From Source to Sea: Following the River Parrett, Part 2

 

Middle Section of the River Parrett.

PART 2. LANGPORT to BRIDGWATER

July 11th’23

In spite of the unsettled spell of weather and following almost an inch of rain yesterday, we decided to have a look at the middle section of the River Parrett today. We were lucky, the rain held off despite threatening dark cloud- banks to the north from time to time.

We were at Langport by ten and drove to the canoe-launching slip and bridge over the river a little south of the town and walked up the tow-path into Langport. 

We went into town through the narrow mediaeval gateway with the landmark 'Hanging Chapel' above.

The town was quite busy, holiday-makers were building up and the main-street was  bustling. Many of the shops and premises were flying banners, each decorated in a different way, the designs presumably of significance to the premises displaying them. They looked a little faded as if this display is put on every year.

The main street, Langport.

We walked the length of the street as far as Bow Bridge over the Parrett. Some of the properties along the street were leaning back as the peatland they were built on subsides. I wonder what their insurance bills are like?

The river is tidal as far as Langport so the trade to and from this otherwise rather remote part of middle Somerset made it an important small town throughout the middle ages, but the coming of the railway in the late 1800s took the trade away.

 Downstream the river runs through a wide flat, low-lying area which would be marshland if not for the elaborate system of drainage ditches and careful water management.

The Ordnance Survey map of this area tells the story of the management of the low-lying country here more clearly than a ground-level view which can only be seen from between trees and over hedges at intervals. The land is divided into long narrow strips, divided by rhynes ( pronounced 'reens', the local term for ditches.) and the whole area is a mere 15ft above sea-level.

The blue lines on the map mark the rhynes.

From an information board about the Levels:

We drove north-west out of Langport and followed the Aller Drove. Mostly the droves on the Levels are field tracks but this one, an important short cut, has been surfaced.

It has frequent passing places and after a mile or two we stopped  near a bridge over the King Sedgmoor Drain, a major drainage channel.

                                    King Sedgmoor Drain from Aller Drove Bridge.

Rhyne dividing and draining strips of agricultural land. The rhynes are kept full of water in the summer to keep the soil damp, but are dredged in the winter and allowed to drain through sluices (clyces) into the main drainage channels.

Another rhyne.

Sluice or clyce draining a rhyne into the King Sedgemoor Drain by the Aller Drove Bridge.

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The rhynes have a rich and varied flora such as this Arrowhead. Its flowers are shown below.

    

The Levels are not only good farmland but also an invaluable habitat for wetland birds such as breeding Lapwings and Redshank in the summer and feeding sites for various duck species in the winter. Bitterns are increasing in the marshes and in recent years Great White Herons and Cattle Egrets are breeding.      

Great White Heron (greatly enlarged!) beside King Sedgemoor Drain at Aller Drove Bridge

 

             

Pollard Willows. The new young growth stimulated by winter cutting-back gave witheys, used for many purposes in the past, and still to an extent, for making willow baskets and other items.

We rejoined the river Parrett at Burrowbridge by the noticeable landmark of the abrupt little hill called Barrow Mump. From the top beside the ruined church there are splendid all-round views of the Levels.

About ten years ago there was a catastrophic flood, making the roads crossing the Levels impassable and cutting off two villages and many farms. It was the worst and most prolonged for a hundred years. Arable crops were ruined and the waterlogged soil prevented re-sowing after the water had subsided. The causes were many: the wettest January for many years, increased run-off from the land on the surrounding hills, failure to dredge the main rivers and watercourses. More and more pumps were brought in and installed and the Environment Agency took a lot of flak as the media, social media and even Prince Charles as he was then, became vocal. 

In the big flood in 2013, the Withey boats were replaced by tractors, four-wheel drives and inflatable boats to rescue people, carry supplies to embattled farms and fodder for stranded livestock.

We followed the river through the hamlet of Moorland. Reed warblers were singing in the extensive stretches of reeds on the riverbanks.

                                                              Codlins and Cream (Hairy Willowherb.)

Hairy Willowherb (otherwise known as Codlins and Cream)grew alongside
and Purple Loosestrife (see picture below) made colourful patches. This handsome plant, a lover of wet ground, was introduced to the USA in the late 1800s and has been so successful in its spread that it can now choke waterways there, making them impassable and it is now declared a Noxious Alien in the USA.

The reinforced riverbank at Moorland. The houses just out of sight on the left, are built below the river level. No wonder they were flooded in 2013! We weren't sure whether this extra reinforcement pre-dates the big flood or was built as a result of it.

The pumping Station at Moorlands. The red-ochre coloured pipes are the huge new pumps brought in to speed up the drainage of the big flood.

The Parrett wound its way to the outskirts of Bridgwater where we lost it in all the development of this busy town. We plan to continue and conclude our trip along the last section of the river in the Autumn.