So my quite frankly surreal and random love of water is a bit of a problem for someone living in…read moreYorkshire 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…read moremaking 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!

I have been a couple of times now it is a hidden gem! it has a nice cafe that does a great breaky…read moreand propper coffee's too! they have just started doing a sunday roast. The lakes are well maintained and the staff are friendly and best of all the place is dog friendly!

it is a good place to fish and some days will fish very well and some not i find the bend of the…read morecarp lake is a good peg i have cought plenty from that peg

I am from the United States but often visit my family up in Wakefield, so I often end up taking a…read moregood stroll through here. It is a lovely walk! It's short but too short so it's great to take the young ones and dogs! The pubs nearby are great! The park itself is quite clean and free from litter, unlike the local parks back in California. The one problem that did cost a star though, are the toilets. THEY ARE FILTHY! I hear they you have to pay to get in now, which I can totally understand! First of all, they are metal and have no seats. But to be honest, they'd be in pieces if they were porcelain XD. There is graffiti all over the walls. Every time I've gone the floor is a lake of urine. However, that's really the only problem

As the previous reviewer said, this is a real gem. There are a number of walks of various lengths…read morebased around the dam, and all are very picturesque. Kids will love playing in the surrounding woodland and feeding the ducks in the dam, and at least two of the walks are wheelchair friendly, as we used to take my brother there in his. It's easy to get to and a nice afternoon out (especially as there are an ice cream van and plenty of pubs nearby!) I'm not sure how much the car park costs, but there are buses from Wakefield town centre and obviously, the walk is free!

A three pond complex, the top pond (Canal pond) is the match lake and contains a lot of silver…read morefish, carp to 10lb, Tench and perch. The middle pond contains larger carp, a cat fish (supposedly around 40lb), lots of roach to around 1lb, bream to around 2lb, small perch, and tench to 5lb. The smaller bottom lake doesn't get fished much and is stocked as per the Canal pond but with a catfish (supposedly around 30lb). Day tickets cost £5 for up to 2 rods, and the money is collected on the bank. The car park reed lined pegs on the middle pond are the most popular and on a weekend you will need to be there 'queueing' well before the gates open to get any of them. The middle pond generally has a 1m depth at a rod length out from the bank with a maximum depth of around 2.5m. There are toilet facilities, and on weekends a 'burger bar' van is resident in the car park between the top and middle ponds. Had huge bags of roach, with tench, perch and several decent carp by fishing alongside reeds about 2m from the bank with a 14 hook fished just over depth and loaded either with 3 red/yellow maggots, or 6mm halibut flavour soft pellets over a carpet of strawberry flavour crushed hard pellet groundbait. Keep loose feeding 6-10 maggots around your float on the 'little and often' principle and I found it was a 'fish a chuck' most of the day.

As picturesque as it gets in Bolton, the Jumbles is a firm favourite for locals and outsiders…read morealike. This was at full testimony on my last walk (Sunday) when the weather had perked up a little as almost half of Bolton had decided to do the same! That could sound quite negative but it's definitely not, theres room and space for all. Most would say it's better when the sun is shining and you don't need to wrap up like you're about to tackle an blizzard on Snowdon, but sometimes it's just as beautiful to walk round when it's bitterly cold and the trees are frosting in stead of blooming. I'm very lucky to have this on my doorstep although I don't utilise it enough. If you're looking for a new walking route or a different reservoir to explore, make the Jumbles your next stop - and call in at my house for a cuppa on your way out!

Massive lake I like going with my dog to watch the boats and people trying to sail lol and round it…read moreis a near by woods were I can take my dog for a walk and at the end of the woods there a canal were you can have a seat and watch the barges go by

One of our favourite local beauty spots. There's a very pleasant one-hour walk around Entwistle…read moreReservoir with a well-defined path (although it can get a bit boggy in damp weather), and it's a popular spot for joggers and dog-walkers. There's plenty of parking there too, although I think they've just started charging for it. The place is very pretty at any time of year, but the trees in autumn are especially beautiful. It will always be a special place for me because I proposed to my wife half-way round -- but I'm sorry to report, true romantic that I am, that I didn't get down on one knee as it was still a bit muddy from some recent rain