Car Dyke By Wood and Fen

Car Dyke runs for 76 miles from the River Witham near Washingborough to Waterbeach in Cambridge. Archaeologists now believe that the dyke formed part of a Roman 'ringvaart' constructed at the beginning of the second Century. This system controlled freshwater and tidal flows, allowing the fens to be drained. Its purpose would have been to service industry (salt, iron and ceramics) rather than agriculture or trade.

In North Kesteven, Car Dyke is the dividing line between the limestone uplands of the west and the fenlands of the east. The narrow strip of fenland between Car Dyke and the River Witham was once known as the Witham Peat Fen. These fens are distinctive from the lowland regions south of the River Slea where the soil is silt and their natural state, marshland. Much of the peat has now been eroded due to intensive arable farming.

Little is known about the first Roman draining of The Fens or even subsequent medieval works, but Car Dyke represents an engineering feat just as impressive as those famously undertaken during the 17th Century by the Dutch engineer, Vermuyden.