WORK undertaken by Dartmoor Preservation Association's volunteer conservation team to clear a large part of the overgrown Plymouth Leat, also known as Drake's Leat, came to an end last week.

The project to clear this leat, which was built in 1590/91 to provide a supply of water to the town mills and drinking water for the people of Plymouth, has taken almost four years and has successfully opened up a walkway alongside this ancient watercourse for nearly two miles across Roborough Down.

Over the years scrub has grown up in and around the dry leat which was last cleared more than 20 years ago. Regular DPA volunteers (pictured above) have been joined by a number of other people on the work days, including locals from Clearbrook, youth groups and various groups from the business community.