The River Slea is a
tributary
A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream (''main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which they ...
of the
River Witham, in
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...
, England. In 1872 the river was described as "a never-ending source of pure water", and was a
trout
Trout (: trout) is a generic common name for numerous species of carnivorous freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of which are members of the subfamily Salmoninae in the ...
river renowned throughout the East coast of England. But in the late 1960s, the
Anglian Water
Anglian Water Services Limited is a water company that operates in the East of England. It was formed in 1989 under the partial privatisation of the water industry. It provides water supply, sewerage and sewage treatment to the area formerly ...
Authority took control of the river, and thereafter it became rapidly degraded, due mostly to over-abstraction of water for use in farming.
Course
The Slea rises near
West Willoughby, two miles south-west of
Ancaster, at an altitude of 70 metres. The river descends 30 metres in the first 3 km of its course through Ancaster before flowing past a
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...
(alongside Sleaford Golf Club) into
Sleaford
Sleaford is a market town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the North Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. On the edge of the The Fens, Fenlands, it is north-east of Grantham, west of Boston, Lincolnshire, Boston, and sou ...
.
Through Sleaford it flows above ground in two separate courses, and then curves around the foot of
The Hub where a new riverside sculpture walk follows it. Leaving Sleaford, it passes
Haverholme and runs down through
South Kyme where it is known as the Kyme Eau to join the River Witham at
Chapel Hill.
Slea Navigation
The River Slea was made navigable from the Witham up to Sleaford in 1794, although these navigations were closed in 1878, having been made uneconomic by the arrival of the railway in 1857. There is now an active Sleaford Navigation Trust that aims to reopen to navigations again as far as Sleaford.
See also
*
Cogglesford Mill a working watermill on the Slea
*
List of rivers of England
References
External links
* Map sources for: - source on Willoughby Heath and - confluence with the Witham
Sleaford Golf ClubSleaford Navigation Trust
{{authority control
Slea