Moorings on the River Itchen (Hampshire)

The River Itchen rises south of New Alresford and flows about 42 km past Winchester and Eastleigh to Southampton, where it meets Southampton Water below the Itchen Bridge. It becomes tidal at Woodmill, which is also the limit of navigation. The Itchen Navigation, built to take barges up to Winchester, stopped working in the mid 19th century and is largely abandoned. ABP Southampton is the harbour authority for the port of Southampton.

For boat owners, the Itchen is the tidal reach through Southampton. The Itchen Bridge gives more than 23 m of clearance, and above it the channel keeps a minimum of around 1.5 m at chart datum. Northam Bridge is the limit for masted craft. The lower river is a busy yachting centre, with sailing clubs and rowing clubs near its mouth.

Moorings on the Itchen are mostly in marinas. Ocean Village Marina is on the western shore just below the Itchen Bridge, close to the city centre, and Shamrock Quay and Saxon Wharf lie further up the same bank; all three are run by MDL. Kemps Quay Marina, a drying marina and boatyard, is on the opposite shore just below Northam Bridge. Itchen Marine, just above the Itchen Bridge, has the river's fuel berth, and there are smaller boatyards above Northam Bridge.