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Model boating has taken place on the boating lake near the Magnesia Well cafe for 99 years.

All was relatively still in the pond’s waters until Claro Marine Model Boating Club discovered plans last October by Harrogate Borough Council to build

The aim, the council said, was to improve the cleanliness of the water and create an attractive feature for visitors to the Valley Gardens.

Switched on - The now newly active fountain in Valley Gardens, Harrogate. (Picture Gerard Binks)

But alarmed boaters argued the council was doing so without proper consultation.

They feared the new fountain would prove a hazard for the boats themselves with the danger the models would run aground under the barrage of water.

Now that the new water fountain has been installed in the middle of the pond and switched on, Claro Marine Model Boating Club is weighing up the risks to decide whether nearly a century of model boating in Harrogate’s award-winning is feasible without risk of damage, something the council had said it was keen to avoid.

Open to everyone all year, Valley Gardens is made up of 17 acres of Grade II Listed gardens containing a greater number of mineral springs than any other known place in the UK.

Claro Marine model boating club had pleaded with the council not to press ahead with the water feature, warning it would jeopardise their hobby. (Picture Gerard Binks)

Its roots can be traced back to 1571 when William Slingsby discovered a mineral spring in Tewit Well.

Once known as Bogs Field, there are believed to be 36 different mineral wells located in the popular park.

Troubled waters in Valley Gardens as model boaters lose battle over 'damaging' new fountain