- River Rothay
The Rothay is a
spate river of theLake District in north-westEngland . Its name comes fromOld Norse and translates literally as "the red one". This has come to mean "trout river". It rises close toRough Crag aboveDunmail Raise at a point about 1542 feet (470 m) abovesea level (gbmapping|NY306108). Its catchment area coversGrasmere Common includingEasedale Tarn , the southern flanks of Fairfield, and several of the fells to the east of Dunmail Raise, includingGreat Rigg ,Rydal Fell ,Scandale Fell andHeron Pike .From its source the Rothay descends through the valley of Greenburn Bottom to the hamlet of
Helmside not far from the mainA591 road over Dunmail Raise. Just north ofGrasmere village the river subsumesEasedale Gill andSour Milk Gill , the latter flowing out of Easedale Tarn. In the village of Grasmere the river flows close to the churchyard where the poet
Wordsworth is buried. The Rothay then flows into the head of Grasmere (elevation 208 feet/63 m). As well as replenishing Grasmere, the Rothay also drains it, flowing for just half a mile (800 m) from the southern end of the lake before replenishingRydal Water (elevation 181 feet/55 m) at its western extremity. The Rothay drains Rydal from its easternmost point and then flows in a general southerly direction for about three miles (4.8 km) before merging with theRiver Brathay at Croft Lodge south-west ofAmbleside . From there the rivers flow into the northern end of Windermere. In addition to those tributaries already noted, several others are subsumed by the Rothay.About a mile (1.6 km) north of Ambleside the Rothay is crossed by a well-known set of stepping stones. Several sections of the Rothay are popular with canoeists, including the section between Grasmere and Rydal; the river is graded as 2+. The Rothay is a trout fishery where
brown trout can be caught. Anglers should enquire locally about licences (an Environment Agency Rod Licence is required).The River Rothay was wholly within the historic county of
Westmorland . Since local government reorganisation in 1974 the river has been in the county ofCumbria .ee also
*
Cunsey Beck
*River Leven
*Trout Beck
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