River Kent
The River Kent is a short river in the county of Cumbria in England. It originates in hills surrounding Kentmere, and flows for around 20 miles into the north of Morecambe Bay. The upper reaches and the western bank of the estuary are located within the boundaries of the Lake District National Park. The river flows in a generally north to south direction, passing through Kentmere, Staveley, Burneside, Kendal and Sedgwick. Near Sedgwick, the river passes through a rock gorge which produces a number of low waterfalls. This section is popular with kayakers as it offers high quality whitewater for several days after rain. The village of Arnside is situated on the east bank of the Kent estuary, just above Morecambe Bay, and a tidal bore known as the Arnside Bore forms in the estuary at this point on high spring tides.
The river has been used as a source of power since at least the 13th century. In 1848, the construction of Kentmere Reservoir was completed, which was designed to ensure that millers had a more regular supply of water to enable their mills to operate throughout the year. There were corn mills and bobbin mills on the upper river, and the weir from the Staveley mill now supplies water to a turbine which generates electricity for the nearby industrial estate. Below Staveley there were three mills connected with the paper industry, the lower one of which is now the site of the paper manufacturer James Cropper PLC, although the current mill no longer uses water power. Within Kendal, there were mills serving the woollen industry, while the mill at Helsington was the last water-powered snuff mill in the country until its closure in 1991. Below Kendal, there were three mills making gunpowder, and the extensive ruins of New Sedgwick gunpowder mill still lie within the confines of Low Wood caravan park, which is owned by the National Trust.
The river flows through the town of Kendal, which consequently suffers from flooding from time to time. One of the most serious floods was in 1898, but there was also extensive flooding in 1954 and 1968. In the aftermath of the 1968 event, a flood defence scheme was designed by the Lancashire River Authority, and implemented in six stages between 1972 and 1978. A major component of the scheme was the widening and deepening of the river between Nether Bridge and Miller Bridge, requiring the removal of of spoil, which was reused as the base for a business park. A large lagoon was also constructed to the north of the town to act as a gravel trap. Despite the work, Kendal was again inundated in 2015, when flows in the river far exceeded the design flow of the channel. The Environment Agency published plans for a new set of defences to protect the town in 2018.
The river is a Special Area of Conservation, particularly because it supports populations of the endangered white-clawed crayfish. It also supports populations of three types of game fish, and the upper reaches have become important for the rearing of juvenile salmon since fish passes were constructed to allow fish to negotiate the weirs on the river in 1986.
Name
The origins of the name of the River Kent are uncertain. The name is thought not to belong to the Germanic languages, and therefore to be Brittonic; but a precise etymology has not been identified. The apparent link to the River Kennet is unlikely to reveal anything about the river's etymology. This is because River Kennet derived its name from Cunetio, a nearby Roman settlement which has been suggested comes from a Brittonic word for 'hound', *cun.Course
The River Kent rises in the Lake District National Park as a series of streams to the north of the village of Kentmere, which flow rapidly downhill and into the Kentmere Reservoir. The reservoir was completed in 1848, to regulate the flow on the river for the benefit of the mills further downstream. Lingmell Gill rises from similar sources to the east, and flows into the reservoir. The river below the reservoir is supplied from a pipeline through the earth dam, with a controlling valve on the upstream slope of the dam, and when water levels are high, from a spillway at the western edge of the dam. As the river descends toward Kentmere, it is joined by Skeel Gill and Bryant's Gill, Ullstone Gill, Nunnery Beck, Kill Gill and a number of other unnamed tributaries.The river is crossed by Low Bridge, which carries a minor road to the settlement of Kentmere, and in then joined by Hall Gill. It broadens out as it flows through Kentmere Tarn, which was drained in the early 1840s to provide agricultural land. The draining was a major factor leading to the building of Kentmere Reservoir. Prior to draining, it had provided habitat for algae called diatoms, which formed a layer of diatomite on the bottom of the tarn when they died. From the 1930s until 1971, diatomite was extracted from the former bed, resulting in the tarn returning, although somewhat smaller than it had once been. Below the tarn, the river is joined by Park Beck, flowing from the west. Ullthwaite Bridge carries a minor track over the river, while Scroggs Bridge carries the road to Kentmere. The next bridge is Barley Bridge, above which is Staveley weir, which supplied a corn mill on the east bank and a woollen mill on the west bank. Barley Bridge was built of slate rubble, possibly in the 17th century. It was widened in the 20th century, when the north side was rebuilt in a sympathetic style. The two arches are supported by a central pier, with cutwaters at river level and a pedestrian refuge above the cutwater on the north side. Below the bridge on the west bank is a four-storey mill building dating from the early- to mid-19th century. Staveley Weir is a little further downstream, and powered a bobbin mill; it currently supplies hydroelectric power as part of Staveley Mill Yard.
After the river is joined by the River Gowan, it turns to the east, where it leaves the national park, and then to the south-east, to reach Cowan Head, where a large weir supplied a paper mill.
There was a second paper mill at Bowston, with a corresponding weir which was removed in 2022. It was located a little above Bowston Bridge, which has two arches constructed of rough coursed stone. A central pier has cutwaters both upstream and downstream. There is a third paper mill at Burneside. Here the mill was fed by a channel which drove turbines to generate electricity. At the southern edge of the mill, the river was crossed by Burneside Bridge, which was washed away in the floods of December 2015, and was being reconstructed in 2019. Below the bridge, the River Sprint flows over a weir to join the river on the north bank. On the outskirts of Kendal, the river turns to the south and is joined by the River Mint on its east bank. Below the junction, a large lagoon was constructed in the 1970s as part of a flood alleviation scheme. It acts as a gravel trap for gravel carried downstream when there are high flows in either river.
Kendal section
Within the town, the river is crossed by a bridge carrying the Windermere branch line, three footbridges, and five bridges carrying major roads. Just upstream of the railway bridge is a suspension footbridge, erected in 1993 using parts of the Romney footbridge, which was removed from the south end of the town and replaced by the Romney road bridge at that time. The first road bridge is Victoria Bridge, carrying the A6 road, which is made of iron and was built in 1887 to celebrate Queen Victoria's jubilee.Next is Stramongate Bridge, with four arches, which dates from 1794, although it includes parts of an earlier bridge dating from the 17th century. A bridge on this site was first documented in 1379, when records mentioned De ponte de Strowmondgate. Stramongate weir is located immediately downstream of the bridge. Gooseholme footbridge was destroyed by floods in 1898, and was rebuilt. It was damaged in December 2015 during flooding, and after an inspection was closed in January 2016 and demolished in September 2019 as it was in a dangerous condition. Plans for a replacement were delayed by uncertainties as to what the Environment Agency were planning to do to improve the flood defences in that area, but it will probably be replaced by a single-span cable stayed bridge, so that its piers will no longer obstruct the river bed.
Miller Bridge carries the A65 road. There was originally a wooden bridge at this location, to connect the town to Castle corn mill, but it was regularly damaged by floods, and was replaced by a stone bridge in 1743. This was in turn replaced by the present bridge, which was designed by the architect Francis Webster to provide easy access to the terminus of the Lancaster Canal, then under construction. The bridge opened in November 1818, with the canal following in June 1819. Jennings Yard footbridge was another casualty of the 1898 floods, and was rebuilt afterward. It was replaced again between 1972 and 1978, as part of a flood alleviation scheme, which involved making the river almost twice as wide at this location.
Parts of Nether Bridge date from the 17th century, but when built, it was quite narrow, and has been widened. The original bridge is on the downstream side. An extension added in 1772 now forms the middle of the bridge, and the upstream side was added in 1908. The three stages are clearly visible within the arches. The final bridge is Romney Bridge, which is of modern construction, and replaced the Romney footbridge. It was built in 1993, and the suspension footbridge was moved to the north of the town at the same time.
Lower river
After passing Kendal sewage treatment works, on the west bank, the course follows a large meander to the north. The land it surrounds is a scheduled monument, as it was the location of Watercrook Roman fort and civil settlement. Archaeological excavation has revealed that the site was occupied from 90 CE to 369 CE, and the remains are fairly well preserved. Above ground, the site is marked by a number of low earthworks. As the river resumes its southward course, there is a large weir which supplied a snuff mill. The mill is Grade II listed and the snuff grinding equipment is still in situ. To the west of Natland, the river passes through a small limestone gorge, which is crossed by the two-arched Hawes bridge, probably dating from the 18th century, and made of limestone rubble with cut limestone copings.Image:Watercrook Roman Fort and Settlement in Cumbria.jpg|right|thumb|A lidar view of the site of Watercrook Roman fort and settlement.
Below the bridge, woodland on the west bank contains the remains of Sedgwick gunpowder works, fed by a long leat from a dam in the river. After passing under Force Bridge, Sedgwick, on the east bank of the river are the remains of Basingill gunpowder works, which is a scheduled monument. The river turns to the south-west, and is spanned by a much larger bridge carrying the A590 dual carriageway, before it enters Levens Park. As it leaves the park, the A6 road crosses the river on Levens Bridge, dating from the 17th century, although it has been widened subsequently and was rebuilt and repaired during the 18th and 19th centuries.
The river from Kendal to Sedgwick is popular with kayakers, as it contains a number of rapids and drops. It is not a river for beginners, offering whitewater rated at grade 3 with some grade 4 on the International Scale of River Difficulty, and it becomes more challenging as flow rates increase. The white water section ends at Force Falls, just above the A590 bridge at Sedgwick.
The river becomes tidal shortly afterward, as it widens into an estuary. It is joined by the River Gilpin, flowing southward, which forms the boundary of the Lake District National Park in its lower reaches, and the River Bela, flowing westward. The national park boundary then runs along the middle of the river channel. At Arnside, the final bridge is the Furness line railway viaduct. The River Winster flows into the estuary from the north, just before the Kent enters Morecambe Bay, a vast area of intertidal mudflats and sands. The tidal range at the mouth of the river and the shape of the estuary result in a tidal bore occurring near Arnside, which is known as the Arnside Bore. It is usually visible on spring tides, when the tidal range exceeds, and is affected by wind direction and recent rainfall. South Lakeland District Council have installed a siren, which is sounded approximately 15 to 20 minutes before the bore is expected to reach Arnside, and again when it actually reaches Blackstone Point, a little further down the estuary.