River Lark

River Lark
The river near Icklingham
River Lark is located in Suffolk
River Lark
Location of the river mouth just outside Suffolk
Location
CountryEngland
Physical characteristics
SourceWhepstead
 • coordinates52°11′18″N 0°39′09″E / 52.1883°N 0.6525°E / 52.1883; 0.6525
 • elevation104 m (341 ft)
2nd sourceBradfield Combust
 • coordinates52°10′39″N 0°43′57″E / 52.1775°N 0.7325°E / 52.1775; 0.7325
 • elevation65 m (213 ft)
MouthLittleport, River Great Ouse
 • coordinates
52°26′07″N 0°18′43″E / 52.4352°N 0.3120°E / 52.4352; 0.3120
 • elevation
0 m (0 ft)
Length57 km (35 mi)
Basin features
Tributaries 
 • leftRiver Linnet
River Lark
River Great Ouse
former  A10  bridge
Pumping Stn
Ely to Norwich Railway bridge
Pumping Stn
 B1382  Prickwillow Bridge
Museum of Fen Pumping Engines
Lark Engine PS and Engine Drain
Soham Tunnel Drain
Pumping Stn
Pumping Stn
Pumping Stn
26
Isleham weir and lock
River Island Marina
Lee Brook
Limit of navigation
Judes Ferry Bridge
Kings Staunch
Bridge
Mill
 B1102  Mildenhall Bridge
 A11  Barton Mills Bridge
Cut-off channel
Tuddenham Mill Stream
Weir
Temple Br (Icknield Way Path)
Icklingham lock and Mill
Farthing Bridge
 A1101  Road bridge
West Stow bridge
7
lock and Chimney Mill
6
Weir (Hengrave Lock)
5
Weir (Ducksluice Farm Lock)
Fornham bridge
4
Weir (Fornham Park Lock)
Fornham Dock (original terminus)
1
 B1106  Tollgate Bridge (site of lock)
 A14  Road bridge
Northgate Dock
Bury St Edmunds station
Eastgate Bridge (proposed terminus)
River Linnet
 A134  Road bridge
to source

The River Lark crosses the border between Suffolk and Cambridgeshire in England. It is a tributary of the River Great Ouse, and was extended when that river was re-routed as part of drainage improvements. It is thought to have been used for navigation since Roman times, and improvements to its navigability were made in 1638 and in the early 18th century, when locks and staunches were built. Special powers to improve the river from Mildenhall to Bury St Edmunds were granted by statute (River Lark Act 1698). The upper terminus was on the northern edge of Bury St Edmunds, but a new dock was opened near the railway station after the Eastern Union Railway opened its line in 1846.

The navigation was officially abandoned in 1888, but despite this, commercial use of the river continued until 1928. Following an acquisition by the Great Ouse Catchment Board, locks at Barton Mills and Icklingham were rebuilt in the 1960s, but were isolated when the A11 road bridge was lowered soon afterward. It now has one operational lock at Isleham, and can be navigated to Jude's Ferry.

Water quality in the river was generally moderate in 2016, although there was a section where the quality was bad, the lowest rating given by the Environment Agency, who monitor English rivers. The river hosts a large population of signal crayfish, an invasive species which has increased as the eel population has diminished.