THE RIVER AVON PART II

I've been asked to provide a larger photo of the River Avon from my 20 mile walk. I hope this does the trick, I don't know how to make it any larger.

About the River Avon. This is not the same river that runs through Stratford (Shakespeare's hometown). Avon is a Celtic word that means 'river', so there are quite a few in the British Isles. Also, Avon is not pronounced like the 'Avon calling' phrase that we are so used to hearing. This Avon rhymes with haven, or maven, or craven, or ain't misbehavin'. Just like our mispronunciation of Bath when we first got here, we have had to learn to soften the final syllable of this geographic label. I won't even try to explain words like Leicester, Berkshire, or even seemingly innocuous words like clerk (pron. clark) or schedule (pron. shed-yule).

Back to the river. It runs through Bath and since it is a tidal river and subject to flooding it is controlled by a series of weirs. One such weir is just below the famous Pulteney Bridge. I'll include photos and more explanations in the future. Weirs are like steps which create a pleasant waterfall. The Pulteney Weir is the subject of many a tourist photograph.

The Avon flows from east to west and ends about 10 miles from here where it flows into the Bristol Channel which flows into the Atlantic Ocean. I ride my bicycle in to work each day along the Avon and enjoy the tourist boat traffic that often uses the waterway in the summer.