River Gipping
The source of the River Gipping is in the village of Mendlesham Green. It rises to the north of the village, just above the contour, and is fed by waters drained from fields. It heads towards the south-west, passing under the main street of Mendlesham Green by Green Farm, a grade II listed timber-framed and plastered farmhouse dating from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. It continues in the same general direction, passing Great Gipping Wood and Old Newton Hall, both on the north bank. The hall is a grade II* listed structure, dating from 1600 to 1630, with later additions. The joinery in one of the rooms in the left wing is exceptional. By Stonebridge Ford, the river is joined by a stream flowing northwards from Columbine Hall, a grade II* listed former manor house built of flint rubble around 1400, and another stream flowing southwards from Old Newton. By Bridge Farm, another timber-framed and plastered farmhouse dating from the late sixteenth century, Newton Bridge carries the B1113 road over the river, which then passes under a railway bridge, crosses the contour, and is joined by Haughley Watercourse, which flows southwards through Haughley and Dagworth.
Gaoping River
The Gaoping River headwaters originate near Yushan in northern Kaohsiung’s Tauyuan District and a small part of southern Nantou County. The upper section of the river, known as the Laonong, flows through a series of rugged canyons, through Liouguei and Gaoshu, and is joined by the Zhuokou River. The Laonong emerges from the mountains at Meinong as a wide braided stream and after being joined by the Ailiao from the east, the Gaoping proper is formed, which flows about south along the coastal plain, through Pingtung County, emptying into the Taiwan Strait in Linyuan District. The Qishan River and the Wuluo River flow into the lower section of the Gaoping from north and east, respectively.
With an average annual discharge of , the Gaoping River is the second largest of Taiwan’s rivers by volume, following the Tamsui River. About 90 percent of the precipitation, and consequently about 70–90 percent of the total flow, occurs during the rainy season from May to October. Like many Taiwanese rivers, the Gaoping carries large amounts of silt, ranging from 36 to 49 million tons per year; it is the second largest river in Taiwan (after the Zhuoshui River) in terms of suspended-sediment load.