Information for boaters - River Nene

Some locks on the River Nene are ‘reversed’ during floods and high flows. This closes the affected locks to navigation. The Environment Agency strongly recommends that you don’t attempt to navigate during these periods.

The River Nene flows through Northamptonshire, Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire and borders Norfolk. It also links the Grand Union Canal to the River Great Ouse, via the Middle Level. Originally a commercial navigation, the Nene is now used almost entirely for recreation.

There are 145 kilometres of navigable waterway, with 38 locks between Northampton and Peterborough. Each lock is approximately 26m long and 4.6m wide.

The Environment Agency navigation starts at the junction with the Northampton Arm of the Grand Union Canal near Cotton End Lock. It extends 91 miles to the sea, ending at Bevis Hall just upstream of Wisbech.

You need to register your boat with the Environment Agency if you want to take your boat on this stretch of the River Nene.

If you are visiting the River Nene from the Grand Union Canal you can buy your visitor registration and navigation key from the Environment Agency marina at Northampton.

You can see the latest navigation notices on the River Nene Mapping tool.

Environment Agency sanitary facilities (water, pump out, chemical toilet disposal) are available at Northampton Marina and Wellingborough Embankment. The pump outs at both these locations are token operated. Tokens can be purchased from:

Water is free at all Environment Agency sites.

You can find out more about the facilities on the River Nene using our mapping tool.