The River Looe (, meaning ''deep water inlet'') is a river in south-east

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

, which flows into the

English Channel The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...

Looe Looe (; , ) is a coastal town and civil parish in south-east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, with a population of 5,280 at the 2011 census. Looe is west of Plymouth and south of Liskeard, divided in two by the River Looe, East Looe () a ...

. It has two main branches, the East Looe River and the West Looe River. The eastern branch has its source near St Cleer only away from the Golitha Falls on the

River Fowey The River Fowey ( ; ) is a river in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Its source (river), source is at Fowey Well (originally , meaning ''spring of the river Fowey'') about north-west of Brown Willy on Bodmin Moor, not far from one of its trib ...

, and flows south, passing close to the western outskirts of

Liskeard Liskeard ( ; ) is an ancient stannary and market town in south-east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated approximately 20 miles (32 km) west of Plymouth, west of the Devon border, and 12 miles (20 km) east of Bodmin. Th ...

. The western branch has its source near Dobwalls. South of Liskeard, the Looe Valley Line railway follows the course of the East Looe River to Looe. The railway is so close to the river that flooding is a common occurrence. The lowest stretch of the rivers combine to form the tidal harbour and

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

of Looe. The combined length of the two rivers (including the tidal confluence) is . The river is tidal to Watergate on the West Looe and Sandplace on the East Looe. After Sandplace, the river was connected to the Liskeard and Looe Union Canal so that minerals and stone could be transported from the workings and quarries above

to the harbour at Looe. The tidal estuarine section is an example of a Ria (a drowned river valley) and at low tide, the rivers almost dry up to a very small natural level.

References

Rivers of Cornwall {{England-river-stub

See also

References