Wooden bridge restored after fundraising campaign

A historic wooden bridge which was damaged during stormy weather has been restored.

Natural England organised the work at the clam bridge which crosses the River Bovey near Lustleigh in Dartmoor, Devon, after it was damaged by storms which hit the area in January.

The restoration was carried out on the structure after a fundraising campaign involving organisations including Lustleigh and Manaton Parish Councils and the Dartmoor Trust charity raised about £6,000.

Historian Peter Mason said the earliest known map the bridge featured on was in 1834 and it was "absolutely fantastic" to have it back.

"If you were to come and look at it, it looks absolutely like the historic pictures we know of clam bridges of this nature," he said.

Mason said the term clam came from the shortening of the word clamber, with the bridge used to "clamber across a river".

He said the previous bridge had been renovated a few times in its history but the structure was not in a "very good condition" when the storms happened.

"It got badly damaged with tree trunks that have fallen further up the river being washed down, crashing into it and damaging it so it was no longer able to be used," Mason said.

Andy Baker from Natural England all the timber used for the bridge restoration came from within 50m (164ft) of where it was based.

He said the wood was winched into place and strapped down with a handrail cut on site.

"It is a fantastic result to do partnership work with the funders, the parish councils, all the trusts and individuals who kindly donated money," Baker added.

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