River Lyvennet

The River Lyvennet rises on Crosby Ravensworth Moor in Cumbria as Lyvennet Beck. It flows north through the villages of Crosby Ravensworth, Maulds Meaburn and King’s Meaburn before becoming a river. Near its end it meets the River Leith and then joins the River Eden after a total course of just over seventeen kilometres. The catchment covers more than fifty square kilometres of farmland and moor. On the moor above the source lie traces of ancient settlements and burial sites. A restoration project by the Environment Agency, Natural England and the Eden Rivers Trust returned bends and meanders to straightened sections. This slowed floodwaters and allowed Atlantic salmon to return and spawn. Volunteers planted ten thousand wildflowers of more than thirty native species along the banks. Brown trout now hold their own in the clearer water. Pedigree cattle herds keep the old name alive, including the Lyvennet Simmentals at Greystone House. The valley may preserve the Welsh name Llwyfenydd, once linked to the post-Roman kingdom of Rheged. The word llwyfen means elm, and elms once lined these banks. Walkers follow quiet lanes and field paths beside the water. Moorland birds nest in the newly planted strips. The river’s quiet flow and recovering wildlife offer a glimpse of Cumbria before modern drainage changed the land.