Downriver from the Dartford Crossing is the final traverse of the Thames before the sea: the Tilbury-Gravesend Ferry. It runs every half hour. Singles are £2.70, returns £4.10, and bikes go free.
Getting here is a bit of a journey, but you have a choice of banks. On the south bank you can follow National Cycle Route 1 from Woolwich via Dartford (report). On the north side a good new traffic-free path follows the north side of the Thames; it was opened early this year, and runs from Rainham in Essex to Tilbury. (Roadside cycle paths lead from Woolwich to Rainham alongside the A13; see report on the 30-mile route from Woolwich to Tilbury.)
