Walcot Ford

Many thanks to the folks at  Walcot Lane for facilitating this camera's location at Walcot Ford and to Worcestershire County Council  for capitally funding its installation.  Please click here for flooding information regarding this location.   The Bow Brook, an extensive watercourse, traverses a distance of 28.8 miles (46.3 km) through Worcestershire, England. Serving as a lower tributary, it eventually merges with the River Avon near Defford, downstream of Eckington Bridge. Notable tributaries of the Bow Brook include the Stoulton, Dean, and Seeley brooks. Originating in the vicinity of Upper Bentley to the west of Redditch, the brook flows in a southerly direction, passing through Feckenham before turning westward and reaching Shell, where it adopts the name Shell Brook. Continuing its course, it proceeds towards Himbleton. Further south, it passes Huddington and Upton Snodsbury, intersected by the A422, and subsequently meanders past Broughton Hackett, Peopleton (crossed by the A44), and Walcot, where a minor road provides a ford crossing. From there, it veers southwest, flowing past Ufnell Bridge on the B4084 until it reaches Besford Bridge, where it is gauged and measured. The A4104 provides a bridge over the Bow Brook before it reaches Defford, the final village along its path. Downstream of Defford, the brook converges with the Warwickshire Avon.The flow rate of the Bow Brook has been regularly measured since 1969 using a weir located in the lower reaches at Besford Bridge. This long-term monitoring has yielded valuable data, indicating that the catchment area spanning 156 square kilometers (60 sq mi) to the gauging station has an average flow of 1.1 cubic meters per second (39 cu ft/s). Notably, the highest recorded river level at the station occurred on July 21, 2007, reaching a height of 4.06 meters (13.3 ft), although corresponding peak flow data is unavailable. Conversely, the lowest flows were observed in August 1976.The catchment area upstream of the gauging station experiences an average annual rainfall of 643 millimeters (25.3 in) and reaches a maximum altitude of 164 meters (538 ft) at Tardebigge. The predominant land use within the catchment is agricultural, comprising arable land, horticulture, grassland, and some areas of woodland.The usual range of the Bow Brook at Besford Bridge is between 0.17m and 1.90m. It has been between these levels for 90% of the time since monitoring began. The typical recent level of the Bow Brook at Besford Bridge over the past 12 months has been between 0.14m and 0.51m. It has been between these levels for at least 151 days in the past year. The highest level ever recorded at the Bow Brook at Besford Bridge is 4.06m, reached on Saturday 21st July 2007 at 1:00pm.