The River Bourne is a river in the English county of
Wiltshire
Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...
, a tributary of the
Salisbury Avon. It flows in a generally southerly direction for about .
In its upper reaches the river is a
winterbourne, often dry in summer.
The Bourne's source is at the eastern end of the
Vale of Pewsey
The Vale of Pewsey or Pewsey Vale is an area of Wiltshire, England to the east of Devizes and south of Marlborough, centred on the village of Pewsey.
Geography
The vale is an extent of lower lying ground separating the chalk downs of Salisbury ...
, just south of the village of
Burbage. The river cuts through the chalk
escarpment
An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that forms as a result of faulting or erosion and separates two relatively level areas having different elevations.
Due to the similarity, the term '' scarp'' may mistakenly be incorrectly used inte ...
at
Collingbourne Kingston, to flow south across
Salisbury Plain
Salisbury Plain is a chalk plateau in southern England covering . It is part of a system of chalk downlands throughout eastern and southern England formed by the rocks of the Chalk Group and largely lies within the county of Wiltshire, but st ...
through the town of
Tidworth and the village of
Shipton Bellinger.
As it continues south the river passes the Bourne Valley villages:
Cholderton
Cholderton, or more properly West Cholderton, is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the River Bourne, Wiltshire, Bourne Valley of Wiltshire, England. The village is about east of the town of Amesbury. It is on the A338 road ...
,
Newton Tony,
Allington,
Boscombe,
Idmiston,
Porton,
Gomeldon,
Winterbourne Gunner,
Winterbourne Dauntsey,
Winterbourne Earls and
Hurdcott.
After passing
Ford and
Laverstock, the Bourne joins the Avon in the eastern outskirts of
Salisbury
Salisbury ( , ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers River Avon, Hampshire, Avon, River Nadder, Nadder and River Bourne, Wi ...
.
See also
*
List of rivers of England
References
Rivers of Wiltshire
2Bourne
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