Wye Pursuits Slipway
Kerne Bridge sits at the northern end of the Wye Gorge, where the River Wye leaves open Herefordshire farmland and starts cutting into the sandstone and limestone that shape the gorge further downstream toward Symonds Yat. Wye Pursuits, a canoe and kayak hire centre, is based at the launch here alongside other local operators.
Kerne Bridge, immediately downstream of the launch, is a five-span stone arch bridge built between 1825 and 1828 to a design by Richard Burton with engineering by William Armstrong, and is a Scheduled Monument. It carries the B4229 across the Wye on the site of a pre-Roman ford.
Further downstream, the ruined keep of Goodrich Castle, an 11th-century Marcher castle, stands on a spur of land overlooking the river. Paddlers also pass the surviving masonry abutments of the former Ross and Monmouth Railway bridge, a plate-girder bridge built in 1873 and demolished in 1964.
This reach lies within the River Wye Site of Special Scientific Interest and the River Wye/Afon Gwy Special Area of Conservation, which protects otters, Atlantic salmon, white-clawed crayfish and lamprey species. In 2023, Natural England reassessed the SSSI's condition from unfavourable recovering to unfavourable declining, citing declines in salmon, white-clawed crayfish and macrophytes. Peregrine falcons nest on the limestone cliffs at Coldwell Rocks further down the gorge and can be seen between April and August.
Nearby
A family-run touring site taking tents, caravans and motorhomes, open to the general public from 1 March to 31 October.
WebsiteConditions to check
Symonds Yat Rapids, about seven miles downstream, is a grade-2 man-made feature with rock walls built into the river to modify the flow for canoe and kayak training.
SourceThe Environment Agency notes canoeists should be aware of obstructions and overhanging trees at Kerne Bridge, which can increase after high river levels.
SourceThe parish council describes this as one of the most popular canoe launches on the River Wye, used by several local hire operators.
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