Information AboutRiver Cam |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT RIVER CAM | |
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| river navigations in england | |
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| rivers of cambridgeshire | |
| tributaries of the river great ouse | |
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THE LOWER AND MIDDLE RIVER The Cam connects Cambridge with the North Sea at King's Lynn , a total distance of about 40 miles (64 km). An organisation called the Conservators Of The River Cam was formed in 1702 , charged with keeping the river navigable. The Conservators are responsible for the two Lock s in and north east of Cambridge: Jesus Lock and Baits Bite Lock. The stretch north of Baits Bite Lock is called the lower river. The middle river, between Jesus Lock and Baits Bite Lock, is the home of the College Rowing teams. There are also many houseboats on this stretch, forming a community who call themselves the Camboaters. Access for houseboats to the upper river is permitted during the winter months. FROM THE BACKS TO GRANTCHESTER The stretch above Jesus Lock is known as the upper river. Between Jesus Lock and the Mill Pond, it passes through to the village of Grantchester and Byron's Pool, where it is fed by many streams. In the summer the upper river is open only to manually propelled craft, the most common of which are the flat-bottomed Punt s. Punts and canoes can be manhandled around the weir by means of the rollers: a slipway from lower to upper level. TRIBUTARIES The two principal tributaries of the Cam are known as the Granta and the '''Rhee''', though both are also officially known as the Cam. The Rhee begins just west of Ashwell in Hertfordshire running 12 miles through the farmland of southern Cambridgeshire . The longer tributary, the Granta, starts near the village of Widdington in Essex flowing the 15 miles north past Audley End House to merge with the Rhee a mile south of Grantchester. A further tributary, also known as the Granta, runs 10 miles from south of Haverhill to join the larger Granta south of Great Shelford . Another minor tributary is Bourn Brook which has its source near the village of Eltisley , 10 miles west of Cambridge, running east through Caxton , Bourn and Toft to join the Cam at Byron's Pool, where The Famous Poet is reputed to have swum. LITERATURE Rupert Brooke really did swim in Byron's Pool, with the other Neo-Pagans , and used to canoe from Cambridge to lodgings in Granchester. A homesick poem of 1912 evokes the river memorably: Oh! there the chestnuts, summer through, One of Brooke's contemporaries, Gwen Darwin , later Raverat, grew up in the old mill by the Mill Pond. Her book, '' Period Piece '', is a wonderful memoir of a childhood messing about on the river. The mill house is now Darwin College . Children's author Philippa Pearce , who lives in Great Shelford, features the Cam in her books, most notably ''Minnow on the Say''. The river is re-named the River Say, with Great and Little Shelford becoming Great and Little Barley, and Cambridge becoming "Castleford" (not to be confused with the real town of the same name in West Yorkshire). TRIVIA Ingesting the river water is reputed to bring on a flu-like illness, known locally as Cam fever. The water is certainly murky, but clean enough at Cambridge to support fish. REFERENCES SEE ALSO EXTERNAL LINKS
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