North Drain
Despite its awful name the North Drain is a beautiful waterway that slowly flows through a series of amazing moors in the wide open flat valley of the River Brue on the Somerset Levels.
A Brief History
The route followed by the River Brue has flipped and flopped around over the years. For a while it even followed a small gap in the hills allowing it to flow north and join forces with the River Axe to create a navigable river.
Surprisingly, the Brue Valley was one of the first areas of the Somerset Levels to be drained. Starting as early as the 13th century. However, it was not until 1775 that a new drain was cut through Tadham Moor. Then in 1801 a sluice was built diverting water from the River Sheppey into the drain.
Water would flow from the Sheppey into the North Drain then empty into the Brue a few miles downstream. This is fine when the water level in the River Brue is lower than the water in the drain. But when the water level in the Brue is high water would flow the wrong way up the North Drain. To fix this a pumping station was built in 1959. From then on the drain could be pumped up into the Brue and eventually out to sea.
The North Drain at its widest, not far from the pumping station.
The Route
Using gravity the North Drain flows 6 miles from a sluice on the River Sheppey near Fenny Castle to the pumping station at the River Brue. Between this sluice and the pumping station, it passes through a series of moors:
- Godney Moor
- Westhay Moor
- Aller Moor
- Tadham Moor
- Tealham Moor
Using an Ordnance Survey map I find it difficult to know where one moor ends and the next one begins. But, along its route the drain flows under a regular series of drove bridges. Bridges are much easier to locate on a map, and they are the only public access points to the drain. So I will use these droves to mark the boundaries between each of the moors. Here is my list, but a word of warning it could be very wrong.
- Godney Moor
- Hurn Drove
- Yeap’s Drove
- Drake’s Drove
- Tilleys Drove
- White’s Drove
- Lewis’s Drove
- Westhay Moor
- Oak’s Drove
- Dagg’s Lane Drove
- London Drove
- Parson’s Drove
- Aller Moor
- Blakeway
- Tadham Moor
- Sand Drove
- Tealham Moor
- Jack’s Drove
- Totney Drove
That is a lot of droves in just 6 miles, that divide the land into a series of north-south strips.
Hurn Drove
A horse chestnut tree hangs over the River Sheppey near the Hurn Drove sluice. This is a good point to sit for a while on the small bridge hoping to catch a glimpse of an otter or a bright flash of a kingfisher.
The first bridge over the North Drain is at the Hurn Drove sluice.
This is where water flows out of the River Sheppey and into the drain.
From here is the only section of the North Drain that you can walk alongside thanks to the short footpath that leads to Yeap’s Bridge.
Yeap’s Drove
This drove cuts through Godney Moor, that was once fen peat land.
Compared to much of the route this is an area of crops, trees and hedges as well as water filled field edge ditches. And lots of curious friends.
Drake’s Drove
Where Drake’s Drove crosses the drain there is a small stone bridge. Some, but not all, of the bridges over the drain are pretty like this one.
White’s Drove
This is a green lane that even Google maps has been down. Walking north you have views of Barrow Hill at the end of the drove.
The drain is beginning to get a bit wider.
On this drove it is another nice bridge.
Lewis’s Drove
On the morning I decided to visit Lewis’s Drove there was a deep mist and a glorious sunrise.
On the drove is a sluice gate that can divert water north to join the Panborough Drain.
Oak’s Drove
The droves come regular now, from Oak’s Drove it is easy to look across to the tin bridge over the drain on Dagg’s Lane Drove.
The next two droves, Dagg’s Lane and London form part of the Westhay Moor nature reserve.
Westhay Moor
Westhay Moor is well known for the Somerset Wildlife Trust’s nature reserve of the same name. This area of raised bog has been drained, and cut for peat then filled back up with water.
It is a beautiful location for bird watching. Here the North Drain has become wide and straight.
Another tin bridge at London Drove.
Conservation work never ends and alongside the North Drain the Somerset Wildlife Trust are restoring a fen landscape.
Blakeway Bridge
Leaving the well known Westhay Moor the North Drain continues to Aller Moor.
At the busy Blakeway Bridge the drain is long and straight. Telegraph polls leading back are a sure sign that the surrounding land is dropping.
Sand Drove and Tadham Moor
It is called Sand Drove but it should have been called Mud Drove. But it does have beautiful views from its tin bridge over the North Drain.
This is still an area of working farms.
The bridge here is not as pretty as the stone bridges on Godney Moor. But as well as being a nature reserve this is also farmland, and these ‘tin bridges’ do have lots of working character.
Tealham Moor
There are only two more bridges over the North Drain – Jack’s Drove that runs north-south, and Totney Drove which is the main east-west route through the area.
On Jack’s Drove the bridge is stone with iron railings. It is popular for fishing and enjoying a splash in the cold water.
The drain flows slow straight and wide.
Rattling Bow
Where the drain turns south and passes under Totney Drove is known as Rattling Bow. It is a special place were cyclists and drivers pause to enjoy the view.
From the bridge you can watch the dragonflies and fish, as well as the cattle.
The Last Leg
From the bow it is not far to the final pumping station back Ito the River Brue.
There are no public footpaths to the pumping station, so this is as close as I could get.
And finally
There is lots more information to read about the North Drain.
- https://somersetrivers.uk/somerset-rivers/somerset-levels/north-drain/
- https://avalonmarshes.org/landscape/landscape-history/
- http://somersetdrainageboards.gov.uk/approved_plans_NorthDrain.pdf
- https://avalonmarshes.org/landscape/water-and-drainage/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Drain
- https://riverlevels.uk/north-drain-mark
- https://www.farsondigitalwatercams.com/locations/north-drain-pumping-station_brue
- https://www.landscapebritain.co.uk/rivers/somerset/north-drain/