Hoping to meet a river goddess: a wild journey through Britain’s mythic waterways

Just past midday I found myself inside a rain cloud, boots squelching through bog and grass on Mount Pumlumon Fawr. After hiking more than eight miles of Hafren Forest trails I stood at a carved post marked Source of the Severn, alone and hoping to meet a river goddess.

The quest followed a tale collected by the folklorist John Rhys: three sisters—Hafren, Rheidolyn and Gwy—each choosing their own route to the sea. Folklore feels newly present across Britain, from festival campfires to a surge of Mabinogion-inspired fiction. I travelled for my book No Fair Maidens, moving from Somerset to Skye, from Gower to Eryri, and focused less on archaeology than on the rivers, lakes, spring wells and seashores that feature in old lore.

Britain, Pumlumon Fawr

severn, pumlumon fawr, hafren forest, john rhys, mabinogion, hafren, rheidolyn, gwy, river goddess, british folklore