Rothley Lake breaks the bareness of the scenery, prettily bordered with trees and overlooked by a wall of rugged crags topped by Codger Fort. Rothley Lakes (divided by a road) were created for the Wallington estate by Capability Brown. Codger Fort was erected by Sir Walter Blackett after the Jacobite rising of 1745, probably to demonstrate his loyalty. The fort contained six cannon and hence would have proved a serious obstacle to any invading forces. The fort was designed by Thomas Wright of Durham, and has also been interpreted as a folly like Rothley Castle to the south. Huge beeches and pines line the ascending road from the lake.
