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River Colne, Essex

River Colne
The River Colne is a minor river in Essex that flows through Colchester . It is not a tributary of a larger water course and issues directly into the sea via an estuary near Brightlingsea and Mersea Island. The river runs through the Colne Valley which has a flood plain spanning around 300 metres when it reaches Colchester. The land along the river here has remained as pasture because the river only needs to rise two feet to burst its banks. As it passes near to Colchester North Railway Station, the Colne runs under a bridge and is directed into a concrete-lined basin that served as an open-air bathing facility until the 1960s. The basin is now in use by canoeists. The river then meanders under a road bridge at the bottom of North Hill before rushing over a weir used for discharge control at Middlemill, once the site of a mill. Footbridges cross the river to link the town centre to the residential areas that lie on the north side of the flood plain. This area occasionally floods during heavy or sustained rainfall. The river runs along one side of a small lake before falling over another large weir and leaving Colchester. From this point on the River Colne is tidal. Downstream of Colchester the Colne flows through Wivenhoe and past the tidal barrier before joining the sea at the estuary by Brightlingsea.

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Other Essex Naturals

Thames Estuary
Dedham Vale
Rainham Marshes
Lee Valley
Northey Island
Copt Hall Marshes
Mersea Island
Foulness Island

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