd, Hydrogen is the largest surviving wooden barge, a 29m coasting barge built in 1906. She used to take cargo around the east coast of England, and was used as a supply ship on the Clyde in the Second World War. For a while she was owned by Bells Whisky to promote its brand, but is now a popular charter boat that can take up to 50 passengers for a sail. www.top-sail.co.uk.

Marigold

Marigold is a modern boat, built at Walter Cook’s boatyard in Maldon, in 1981, but as a replica of a Gravesend Bawley, the Lillian, originally built in 1869. She is a 13m clinker, built from oak and larch, with no engine and traditionally rigged sails. Gravesend Bawleys were built to work the lower reaches of the Thames, trawling for shrimps or sprats. Marigold, which you can see moored off Promenade Park, is available for charter all year round. www.marigoldcharters.co.uk.

Nellie

Built of wood in 1901, the 24m spritsail barge was a working cargo vessel until it was turned into a houseboat in 1962. It is the last barge still in existence that was made by Faversham boatyard G&C Cremer. It is now rigged as a “stumpy” barge so it can be sailed singlehandedly by its private owner.

Pudge

Pudge is owned by Thames Sailing Barge Trust. She was built in 1922 from pitch pine on oak, and was one of the last wooden barges to be built. She spent her working life carrying goods between London and Ipswich – with a terrifying interruption during the Second World War when the 25m spritsail barge was sent to Dunkirk to aid the evacuation and was nearly blown to pieces before managing to rescue a boat-load of exhausted soldiers. Pudge is currently undergoing a £738,000 restoration and refit at Fullbridge and on Hythe Quay. You can find the latest updates at www.thepudgeproject.com.

Reminder

Reminder, owned by Topsail Charters Ltd, was built in Mistley in 1929 and worked on the rivers of Essex and Suffolk until 1975. The 27m spritsail barge, which has a steel hull, is now available for charters and as moored accommodation taking up to 12 guests. www.top-sail.co.uk.

Resourceful

The steel-hulled Resourceful, thought to be the last original Thames Sailing Barge ever built, in 1931, is permanently moored at Hythe Quay and until recently was used as a tea room. www.top-sail.co.uk.

Sailorman

Sailorman is a 24m former Port of London Authority lighter built in 1931, now owned by Thames Sailing Barge Trust. A lighter is a type of flat-bottomed barge used to transfer goods to and from larger ships. They didn’t have engines or sailors but were moved and steered by skilled workers called lightermen using long oars called sweeps. www.bargetrust.org.

Thalatta

Based in Ipswich but occasionally sighted in Maldon waters Maldon and over-wintered at Heybridge Basin, Thalatta is a 27m sea-going spritsail barge built from oak and pitch pine in 1906 and designed to navigate easily in shallow rivers. During the First World War she transported goods to the armies across the channel as far as Dieppe. She is owned by East Coast Sail Trust and takes children and young people on educational voyages as well as being available for charter. www.thalatta.org.uk.

Thistle

Beautiful Thistle, owned by Topsail Charters Ltd, was built in 1895 on the Clyde, but then spent her working life based in the Port of London transporting coal from the Humber to the Thames. The 26m spritsail barge is now available for trips and charters taking up to 50 passengers. www.top-sail.co.uk.

Wyvenhoe

Wyvenhoe is a privately owned 25m spritsail barge, being restored in Maldon. From her construction in 1898 to 1982 she earned her living as a cargo carrying ship. Converted to a motor coaster in 1923, she was the last former sailing barge to carry cargo commercially before being transformed into a charter boat.