Clapper gates

[3][4] But unlike canal towing paths, towpaths along rivers were not usually fenced off from the land alongside and required these self-closing gates where the path crossed the field boundaries.

The two gates are hinged at the top and base using a metal band attached to a large post.

This heel post is inclined slightly forward, which ensures that the gates are self-closing by their own weight.

[7] They are seen as a key heritage feature of the River Trent bankside landscape, and efforts are being made to record and preserve them, in the Trent Valley between Farndon in Nottinghamshire and Gainsborough in Lincolnshire.

[8][9][10] [11] The Trent Valley Way, a long-distance footpath which follows the Trentside tow path for some of its length, passes through many of these gates on its route between Nottingham and Gainsborough.