the bridge at deeping gate carries the date 1651, and is a grade ii* listed stone structure with three round arches. after the remains of deeping high lock and deeping low lock, there is a junction where the old course, the maxey cut, the south drain and the folly river, also a drain, meet. the river is officially navigable below this point. through crowland and cowbit to the edge of spalding, the river is laid out with washlands, which were historically used as pasture, because the river was allowed to flood the land when tidal levels prevented the water discharging into the sea. the river is bounded on the north and west by a bank, while the new river, a drainage channel to the south and east of it, is bounded by another bank. the land between the channels forms crowland high wash, crowland fodder lots and cowbit wash. the southern bank is variously named corporation bank, wash bank and barrier bank. these wash lands were designed to be flooded "in extremis", although the building of the coronation flood relief channel has made this purpose obsolete.