Scaling Dam Reservoir is a freshwater man-made lake on the edge of the

A171 road The A171 is a road in England that links the North Yorkshire towns of Middlesbrough, Guisborough, Whitby, Robin Hood's Bay and Scarborough. Locally it is known as The Moor Road. The road is mostly single carriageway but has some sections of du ...

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by national parks, including most of the Yorkshire Dales and the North York Moors. It is one of four cou ...

, England. The reservoir is near to the hamlet of Scaling Dam from where it derives its name, and was built in 1958. The reservoir lies inside the

North York Moors National Park North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north'' i ...

and the western half is in the Borough of Redcar and Cleveland, whilst the eastern half is in the

Borough of Scarborough The Borough of Scarborough () is a non-metropolitan district and borough of North Yorkshire, England. In addition to the town of Scarborough, it covers a large stretch of the coast of Yorkshire, including Whitby and Filey. It borders Red ...

History

Scaling Dam Reservoir was built between 1952 and 1958 at a cost of £450,000 and is the largest lake in the North York Moors. The area that the reservoir is built in was named Scaling Dam long before the reservoir was built in 1958; mapping and records show a hamlet of Scaling Dam in the early nineteenth century, and the name is mentioned in Camden's 17th century "Britannia". The dam was constructed by the Tees Valley and Cleveland Water Company and despite being in North Yorkshire (though its on the border between Redcar and Cleveland and the Borough of Scarborough), the dam is owned and regulated by

Northumbrian Water Northumbrian Water Limited is a water company in the United Kingdom, providing mains water and sewerage services in the English counties of Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, Durham and parts of North Yorkshire, and also supplying water as Es ...

. However, fresh water from the dam was historically supplied to

Yorkshire Water Yorkshire Water is a water supply and treatment utility company servicing West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, the East Riding of Yorkshire, part of North Lincolnshire, most of North Yorkshire and part of Derbyshire, in England. The company has its ...

, though this practice stopped in 2012. Unusually, the dam wall is long, running along the width of the reservoir on the northern side. Dam walls are usually narrow against the water that they hold back. As such the deepest point, near the dam wall, is only . Water leaving the dam exits as Dam Beck, which on its journey to the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...

via the fishing village of

Staithes Staithes is a seaside village in the borough of Scarborough in North Yorkshire, England. Easington and Roxby Becks, two brooks that run into Staithes Beck, form the border between the Borough of Scarborough and Redcar and Cleveland. The area l ...

, changes to Roxby Beck, Easington Beck and then finally Staithes Beck.

Recreational uses

As the

Environment Agency The Environment Agency (EA) is a non-departmental public body, established in 1996 and sponsored by the United Kingdom government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with responsibilities relating to the protection and en ...

classify the water quality as being good, Scaling Dam Reservoir is a suitable venue for angling, walking and swimming. The dam also is home to the Scaling Dam Sailing Club. There is a visitor centre and shop which sells angling supplies and parts of the reservoir are accessible for disabled anglers.

Wildlife

Besides the fish (which have been introduced for angling), the site is noted for a regular appearance of ospreys during the spring and summer months, and the Nathusius' pipistrelle bat. As Scaling Dam is located close to the North Sea coast, it is an attractive site for migratory birds during the winter months, when human activity on the dam is not allowed. The western edge of the reservoir is also the site of a nature reserve, and whilst there is no public access, people can walk around the edges of the reserve and the reservoir.

References

Sources

External links

{{authority control Reservoirs in North Yorkshire North York Moors