A new premium Komoot route in Northumberland’s heart, the Slymefoot Slyde aims to highlight the state of our waterways through the medium of the bicycle.
A three-day bikepacking route in some of the lesser known wilds of Northumberland launches with a look at the state of the waterways that have carved their mark on the landscape.
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.
Here, 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.
