Walking at Scar House Reservoir

Summer 2020 has not been great for holidays. Due to concerns over Covid-19, we did not book any big holidays, but did try to enjoy some days out in and around Yorkshire. We tried to avoid crowded places or, such as when we visited Knaresborough, visit out of peak times. I did some reading on easy walks - we're not big hikers! - and found Scar House Reservoir. Looked like an easy enough walk. It's located at the top of Nidderdale about 10 miles north of Pately Bridge, which is about 40 miles west of York. We drove up one weekend, but the weather did not play ball - as we parked near the reservoir, rain and wind swept in from the west. So we tried again the next weekend! The actual car park was closed, but we could park near the entrance gate by the side of the road. Maybe another 10 - 12 cars there and during the whole 2 hour walk we only saw a dozen people.

(above) Walking across the Dam at Scar House Reservoir. We started by walking over to the North side of the reservoir where the path heads uphill a little. Weather was perfect (by English standards). It's something like 2 and a bit miles along the reservoir.

(above) View looking down the valley from the Dam at Scar House Reservoir. The path on the other side does climb for a couple of hundred meters, meaning you start to get some very pleasant views.

(above) A nice little viewpoint showing the dam.

(above) Walking along the north side of Scar House Reservoir

About two thirds of the way along the path are some ruined walls which used to be a settlement called Lodge, once belonging to Byland Abbey way back in the 13th century. The ruins there now are walls of more recent buildings from the 19th and early 20th centuries. The settlement was abandoned by the time the reservoir opened in 1937.

(above) Ruins of the settlement of Lodge. After Lodge the path crossed a few walls and meanders slightly towards the dam of the upper reservoir - Angram Reservoir, which was built before Scar House. I had half a plan to continue the walk around this reservoir too (it is certainly possible), but ... 4 - 5 miles is enough for us!

(above) Looking back east along Scar House Reservoir. After this, we crossed the dam of Angram Reservoir to the south side, where a paved road takes you back to the start. A bit less interesting than the north side.

(above) Heading back along the South side of Scar House Reservoir, looking back to Angram Reservoir.

(above) More sheep than people at Scar House Reservoir. A very nice walk on a sunny day. I guess we did about 5 miles. Must drag ourselves out for more walks like this next summer!