page_title: River Mole
section_title: Navigation
hierarchical_section_title: River Mole / History / Navigation
caption_attribution_description: English: River Mole joins the Thames
context_page_description: The River Mole is a tributary of the River Thames in southern England. It rises in West Sussex near Horsham and flows northwest through Surrey for 80 km to the Thames at East Molesey, opposite Hampton Court Palace. The river gives its name to the Surrey district of Mole Valley. The Mole crosses the North Downs between Dorking and Leatherhead, where it cuts a steep-sided valley, known as the Mole Gap, through the chalk. Much of the catchment area lies on impermeable rock, meaning that the river level responds rapidly to heavy rainfall.
  During the second half of the 20th century pollution levels in the river were high; however, since 1995 the water quality has improved dramatically and the Mole now boasts the greatest diversity of fish species of any river in England. Twelve Sites of Special Scientific Interest that include wetland habitats are located within the Mole catchment area, and the stretch of river through Leatherhead has been designated a Local Nature Reserve. The Mole Gap forms part of a Special Area of Conservation and is an SSSI of European importance.
context_section_description: It is not clear to what extent the Mole was used for navigation in the past: In the late 13th century, Thorncroft Manor (south of Leatherhead) purchased a shout, a type of boat up to 16 metres (52 ft) in length used to carry produce to market and it has been suggested that stone cut from quarries in Reigate was transported to London via the river.
  During the 17th century, two bills came before parliament to make sections of the river navigable.  The first, in 1663, was passed by the House of Commons but was defeated in the House of Lords. During the following year (1664), an act was passed by both Houses of Parliament to make the River Mole navigable from Reigate to the River Thames, but was never executed. The only Surrey river to have been made fully navigable is the River Wey.
  In 1798 William Marshall advocated the canalisation of a short stretch of the River Mole between Betchworth and Dorking to facilitate the movement of chalk from quarry to market. In 1810 the engineer John Rennie proposed a canal linking the River Medway to Portsmouth which was to have a branch to London following the Mole for much of its length.  Between 1825 and 1828 the architect and civil engineer Nicholas Wilcox Cundy proposed a Grand Imperial Ship Canal from Deptford to Chichester passing through the Mole Gap, however he was unable to attract sufficient financial interest in his scheme.
  Today the Mole is navigable for the 400 m (440 yd) from the confluence with the River Thames to Molember Weir at East Molesey where there is a private mooring facility.  The river may be paddled all year by canoe between Brockham and Fetcham with an appropriate licence from the British Canoe Union.
caption: Confluence of the Mole with the Thames opposite Hampton Court
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