And thou sweet Boyd that with thy watry swayIn common with other rivers of the area, watermills were used for various industrial undertakings, most notably the Wick Golden Valley Ochre Works. The former works site is now a local nature reserve and the river and valley form part of a Site of Nature Conservation Interest.
Dost wash the cliffes of Deington and of Weeke
And through their Rockes with crooked winding way
Thy mother Avon runnest soft to seeke
In whose fayre streames the speckled Trout doth play
The Roche the Dace the Gudgin and the Bleeke
Teach me the skill with slender Line and Hooke
To take each Fish of River Pond and Brooke.
Course
The Boyd rises from springs near Sands Farm, just south of Dodington Chase. Several small tributaries join on the right from springs issuing from a ridge of high land to the north. The river then passes underneath the M4 motorway, being joined by further streams from the direction of Codrington. Just before Doynton tributaries emanating from Dyrham join on the left bank. The Feltham Brook joins on the right bank, from the direction of Pucklechurch, near Doynton House and the river then passes under Cleeve Bridge and enters the steep Golden Valley, where a nature reserve has been established. Passing under Boyd Bridge in Wick, the river turns in a southerly direction, running parallel to the Monarch's Way long distance footpath. Emerging from Golden Valley just north of Bitton, the Boyd skirts the village and then meanders across river meadows before joining the Bristol Avon adjacent to the point where the Bristol and Bath Railway Path crosses the Avon.History
Ochre, a mixture of clay andNatural history
Wick Golden Valley Local Nature Reserve forms part of a larger Site of Nature Conservation Interest (SNCI) known as "Wick Rocks and the River Boyd". Habitats include calcareous grassland with an alkaline soil type, broadleaved woodland, the river and associated riverbank vegetation. Species of plants include Common Cow-wheat, Bitter Vetch, Black Spleenwort, Harebell, Nettle-leaved Bellflower, Bluebell and Viper's Bugloss. A micro-moth, '' Pammene trauniana'', can be found - also dippers, kingfishers, buzzards, otters, bats and damselflies.Etymology
The name ''Boyd'' is believed to derive from a British Celtic root meaning "virtue, favour, blessing or benefit". It has been suggested that this implies the waters have a healing quality.Hydrology
The Environment Agency maintains a Gauging Station at Bitton and records an average flow rate of . A peak rate of was recorded on 30 May 1979 and minimum of on 16 August 1976.References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boyd, River Rivers of Gloucestershire Rivers of Bristol 1Boyd