River Alre
| River Alre River Arle | |
|---|---|
Alre Valley | |
Confluence into the Itchen, in Hampshire | |
| Etymology | A back formation from Alresford |
| Location | |
| Country | England |
| County | Hampshire |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | |
| • location | east end of Bishop's Sutton, Hampshire |
| • coordinates | 51°4′56″N 1°7′11″W / 51.08222°N 1.11972°W |
| • elevation | 72 m (236 ft) |
| Mouth | River Itchen |
• location | near New Alresford, Hampshire |
• coordinates | 51°5′16″N 1°11′2.9″W / 51.08778°N 1.184139°W |
• elevation | 51 m (167 ft) |
| Length | 6.0 km (3.7 mi) |
| Basin size | 56.31 km2 (21.74 sq mi) |
| Discharge | |
| • location | New Alresford |
| Basin features | |
| Progression | Alre, Itchen, Southampton Water arm of The Solent (English Channel) |
| River system | Itchen basin |
The River Alre (also, occasionally, Arle) is a tributary of the River Itchen in Hampshire in the south of England. It rises in Bishop's Sutton and flows west for 6 km (3.7 mi) to meet the Itchen below New Alresford.
The river is a classic English chalk stream with a shallow gravel bed and fast flowing waters, fed year-round by chalk springs. Through Bishop's Sutton it forms a good natural trout fishery and later supports a watercress harvest after which the Watercress Line, a heritage steam railway, is named.