Rustic Bridge Over River Skell Approximately 500 Metres South-East Of The Outlet From The Lake, With Ford Approximately 4 Metres To North

The Rustic Bridge over the River Skell, located approximately 500 metres south-east of the outlet from the Lake, features a ford about 4 metres to the north. The ford, constructed around 1740 for John Aislabie, consists of gritstone setts bordered by curbstones. It is approximately 3 metres wide but was partly collapsed and silted over at the time of resurvey. The bridge, likely built before 1781 for William Aislabie, is made of gritstone rubble and boulders, incorporating tufa blocks. It has a single-span shallow segmental arch with dressed rubble voussoirs and a rubble crest on the parapet, with large boulders at the terminals. The stones are mortared yet arranged to resemble dry walling. The bridge carries a narrow pathway for pedestrians or bridles and replaced an earlier structure from around 1740 that was designed in a Chinese Chippendale style. This route historically led to the pagoda in the Chinese Wood to the east, which has since been demolished.