Haddon Hill and Wimbleball Lake 6 September 2012

After the wettest, and possibly the coolest English summer in living memory, the first Week in September has seen a good deal of welcome sunshine and reasonable temperatures, ideal for walking.

Wimbleball lake is a reservoir in the south eastern part of the Exmoor National Park. It was created in the 1970s by the construction of a 49 metre high concrete dam across the River Haddeo. It is in a truly rural setting, away from major roads and large settlements.

I started the 4.5 mile walk from the car park on Haddon Hill, a hogs back feature to the south of the lake with my, increasingly tatty, Ordnance Survey 1:25000 OL9 map. 

I set out in a westerly direction climbing gently across open moorland to Hadborough, the highest point on the ridge and home to an Ordnance Survey triangulation pillar. There are good all round views from here and the countryside was looking unusually green. 

From the pillar, a track leads downhill towards the dam. Having crossed the open ground I passed through deciduous woodland before descending a steep flight of stone steps onto a concrete road that is part of the reservoir infrastructure. I turned right in the direction that would climb to the top of the dam, which I soon glimpsed through the trees. 

Wimbleball dam

The public are permitted to walk across the top of the dam although it is designated as a permitted path and not a public right of way. I remember walking in the area in the 1970s when the dam was completed but the reservoir had not completely filled. The whole thing then looked rather a scar on the landscape, but the dam has matured and now has an assemblage of lichens growing on the concrete. There is a view of the valley of the River Haddeo from the top of the dam.

Looking north along the shores

Having crossed the dam I took the permitted path that leads around the western shore of the lake. This was a very pleasant walk, through woodland to begin with, but further on there were more open views across the lake.

Wimbleball has facilities for a wide variety of outdoor pursuits and is home to a sailing club. There is a camp site and a cafe not far from the Outdoor and Active centre.
From the centre I took the track up to the road, which I crossed, and continued on a footpath in a south westerly direction. This met the lane that runs between Brompton Regis and Hartford, which is situated below the Wimbleball dam. I turned left onto the lane and took the reservoir service road past the dam and found my way back to the car park.