The shipping platform

Location: Whitstable lies on the N Kent coast at the mouth of the River Swale and in the River Thames approaches. General overview: The harbour covers an area of 14ha of which approx 1.5ha forms the harbour basin. The harbour dries out at LW with berths of soft mud accepting vessels up to 3,000t capacity. There are three quays having a total overall length of 482m, plus 158m allocated to fishing vessels with accommodation for vessels with a draught of up to 4.9m at mean spring tides and 3.8m at neap tides. The port primarily handles bulk aggregates and timber. Traffic figures: Approx 450,000t of bulk aggregate, timber and machinery handled annually. Load line zone: North Atlantic Winter Seasonal Zone II, Winter Nov 1 to Mar 31, Summer Apr 1 to Oct 31. Max size: Max draught 4.9m. Largest vessel handled: "Laura Helena", 4,200DWT.