swuklink.com: River Stour at Christchurch, Dorset

THE RIVER STOUR AT CHRISTCHURCHDorset, England

The picturesque river Stour
looking upstream from the end of Town Quay.

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For much of its course near Christchurh, the middle of the River Stour forms the boundary between the Boroughs of Christchurch and neighbouring Bournemouth.

The Stour and the River Avon both empty into Christchurch Harbour and eventually spill into the sea through The Run which seperates Mudeford Quay from Hengistbury Head.

Once a busy higway, the river is now a quiet haven with its peace only disturbed by the passenger ferries why ply between the pleasure craft.

Approaching the town centre, the Priory Church dominates the view across the Quonks - a large grassed open space with seats on the riverbank and a children's playground. Closer still, the river makes its way to meet the Avon passing Town Quay with its watermill (often enough the river has visited inside this ancient but defiant structure) and the Sailing Club framed by plush modern houses on exclusive Priory Quay.

The mingled waters of the two rivers run southwards from Priory Quay as if to spill into the sea along the Stour's ancient course just to the west of the Double Dyke's at Hengistbury Head. But this change of heading is only temporary and made in deference to Stanpit marsh which, despite its sharp delineation by the thick border of tall reeds is neither quite land, nor quite water. The whole of the harbour area is slowly silting up, its bed built up slowly as the rivers drop their load of silt in preparing to meet the salt waters of the sea. This process is hastened by the stems and roots of the reeds themselves which slow the water, lessening its capacity to carry silt, and catching and binding that which is dropped.

The harbour and its rivers have provided Christchurch with ample supplies of fish - it was famous for its salmon. In the 19th and early 20th century the harbour was netted in a commercial salmon fishery, now the nets have given way to the rod wielded from the private fisheries which own rights to various parts of the rivers.

About a mile upstream from Town Quay the Military Barracks were sited between the Stour and Barrack Road. With the Stour as a test-site, it was here that Sir Donald Bailey developed the sectional bridge during World War II which bears his name.

During the last Ice Age (some 17,000 years ago) when the land hereabouts extended many kilometres out to sea and the Isle of Wight was joined to the mainland, the Stour flowed along a different course, southwards of Hengistbury Head, rather than its present eastward course shared with the Avon through Christchurch harbour till they meet the sea at the narrow channel known as The Run.

Despite the economic benefits afforded to the town by its location at the confluence of its two rivers, Christchurch is built on their flood plains and thus is in danger of flooding , especially during periods of heavy rain upstream, in the winter. Together with many places in the British Isles, it suffered such a fate particularly in the winter of 2000/2001. While some of the townsfolk have no option but to resort to sandbags to protect their property, in other places such as to the east of Old Iford Bridge dykes and walls protect the town.

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