Penton Hook Lock

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Penton Hook Lock
Penton Hook Lock with the lock-keeper's house
Waterway	River Thames
County	Middlesex
Maintained by	Environment Agency
Operation	Hydraulic
First built	1815
Length	266' 8" (81.28m)
Width	24' 10" (7.56m)
Fall	4' 0" (1.22m)
Above Sea Level	41'
Distance to Teddington Lock	14 miles
Power is available out of hours

Penton Hook Lock
legend River Thames Bell Weir Lock Colne Brook M25 motorway + A30 road -- (Runnymede Bridge) Holm Island Hollyhock Island Church Island A308 Staines Bridge Wraysbury River River Colne Staines Railway Bridge marina weir Penton Hook Lock Abbey River River Thames

Penton Hook Lock is a lock on the River Thames in England situated on the northern "Middlesex" bank near Laleham, Surrey.

The lock cuts across a large loop or hook in the river, creating Penton Hook Island and it was built partly to solve the problems caused by floodwaters bursting across this neck. There is a large marina in the disused gravel pits connected to this loop. The lock was originally the highest lock on the Thames controlled by the City of London, which is why the City's arms appear on the Lock Cottage built in 1814. At over 266 ft (81.28 metres) it is the third longest lock on the river.

There are two weirs, which were built some time after the lock. One weir links across to Penton Hook Island, and the other from the island across the old course of the river. The former weir has a wide footpath to the island, but the footpath across the other weir is closed.

Contents 1 Access to the lock 2 Reach above the lock 3 See also 4 External links

[edit] Access to the lock

The lock is accessible on foot along the towpath from Staines Road coming out of Laleham or from the bottom of Penton Hook Road in Staines.

[edit] Reach above the lock

The river is built up on both sides after the lock and passes through Staines. Between Staines Railway Bridge and Staines Bridge there is an open riverside area with pubs on both sides and the River Colne joins the Thames here. After the bridge on the northern side is a replica of the London Stone placed near here in 1285 to mark the upper limit of the tidal Thames and the jusidiction of the City of London. Beside it is Church Island and a recreation area and beyond it Hollyhock Island and the wooded Holm Island. The Surrey side was formerly an industrial area with the gas works and water works, but this is being redeveloped into business parks. The M25 Runnymede Bridge crosses the river carrying the M25 motorway and the old A30 road just short of Bell Weir lock. There is a rowing club and Staines Regatta takes place on this stretch in July.

The Thames Path continues on the Middlesex bank as far as Staines Bridge, where it crosses over to the Surrey side until the lock.

[edit] See also

• Locks on the River Thames
• Rowing on the River Thames

[edit] External links

• Penton Hook Lock at the River Thames Guide

Next lock upstream	River Thames	Next lock downstream
Bell Weir Lock 2.84 miles	Penton Hook Lock Grid reference: TQ044695	Chertsey Lock 1.95 miles