River Lune

The River Lune rises in the hills of Cumbria at St Helen’s Well, 238 metres above sea level, and soon gathers four headwater streams. Its name may come from an old word meaning ‘pure’ or from a Romano-British river god called Ialonus. The river flows south for about fifty-three miles, passing Roman remains near Low Borrowbridge before reaching the Irish Sea at Plover Scar. The valley splits into three parts: Lunesdale in the north, the dramatic Lune Gorge where the M6 and West Coast railway share the same corridor, and Lonsdale where the valley widens. At Kirkby Lonsdale the Devil’s Bridge spans the water, while at Caton the Crook o’ Lune bends into a tight shepherd’s-crook shape painted by J. M. W. Turner. The Lancaster Canal crosses the river on the Lune Aqueduct, and four bridges crowd the tidal estuary in Lancaster. Visitors walk the riverbanks from the quiet headwaters to the busy port area. Skerton Weir marks the start of the tidal reach, where lighthouses once guided ships into the old Port of Lancaster. The lower lighthouse still stands on Plover Scar, and the weir itself is a focus for rescue teams including HM Coastguard and the RNLI’s hovercraft. Along the way the Ingleton branch line’s viaducts recall railway days, and the valley’s changing scenery offers glimpses of Ingleborough in the distance.