Lower Monnow, 17 Jan 2026

Just three of us wanted to paddle the Lower Monnow as none of us had paddled it before. It's only a grade 2, so nothing is demanding other than a bit of stamina required, as the trip is around 16km long.

The river winds it's way gently down to Monmouth with just a few little play spots and would be ideal for newbies to river paddling to get their first taste of moving water. We were the only paddlers on the river and had the place to ourselves. Its a very pleasant rural run with no urban sections until reaching Monmouth, where a convenient get out immediately below the ancient bridge (river left) gives access to a large car park at the end of the main St.

If you've never seen a Kingfisher, this is the paddle for you, as we spotted 3 along the way with a good assortment of other water birds. Dippers, a cormorant, goosander, lots of Mandarin ducks, and the ubiquitous Mallards. The only thing to watch out for is the large number of trees down, none of which completely blocked our path but require a little care to get around. A couple of kilometres out from Monmouth is a large and impressive, sloping horseshoe weir, about 2 to 3 metres high. This required an awkward portage on river right as the huge amount of flood debris accumulated above and below the weir would make shooting it dangerous. 

Well worth doing, as you paddle along its unspoilt tree lined banks with Alder Willow and lime trees with hanging pom-poms mistletoe and the occasional sprays of garden escaped Snowdrops beneath.

Martin