Last weekend we went on a rather bracing walk around Embsay Reservoir, owned by Yorkshire Water. It was overcast but wasn't raining, and we knew that the walk was around a mile long, so wouldn't be too taxing on little legs. It is free to park and free to walk around the reservoir, making it a nice and cheap family trip. The reservoir was easy to find and there was decent parking. I imagine that this might be more of an issue in the summer when more people are embarking on the walk.
We were lucky to spot an awful lot of toads on the beginning of the route. They were everywhere, and acted as an incentive to get our children to walk that little bit faster!
We watched the boats as they launched into the reservoir and weaved in and out of the buoys on the water. It looked like a lot of fun, especially with the wind being as strong as it was that day.
The route was rather muddy once we came off the main footpath and started going around the reservoir, so I was very glad the children had their wellies on. Being the good mother I am, I had taken hot chocolate (and marshmallows) for a pit stop half way round. We found a nice rock to sit on and settled down for a few minutes to drink our lovely hot chocolate. It's definitely still the kind of weather which requires a warm drink halfway round the walk.
Once we had some sugar in our bodies, the children upped the pace and our walk turned into a jog! They enjoyed all of the little bridges along the way and we had fun playing 'Billy Goat's Gruff' each time. There were fewer toads at this point, but plenty of rabbit holes to keep our eyes out for.
Near the end of the walk we paused on this little beach area where we found a few more toads. Both children enjoyed looking at the stones on the beach, but unfortunately there were lots of little bits of glass, so we didn't stay too long.
On the walk back to the car park, the girl got absolutely soaked jumping in the muddy puddles. It looked like so much fun though, I wish I'd had my wellies! Luckily we had brought some spare clothes for her and they were waiting in the car for us.
We had a great walk around the reservoir. The only main downside was the amount of dog poo on the walk. We only saw one dog litter bin, but there seemed to be an awful lot which simply hadn't been picked up by owners. It was quite off putting, especially when we were walking with young children who didn't want to stick to the path all of the time.
Yorkshire Water have put together a blueprint for Yorkshire, which has seven main aims:
This plan encompasses all that Yorkshire Water intends to deliver, to invest and how this might impact customers, stakeholders and the environment encompassing seven outcomes:
* They provide you with water that is clean and safe to drink
* They make sure that you always have enough water
* They take care of your waste water and protect you and the environment from sewer flooding
* They protect and improve the water environment
* They understand our impact on the wider environment and act responsibly
* They provide the level of customer service you expect and value
* They keep your bills as low as possible
For more information please see http://www.blueprintforyorkshire.com
HelpfulMum
Disclosure: We were provided with a camera by Yorkshire Water for this walk. This had no impact on this post, which is honest and fair.
Disclosure: We were provided with a camera by Yorkshire Water for this walk. This had no impact on this post, which is honest and fair.
