The River Culm
Discover this beautiful, but often overlooked, landscape
The River Culm flows through the Redlands of Mid and East Devon and is the longest tributary of the River Exe. It rises in the Blackdown Hills at a spring near RAF Culmhead in Somerset, and flows west through Hemyock, then Culmstock (in the Culm Valley) to Uffculme.
The river then turns south, through Cullompton (alongside the M5 motorway), skirting the northern boundary of Killerton Park to join the River Exe north-west of Exeter.
Explore the key issues that affect the River Culm with our interactive tool.
Click on the images below and find out more about how climate change and other forces are impacting on the river and the people and nature that depend upon it. When you click on the yellow picture image you can toggle to the other landscape view. The yellow ? takes you to a survey where you can feed back your thoughts on the issues raised.
The Culm Valley is a historic landscape that is rich in the industrial and cultural heritage characteristic of Mid and East Devon…
Explore the many opportunities to walk by the River Culm – unlike many of our Rivers it has public footpaths along miles of its length…
Discover all the latest scientific research that has been done on the River Culm from the region’s leading river scientists…
Wildlife of the Culm
Discover the iconic and wonderful wildlife of the Culm Valley
Like so many of the Westcountry’s rivers, the River Culm and its tributaries are wonderfully rich in wildlife. From iconic birds such as the kingfisher, to otters, a wide array of fish species and the endangered white-clawed crayfish, there is a huge richness in the natural world near, around and in this spectacular river.
Latest Features
What’s happening on the Culm
Working Groups – dates and joining details
January 2021 sees the launch of our first round of Working Groups, which will be the engine rooms for developing the Blueprint for the Culm - our long-term
Using trees to slow down water
One of the mantras of working with nature to tackle the effects of climate change is to “slow the flow”. When rain falls, the ideal scenario is
Looking backwards, looking forwards
2020 was a challenging year but, working with nature and local stakeholders and communities, the journey to make the Culm river and catchment better for wildlife and people,
Mapping the Historic Character of the Culm
Dr Antony Firth of Fjordr Ltd recently gave us a fascinating presentation about Fjordr's work researching historic features along the length of the River Culm, including the larger
Next Steps for the Forum
November saw the culmination of the first phase of the project, with the launch of the Connecting the Culm Forum following a series of events to raise
Forum Launch Week
The week of 18 - 24 November sees the launch of the Connecting the Culm Forum and a host of ways to get involved and have your say.
“High behind haze St Mary’s spire cyphers gold key-chants, that rosary under alder-bank’s ash-yantra – is a florilegium, its beaded loops trace the track from Five Fords then meanders along river’s edgeland margin.”
“I ran from…Culmstock along the River Culm through the water meadows to a little Woodland Trust reserve called Hunkin Wood where I stumbled on a granite gateway with a beautiful poem on it by Elizabeth Rapp.”