Long-term moorings in Marlow

Marlow is a Buckinghamshire town on the non-tidal River Thames, on the reach between Temple Lock and Marlow Lock. Moorings in Marlow itself are for short stays: the long-term berths are at Harleyford Marina, upstream of the town. Bourne End, downstream, has its own page.

Moorings near Marlow

• Harleyford Marina: run by Harleyford Estate Ltd on Henley Road, about 1.6 miles from the town, between Hurley and Temple locks. Berths for boats of 6m to 22m, a 155 berth lagoon opened in 2017 and a 50 ton hoist.
• Peter Freebody & Co: a boatyard at Mill Lane, Hurley, with moorings, storage, a slipway and wooden boat restoration.
• Temple Mill Island: just below Temple Lock, a housing development with its own marina.
• Higginson Park: Buckinghamshire Council's moorings on the town bank take visiting boats. An overnight fee is paid through The Little Green Boat Company.
• Below Marlow Lock: the Environment Agency's visitor mooring has been closed since March 2023, awaiting repairs to its wooden edge.

On the water

The Environment Agency is the navigation authority. Every boat kept or used on the river, marinas and backwaters included, must be registered with it. A powered boat needs third party insurance, and most need a Boat Safety Scheme certificate.

• Marlow Lock: 46.10m long and 6.07m wide (151ft 3in by 19ft 11in), with a fall of 2.16m. Cookham Lock is 6.44km (4 miles) downstream.
• Temple Lock: 2.7km (1.68 miles) above Marlow Lock, 41.02m long and 5.46m wide. A boat coming down from Harleyford passes through it.
• Bridges: Marlow Bridge has 3.86m (12ft 8in) of headway at standard water level, and Marlow Bypass Bridge 6.02m (19ft 9in).
• Depth and speed: the agency gives a maximum draught of 1.3m between Reading and Windsor. The speed limit is 8km/h, about 5mph.
• Out of hours: when no lock keeper is on duty, crews may work the locks themselves at their own risk.

Floods and closures

The agency shows stream warning boards at each lock and on GOV.UK. Yellow boards mean the stream is increasing or decreasing: unpowered boats should not navigate, and powered boats should find a safe mooring or proceed with caution. Red boards mean a strong stream, when no boat should navigate.

Lock repairs are programmed each year between October and the end of March and can close a lock for weeks. The central arch of Temple footbridge, above Temple Lock, was closed in November 2024 and has since been removed.