The River Cam is a tributary of the River Yeo in the south of

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

, England. The Cam rises east of

Yarlington Yarlington is a village and civil parish, near the source of the River Cam, in the English county of Somerset. Administratively, Yarlington shares a parish council with nearby North Cadbury and forms part of the district of South Somerset. The v ...

(). It flows south west past

North Cadbury North Cadbury is a village and civil parish west of Wincanton, by the River Cam, in the South Somerset district of Somerset, England. It shares its parish council with nearby Yarlington and its civil parish includes the village of Galhampton, ...

Sparkford Sparkford is a village and civil parish in the South Somerset district of Somerset, England. The parish includes the village of Weston Bampfylde. It is situated near the junction of the A303 from London to Exeter and the A359 from Frome to Yeo ...

Queen Camel Queen Camel is a village and civil parish, on the River Cam and the A359 road, in the South Somerset district of Somerset, England. It is about north of Yeovil. According to the 2011 census it had a population of 908. The parish includes the ha ...

and

West Camel West Camel is a village and civil parish in south Somerset, England, about north of the town of Yeovil. It lies either side of the River Cam, just south of the A303, and has a population of 459. The parish includes the hamlet of Urgashay. Neig ...

, and joins the Yeo near

Yeovilton Yeovilton is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Yeovilton and District, in Somerset, England, east of Ilchester and north of Yeovil, in South Somerset district. The parish had a population of 1,226 in the 2011 census, est ...

(). Other tributaries include the stream through

Blackford Blackford might refer to: People with the surname *Charles Minor Blackford (1833–1903), an American lawyer *Hosea Blackford, a fictional character in books by Harry Turtledove *Ian Blackford, a Scottish politician *Isaac Blackford (1786–1859), ...

and

Compton Pauncefoot Compton Pauncefoot is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated beside the A303 road, south west of Wincanton in the South Somerset district. The parish had a population of 139 in 2011. The civil parish also includes the village w ...

and benefited from works in the 1980s to the riverbanks in Blackford to help keep the water moving. Flooding in Blackford is rarer than previously, as a result. This tributary stream has its

headwaters The headwaters of a river or stream is the farthest place in that river or stream from its estuary or downstream confluence with another river, as measured along the course of the river. It is also known as a river's source. Definition The ...

in the hills around Blackford and Compton Pauncefoot together with a number of springs. The main waters come from three primary sources:

Maperton Maperton is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated south west of Wincanton in the South Somerset district. The village has a population of 140. However, this small number includes Elliscombe House care home which alone has an ...

, Quarry Hill and Sigwells Hill. The first two combine in Blackford around the Crossroads/Hollow and further springs contribute at several points all the way through both villages. The river then travels under the

A303 The A303 is a trunk road in southern England, running between Basingstoke in Hampshire and Honiton in Devon via Stonehenge. Connecting the M3 and the A30, it is part of one of the main routes from London to Devon and Cornwall. It is a prim ...

to join the Yarlington headwaters. The Cam flows onto the Royal Naval Station at Yeovilton where it joins the Yeo, which in turn flows west to the south of Yeovilton and through the town of

Ilchester Ilchester is a village and civil parish, situated on the River Yeo or Ivel, five miles north of Yeovil, in the English county of Somerset. Originally a Roman town, and later a market town, Ilchester has a rich medieval history and was a notable ...

. The river course continues to the west and at

Langport Langport is a small town and civil parish in Somerset, England, west of Somerton in the South Somerset district. The parish, which covers only part of the town, has a population of 1,081. Langport is contiguous with Huish Episcopi, a separate ...

becomes the

River Parrett The River Parrett flows through the counties of Dorset and Somerset in South West England, from its source in the Thorney Mills springs in the hills around Chedington in Dorset. Flowing northwest through Somerset and the Somerset Levels to it ...

. In 2009 the river burst its banks at

following

flash flood A flash flood is a rapid flooding of low-lying areas: washes, rivers, dry lakes and depressions. It may be caused by heavy rain associated with a severe thunderstorm, hurricane, or tropical storm, or by meltwater from ice or snow flowing o ...

ing.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cam, River Rivers of Somerset