River Axe (Bristol Channel) on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
The River Axe is a river in
The River Axe is formed by the water entering the cave systems and flows through the third and first chambers, from which it flows to the resurgence, through two sumps and long, where it leaves the cave and enters the open air. It is the second largest resurgence on Mendip, with an estimated catchment area of , and an average discharge of per second. Some of the water is allogenic in origin i.e. drained off non-limestone rocks, collecting as streams on the surface before sinking at or near the Lower Limestone Shale — Black Rock Limestone boundary, often through swallets. One such is Plantation Swallet near St Cuthbert's lead works, between the Hunter's Lodge Inn and Priddy Pools. It then passes through major cave systems such as Swildon's Hole, Eastwater Cavern and St Cuthbert's Swallet, around Priddy, but 95% is water that has percolated directly into the limestone.
From Wookey Hole village the river flows through a
South West England
South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly), Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities ...
. The river is formed by water entering swallets in the limestone and rises from the ground at Wookey Hole Caves
Wookey is a village and civil parish west of Wells, on the River Axe in the Mendip district of Somerset, England. The parish includes the village of Henton and the nearby hamlets of Yarley and Bleadney where the River Axe travels the length ...
in the Mendip Hills in 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_ ...
, and runs through a V-shaped valley. The geology of the area is limestone
Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
and the water reaches Wookey Hole in a series of underground channels that have eroded through the soluble
In chemistry, solubility is the ability of a substance, the solute, to form a solution with another substance, the solvent. Insolubility is the opposite property, the inability of the solute to form such a solution.
The extent of the solubi ...
limestone. The river mouth is in Weston Bay
Weston Bay is an inlet of the Bristol Channel in North Somerset, England.
It lies between Brean Down, which is now owned by the National Trust, is rich in wildlife, history and archaeology, and has been designated a Site of Special Scientific In ...
on the Bristol Channel.
The river was navigable from the middle ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
until 1915, during early centuries of which seeing some European trade.
Geography
The River Axe is formed by the water entering the cave systems and flows through the third and first chambers, from which it flows to the resurgence, through two sumps and long, where it leaves the cave and enters the open air. It is the second largest resurgence on Mendip, with an estimated catchment area of , and an average discharge of per second. Some of the water is allogenic in origin i.e. drained off non-limestone rocks, collecting as streams on the surface before sinking at or near the Lower Limestone Shale — Black Rock Limestone boundary, often through swallets. One such is Plantation Swallet near St Cuthbert's lead works, between the Hunter's Lodge Inn and Priddy Pools. It then passes through major cave systems such as Swildon's Hole, Eastwater Cavern and St Cuthbert's Swallet, around Priddy, but 95% is water that has percolated directly into the limestone.
From Wookey Hole village the river flows through a ravine
A ravine is a landform that is narrower than a canyon and is often the product of streambank erosion.Wookey. There the river bifurcates: the ‘Lower River Axe’ runs more southerly, towards Henton onto Panborough Moor where it joins a series of rhynes and drains supplying water to local seasonal and perennial wetland, afterwards running north along the westernmost edge of Knowle Moor whilst the Axe proper continues west through the same moor. The two meet, to reunite, where Knowle and Panborough Moors meet.
The river then continues northwest past Wedmore Moor and through Oxmoor, Stoke Moor and Monk Moor. The river passes through the settlement of Lower Weare and on to the south of Loxton. From this point until it passes between
The river then continues northwest past Wedmore Moor and through Oxmoor, Stoke Moor and Monk Moor. The river passes through the settlement of Lower Weare and on to the south of Loxton. From this point until it passes between Uphill Cliff
Uphill Cliff () is a 19.8 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest near the village of Uphill, North Somerset, although it is in the Avon Area of Search used by English Nature which is based on the 1974-1996 county system.
The s ...
and Brean Down, then reaches the coast at Weston Bay
Weston Bay is an inlet of the Bristol Channel in North Somerset, England.
It lies between Brean Down, which is now owned by the National Trust, is rich in wildlife, history and archaeology, and has been designated a Site of Special Scientific In ...
, the river demarcates Sedgemoor from North Somerset
North Somerset is a unitary district in Somerset, South West England. Whilst its area covers part of the ceremonial county of Somerset, it is administered independently of the non-metropolitan county. Its administrative headquarters is in the ...
.
Tributaries of the Axe include three rivers called Yeo: the Cheddar Yeo, the Mark Yeo and the Lox Yeo.
History
The name derives from a Common Brittonic word meaning "abounding in fish", which is also the root for the River Axe inLyme Bay
Lyme Bay is an area of the English Channel off the south coast of England. The south western counties of Devon and Dorset front onto the bay.
The exact definitions of the bay vary. The eastern boundary is usually taken to be Portland Bill on the ...
as well as the Exe, Esk, Usk
Usk ( cy, Brynbuga) is a town and community in Monmouthshire, Wales, northeast of Newport. It is located on the River Usk, which is spanned by an arched stone bridge at the western entrance to the town. Usk Castle, above the town, overlooks th ...
and other variants. The name is cognate with '' pysg'' (plural of '' pysgod''), the Welsh word for fish.
The lower reaches of the Axe have a history of navigation
Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navigation, ...
from the harbour at Uphill through to the settlement of Weare. The current tidal limit of the Axe is the sluice gates at Bleadon
Bleadon is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England. It is about south of Weston-super-Mare and, according to the 2011 census, has a population of 1,079.
History
Bleadon was listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as ''Bledone'', meaning 'c ...
and Brean Cross
Brean is a village and civil parish between Weston-super-Mare and Burnham-on-Sea in Somerset, England. The name is derived from "Bryn" Brythonic and Modern Welsh for a hill and it has a population of 635.
Close to the village is Brean Down, a pro ...
.
In the Middle Ages overseas trade was carried out from the port of Rackley, which is now north of the river as the course has been diverted. Rackley is now a farm below Crook Peak and west of Axbridge
Axbridge is a small town in Somerset, England, in the Sedgemoor district on the River Axe, near the southern edge of the Mendip Hills. The town's population according to the 2011 census was 2,057.
History
''Axanbrycg'' is suggested as the sou ...
, which also had wharves. In the 14th century a French ship sailed up the river and by 1388 Thomas Tanner from Wells used Rackley to export cloth
Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...
and corn to Portugal, and received iron
Iron () is a chemical element with Symbol (chemistry), symbol Fe (from la, Wikt:ferrum, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 element, group 8 of the periodic table. It is, Abundanc ...
and salt
Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quant ...
in exchange. Later slate was imported through this route and it may have still be possible to trade through Rackley until the act of 1915 authorising the drainage of the Axe and installation of the flood gate at Bleadon. Bleadon had been a small port, sometimes known as Lympsham Wharf, for many years, with the arrival of the railway in 1841 making this the furthest navigable point. It was last used by the ketch ''Democrat'' in 1942.
A series of 11 watermill
A watermill or water mill is a mill that uses hydropower. It is a structure that uses a water wheel or water turbine to drive a mechanical process such as milling (grinding), rolling, or hammering. Such processes are needed in the production of ...
s were powered by the river but the only one which remains is at Burcott.
See also
*Somerset Levels
The Somerset Levels are a coastal plain and wetland area of Somerset, England, running south from the Mendips to the Blackdown Hills.
The Somerset Levels have an area of about and are bisected by the Polden Hills; the areas to the south a ...
References
Bibliography
* * * * * * * {{authority control Axe, River, Somerset Axe, River, Somerset Somerset Levels