The River Clyst is a river of

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

, England. The name derives from

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

, and translates as ''Clean-stream'' (the Welsh name of Clydach, has similar origins). The river lends its name to several settlements on its route, Clyst Honiton, Clyst St Lawrence, Clyst St George, and Broadclyst. The William part of Clyst William derives from the Old English of ''aewelm'', which means ''river source''. Rising near the village of Clyst William near

Cullompton Cullompton () is a town and civil parish in the district of Mid Devon and the county of Devon, England. It is north-east of Exeter and lies on the River Culm. In 2011 the parish as a whole had a population of 8,499 while the built-up area of t ...

, the river runs for , west and southwest, flowing through the settlements of Norman's Green, Plymtree,

Clyst Hydon Clyst Hydon is a village and civil parish in the county of Devon, England. It was in the Cliston Hundred and has a church dedicated to St Andrew. The parish is surrounded, clockwise from the north, by the parishes of Cullompton, Plymtree, Payh ...

, Clyst St. Lawrence, Westwood, emerging in the Clyst Valley. From there, the river goes southward through

Broadclyst Broadclyst is a village and civil parish in the East Devon local government district. It lies approximately 5 miles northeast of the city of Exeter, Devon, England, on the B3181. In 2001 its population was 2,830, reducing at the 2011 Census to 1 ...

, West Clyst, Clyst Honiton,

Clyst St. Mary Clyst St Mary is a small village and civil parish east of Exeter on the main roads to Exmouth and Sidmouth in East Devon. The name comes from the Celtic languages, Celtic word clyst meaning 'clear stream'. The village is a major part of the el ...

and Clyst St. George, eventually flowing into the

Exe estuary The Exe estuary is an estuary on the south coast of Devon, England. The estuary starts just to the south () of the city of Exeter, and extends south for approximately eight miles to meet the English Channel (). The estuary is a ria and so is l ...

Bowling Green Marsh Bowling Green Marsh is a nature reserve located on the confluence of the River Exe (at the top end of its estuary) and the River Clyst, near the town of Topsham in Devon. It is managed by the RSPB. Migratory birds including Siberian brent g ...

, immediately south of the port of Topsham near

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

. The river discharges per second on average, and is tidal from the Exe estuary as far as Newcourt Barton. In 2011 work started on a new cycle and pedestrian bridge crossing the River Clyst at Fishers Mill, Topsham, forming part of the Sustrans’

National Cycle Network The National Cycle Network (NCN) is the national cycling route network of the United Kingdom, which was established to encourage cycling and walking throughout Britain, as well as for the purposes of bicycle touring. It was created by the cha ...

CN The bridge feeds into the Exe Estuary Trail, part of NCN2, and was opened in November 2013. A elevated timber boardwalk was planned across the salt marshes and flood plain with a main bridge spanning across the river. The new bridge is downstream from an existing narrow

grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

masonry highway bridge. In winter, the flood plain attracts large flocks of Brant geese and

Canada geese The Canada goose (''Branta canadensis''), or Canadian goose, is a large wild goose with a black head and neck, white cheeks, white under its chin, and a brown body. It is native to the arctic and temperate regions of North America, and it is o ...

. On the north side of the Clyst, just west of the Exmouth railway line, is

, a small

RSPB The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a Charitable_organization#United_Kingdom, charitable organisation registered in Charity Commission for England and Wales, England and Wales and in Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator, ...

reserve with a hide (SX971877). In 1988, a spill of diesel oil into the estuary threatened the habitat and the birds in the area around the river mouth. Special booms and pumps were brought in to remove the spill. A 1994 survey of fish species in the river determined that it contained bullhead, dace, eel, minnow, stone loach, stickleback, mullet and flounder. The only salmonids were some trout in one of the tributaries. By 2008, concerns were being raised about the quality of the water citing a high level of pollution.

References

External links

Topsham Birdwatching & Naturalist Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clyst Rivers of Devon 1Clyst