Now, if you weren’t aware, at the top of the Harty Ferry hard on the Oare shore, there is a natural spring well. This has issued forth for well over one hundred years, but, sadly, it ceased running towards the end of 2018.

Many thought that was that…

I can remember going ashore here to top up the fresh water tank on the May Flower when we were round the East Swale during the mid 1960s. My father had a ‘small’ tank which could be shifted, from which, when hoisted in a davit it was run down to main tank. We must have done this several times, I expect! These days, 25 L drums can be used.

The well was sunk 100’s of feet down to the greensands layer below the chalk in the early 1900s by a mining company. It has run freely for yachtsmen to fill their water caskets and for casual passer by use too, ever since.

In 1982, apparently, it came under the stewardship of Kent Wildlife Trust, who administer the Oare Marshes Reserve which takes in much of the old ammunition (gunpowder) works land and saltings where a fleet of barges lies cocooned to the west of the hard.

The well has had relatively little done to it since its inception, however, towards the end of 2018 it ceased to flow.

Various organisations came to the aid of Kent Wildlife Trust (Swale Council – funds, Southeast Water, The Boorman Family Foundation and a local outfit, Touch the Earth). It was found that the cast iron down pipe was fractured or wasted.

A drilling firm, OT Drilling, relined the cast iron pipework and restored the flow.

So, the flow has been restored and yachtsmen (not included in the article I came across in a Faversham Community Magazine recently) can also pop ashore if requiring good quality water.

The water is tested annually for quality and is, of course, not chlorinated.

Below is part of the article…

Well done to all parties, I say!