Eccup Reservoir

So my quite frankly surreal and random love of water is a bit of a problem for someone living in Yorkshire isn't it? Ha, I laugh in the face of your chortles. Of course not. We have water and plenty of it. We've also got electricty and phone lines outside of London too. I know, it's surprising. What I'm talking about is "real" water and what better place to go than Eccup Reservoir.
It's a pearler of an area for some real clarity and fresh air. Beautiful walks ahoy then sailor and more natural splendor than you can shake a stick at. They've also invested heavily in preserving the glourious Red Kites and it is now home to over 100 of the bad boys. Great to see them in full flight. So twitchers can have a field day and the rest of us can also enjoy the array of wildlife on offer.
There are also rumours and various sightings (not sure if Special Brew was involved) of a mysterious big cat in the area. Personally I don't believe them as the Yeti would've eaten it.
A sure fire hit and worth a trip out to Alwoodley for anyone's money.

My boyfriend convinced me to go on a cycling mission to Eccup reservoir recently. He has a knack of making a million miles away sound really close and as I was pressed for time I began to whinge part way there when I realised this wasn't the 15 minute bike ride I'd planned for, being about seven miles up hill!

Upon arrival I stopped whingeing immediately. The sun was just beginning to set, and the reservoir, which is HUGE looked absolutely breathtaking! We stopped to catch our breath and as we gazed out across the water I couldn't believe we were within cycling distance of home. Before it got too dark to see much we cheekily jumped a couple of gates to get closer to the water. The reservoir was so still and the trees formed silhouettes against the darkening sky as we stood on the pebbly shore.

If you feel the urge to get out of the city for some peace, fresh air and beautiful views, Eccup reservoir is the perfect place!

If you want to go for a nice easy walk in Leeds, but don't wish to have to travel more than thirty minutes outside the city centre, then Eccup Reservoir is a winner. My Mum comes to stay with me a lot and, being from the countryside, we love a good walk. Once when she stayed we decided to have a look for some good walks but unfortunately ran out of time to make it an all dayer. We came across Eccup on the interweb and it seemed perfect.

We drove out, following Google directions, and amazingly enough found it on our first try. We parked up not too far from the entrance and set off. The reservoir itself is not huge, so it really is a light brief walk, but the trees and surrounding area are lovely. If anything it is a great little escape from city living, but not so far out of civilization that you need the whole day to get there and back.

The reservoir itself isn't the prettiest lake you could walk around, but trees and water generally breed plenty of wildlife and tranquility, which is all you could want from a good afternoon walk to digest a Sunday lunch or similar. None of the paths direct you too close to the water, but certainly good footwear is advisable in poor weather as I can imagine it becoming very muddy.