Dyke clearing

We wandered down onto Rippingale Fen to see what is growing in the fields down there this year and it is mainly oilseed rape or wheat. We went right to the end of the drove to the pump house where this dyke meets the South Forty (sic) Foot Drain (a wide dyke that all the fen dykes drain into). While we were there, this chap turned up and went into the pump house to turn the pump on. Water started gushing through the outlet into the big drain, and he went down the steps from the pump house to the water's edge and started clearing weed from the pump inlet. You can see the weed pulled out on previous days lying on the bank beside him.

The farmers keep the dykes clear all year round as part of the fen management to prevent flooding.

See JohnW's blip of the gushing water here.