Bike packing the River Coquet, Northumberland | The Slymefoot Trail |

A 3 day bike packing adventure in Northumberland, UK, exploring the state of English River Health, good times and a search for tight line on the River Breamish and Coquet. #bikepacking #rivers #northumberland #bikefishing #riverpollution
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The rivers that cut paths through our land are the arteries that connect us to the wider world. From birth, we learn to love these meandering and glistening wonders that our very civilisation was found upon. Yet, English rivers, that form such a romantic and integral part of our psyche are being slowly suffocated by a potent mix of nutrients, sewage, interference and gross mis-management. They are dying, and with their death the very wonders that capture our imagination and sustain our lives will be lost forever.
In Rural Northumberland, two rivers cling on to their health with a tenacity that is reflected by the communities who would seek to preserve their lives. Both the river Breamish and Coquet take their places in the last 14% of English rivers that maintain good ecological health. Yet they themselves are vulnerable, like every river in England, failing their chemical test in 2019.
The upper reaches of these rivers are where were headed on an exploratory, 3 day bike packing trip through the Northumberland national park, in search of clean water, healthy fish, and experiences that are increasingly rare in a polluted nation.
Film supported by:
Wahoo - uk.wahoofitnes...
Scott Sports - www.scott-spor...
Komoot - www.komoot.com...
The route can be found on Komoot by click here: www.komoot.com...
Extra reading:
To see how sewerage run-off and release affects your river, please visit: top-of-the-poo...
You can learn how your local river performs both ecologically and chemically here: environment.da...
The Rivers Trust are split into regional groups, find out how you can get involved here. theriverstrust...
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[@alifecycles]

Great video. Thanks a million for making it!

[@dwaco_films]

Our pleasure!

[@BeneathBritishWaters]

Superb video, love how it flows, very well done.

[@dwaco_films]

Much appreciated Mark!

[@simmonsj]

Very enjoyable watch and a great reminder of what delights we have on our doorstep in the North East, thank you! 🥰

[@PMaxJ]

Brilliant video, educational, stunning and informative.

[@dwaco_films]

Thankyou - Our rivers are an asset that we must get a grip on. Too valuable for so many reasons to let them suffer like this.

[@connerwright1322]

👏🏻

[@dwaco_films]

Thanks Conner. A route worth doing in spring.

[@calvinforsure]

The mix of beautiful aesthetic riding and edit with a well depressing message .

[@dwaco_films]

I would argue it’s only depressing if we don’t take people to task about it. We aren’t powerless, and there are amazing people raising awareness and doing work. Feargal Sharkey (undertones lead singer) is a relentless campaigner and has done huge amounts to bring this issue to light. The Coquet is still a magical river and I’d encourage anyone to explore it, with all its magical tributaries .

[@Creech_Garden_works]

Very enjoyable watch through some stunning countryside with your journey highlighting a very current and important issue in the state of our river health. Top work. It must be said, however that there are many farmers and land owners trying to help turn the tide in the local stretch of their river catchment.

[@dwaco_films]

Agreed. My dad was an upland farmer in the Upper Coquet, and he firmly blames historic plantation forestry drainage as a major cause of sedimentation, which evidence would support to a degree. We have a lot of interview outtakes, particularly around weirs and damns where landowners were actively seeking to remove the barriers but we simply couldn’t cover it all. So all in all, some farmers are responsible, or able to look beyond the farm gate, others are bad through choice or circumstance - much like most things in life it’s a mixed bag.

[@JeanMeybeck]

Great job guys, loved the concept and the video ! Makes me want to grab my bike and discover rivers around my home. Cheers

[@dwaco_films]

You should!

[@tonyatkinson9591]

Great video. Did you guys drink from any of those rivers, of course using filters? Also, what bikes were yous using? Appreciate the info and looking forward to more videos.

[@dwaco_films]

Hi Tony. I would drink from the burns high up the valleys, but probably not below Alwinton, especially if the flow is low, filter or no filter. Bikes we used were Scott Sparks, 100mm travel. A hardtail mtb would be absolutely fine, or a gravel bike with big tyres and a good dollop of skill.