Canal Approximately 500 Metres Long, With The Drum Falls And Weir Inlet

The canal is approximately 500 metres long and features the Drum Falls and a weir inlet at its southern end. It was begun around 1718 for John Aislabie. Constructed from gritstone and clay, the canal is about 10 metres wide and changes direction at the weir known as Drum Falls. The canal has a stone lining with a clay puddled base, although the lining has collapsed along most of its length. There is a shallow segmental arch on the east side, approximately 10 metres from the Rustic Bridge, which covers the sluice outlet. The Drum Falls, along with its flanking walls and sluice, were rebuilt in 1984 after the wooden core of the dam collapsed. Although excavation of the canal started in 1718, the canal bank continued to be built until 1727-28, using surface stone from Galphay Moor. The south end of the canal is framed by the Rustic Bridge, which originally marked the limit of the formal water garden, while the north end features the cascade of the weir into the lake. The canal served as the axis for a long view from north of the lake, extending over Tent Hill and the Temple of Venus to How Hill Tower, Markington, a distance of 1½ miles. The name Drum Falls comes from the rhythmic sound of water flowing through the curved tunnel at the Rustic Bridge and dropping over the weir into the lower stretch, with the rhythm varying according to water volume.