Information about the River Avon at Bath and Bristol and it's natural inhabitants!

History

The name Avon derives from the Celtic word “Afon” meaning river. River Avon therefore means “River River”. There are in fact 9 river Avons in the UK and our River Avon flows from its twin sources near Sherston and Tetbury, on the South Eastern slope of the Cotswolds to its confluence with the River Severn at Avonmouth.

It travels some 70 miles in total, travelling through Malmesbury, Chippenham, Melksham, Bradford on Avon, Bath and Bristol on the way.

Until 1727 the River Avon was not navigable to Bristol – it used to be a series of streams broken by swamps and ponds, with serious flooding onto surrounding land every winter. The flow of the river is managed by a series of weirs and locks to control the river at different levels, and has a well defined route.

The river was a busy route for transportation through the 19^th century, with its strong links to London through the Kennet & Avon canal and Bristol along the route we take on our cruise.

The Route

The cruising time between Bath and Bristol is between 5 and 6 hours, travelling some 18 miles, and navigating our way through 7 locks on the way, at Weston, Kelston, Saltford, Swineford, Keynsham, Hanham and Netham (Bristol).

We are able to enjoy the ever changing scenery along the whole of the route, from the Georgian architecture of Bath to the bustle of the historic docks in Bristol, and the countryside and small villages along the way. Every cruise is unique, seeing different boats and wildlife as we travel. 

In BATH we leave our moorings at BROADQUAY, which was a busy industrial area in the 19^th century, handling Bath stone quarried nearby, textiles, engineering, etc. and travel into the centre of Bath to Pulteney weir, where we can get a close up view of the city and the famous bridge. 

Heading downriver we travel through the first lock at Weston Island (sometimes called “Dutch” island, where Dutch workers who were skilled in brassmaking came to work in the early 18^th century).

Then on past Bath marina at Newbridge (look out for the herons and kingfishers) and through lovely open countryside to Kelston lock, seeing the many different type of boats at Saltford marina, Mill Island and Saltford lock.

Pulteney Bridge and Weir	Abbey and Empire Building	Newbridge, Bath	Moorings near Kelston

Continuing through the Avon valley, and after the next lock at Swineford, we pass the country park (can you see a llama?) and the boatyard where our boat was built in 1988.

We are well on the way now as we reach Keynsham lock, the extent to which the river is tidal from Bristol, past the chocolate factory and old paper mills, and to Hanham lock (wave to the people in the pubs) where we now take the final run down into Bristol. 

We travel through Netham lock – is it John or Robin (the lock keepers) on duty today? – and along the feeder canal into the historical Bristol harbour.

Saltford Brass Mill	The Weir at Swineford	Arial View of the Avon into Bristol	Bristol Floating Harbour

BRISTOL has a long maritime history dating back to the 12^th century, and became one of the main ports of England, with strong trading links with S. Wales, Ireland, Scandinavia and later with the Americas and W. Africa in the 16^th and 17^th century. The expression “shipshape & Bristol fashion” was used to describe wooden ships which were capable of withstanding the strain of repeatedly being stranded in Bristol on low tides, where the river would rise and fall some 30ft.

Bristol’s “floating harbour” was created by William Jessop between 1804 & 1809 to be non tidal and controlled by lock gates at either end, but ceased being a commercial port in the 1960’s and is now thriving in the centre of the city for leisure and business interests.

We will see much evidence of the city’s history and new developments, with the famous “SS Great Britain” back in the dry dock where she was originally built by Brunel, maybe the “Matthew” sailing around the harbour, and the many new and very smart apartments around the harbourside.

 There is so much to see in just a few hours – cruises can be arranged in either direction – why not consider using the train for the return journey?

We can arrange an itinerary for you, whether it is business or pleasure.

Please telephone us on

0117 904 3671 or 07854 870508

The river is rich in natural inhabitants, so we've brought together this little compilation of some of the delightful creatures to look out for next time you're cruising with us. Swans are a familiar site Mallards and their chicks in Spring Greylags and Canada Geese Grey Herons .       Kingfishers Cormorants Varieties of Dragonfly Varieties of Damselfly