The River Chalke is a small river within the English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 county of Wiltshire

Wiltshire

Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...

, the most significant tributary

Tributary

A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...

 of the River Ebble

River Ebble

The River Ebble is one the five rivers of the English city of Salisbury.Rising at Alvediston 12 miles to the west it joins the River Avon 2 miles south of Salisbury at Bodenham , after flowing through Ebbesbourne Wake, Fifield Bavant, Little London, Knapp, Mount Sorrel, Broad Chalke, Stoke...

.

The river rises at Bowerchalke

Bowerchalke

Bowerchalke or Bower Chalke is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, about southwest of Salisbury. It is in the south of Wiltshire, about from the county boundary with Dorset and from that with Hampshire. It is in the Cranborne Chase and West Wiltshire Downs Area of Outstanding...

 and flows through the Chalke Valley to join the Ebble at Mount Sorrel in Broad Chalke

Broad Chalke

Broad Chalke, sometimes spelled Broadchalke , Broad Chalk or Broadchalk, is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, about 8 miles west of the city of Salisbury. The 2001 Census recorded a parish population of 652 but this has now risen to around 850...

. It provides a steady, year round flow of water, so that the winterbourne

Winterbourne (stream)

A winterbourne is a stream or river that is dry through the summer months. A winterbourne is sometimes simply called a bourne, from the Anglo-Saxon for a stream flowing from a spring, although this term can also be used for all-year water courses....

 section of the Ebble is only from Alvediston

Alvediston

Alvediston is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, with a population of 91 . It is about eight miles east of Shaftesbury, at , and is the source of the River Ebble....

 to Knapp

Knapp

Knapp is a surname of German origin. It may refer to:- People :* Anthony Knapp, mathematician* Bliss Knapp, early Christian Scientist* Brooke Knapp, American aviator and realtor* Charles Knapp, American classical scholar...

.

An archetypal chalk stream

Chalk stream

Chalk streams have characteristics which set them apart from watercourses associated with other rock types.Aside from those with an interest in the geological and ecological disciplines, the term chalk stream is most widely used among a small group of fly fishermen ,...

, the Chalke is noted for its brown trout

Brown trout

The brown trout and the sea trout are fish of the same species....

, and fish farms

Fish farming

Fish farming is the principal form of aquaculture, while other methods may fall under mariculture. Fish farming involves raising fish commercially in tanks or enclosures, usually for food. A facility that releases young fish into the wild for recreational fishing or to supplement a species'...

are operated along it.