Beeleigh - Meeting of the rivers

Well this was a place I had wanted to visit and it was a great disappointment when we finally arrived. This is where the rivers Chelmer and Blackwater meet before they empty out into the estuary at Maldon. Think it says 'waterfall' in some of the blurb, but a one foot drop does'nt really equate with Victoria falls...
The weather has been very dry these last few months and the Chelmer river has always sparkled, but here the pools and locks looked dull and lifeless. There had at one time been a mill here, one that would have stretched back to a medieval mill which belonged to the monks at Beeleigh Abbey.

We sat on the bank and had a picnic, joined by a 6 month old collie, who ate a lot of my pasty. Her owner was walking the river path to meet friends at Paper Mill Lock, but seemed to have no idea of the length he would have to walk (two or three hours) there and back. I did show him the map but I'm not sure he took in the detail! Anyway the pup was gorgeous, and we were joined for a brief time by a fisherman and his labrador, the canoes negotiating the lock we were sitting by, it seems a place for picnicing and generally messing around in.

Swan family having a wash

father making a strange shape on the surface of the water

Blackwater?

resting demoiselle of which there were a few

culvert, probably back to the mill

Cleaning stones probably before the small weir