Ogden Water Country Park offers a superb opportunity to escape from the stresses and strains of everyday life. Over 250,000 people visit Ogden Water every year for picnics, walking, family outings and nature activities Why not enjoy a picnic at one of our picnic tables, whilst taking in the stunning views. View location on Streetmap

Download the Calderdale Wildside Booklet to find out what's going on in Calderdale!

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The Permanent Orienteering Course maps are available at the Visitor Centre. £1.50 each. They are proving very popular, particularly with school groups.

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Do you have any anecdotes, pictures, or short stories of trips to Ogden in the past, ie. donkeys years ago! If you have, please get in touch with Ranger Chris.

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If you are planning to bring a party of people on a visit to Ogden Water, you could contact the Ranger to make sure the facilities will be available when you come.

Chris Sutcliffe tweets 30/07/2012:

Volunteer works
Chris and the gangs have been hard at work undertaking improvements to the estate.

A new hedgerow has been planted along the woodland trail from the car parks. This will not only act as a barrier, but the hawthorn, hazel, dog rose and blackthorn will add variety to the woodlands and bring more berries and fruits for the wildlife to feast on in the autumn.

The drystone walling area, just outside the Ogden boundary has been given a spruce up. The vegetation has been cut back and the drains cleared. If you have not been there it is well worth a stroll to see the different types of walling, troppings and lunkies!

The footpath around the reservoir has suffered from increased potholing and the recent wet weather has meant that large amounts of materials have been washed down onto the trails from the woodlands. A team were out in July to clear the drains and remove the muddy sections. A little bit of elbow grease and a lot of midge swotting went on. The section along to far side of the reservoir has been cleared and potholes filled in. The near side of the reservoir is still to do in the next few weeks.

Future works will include vegetation clearance, pond and stream maintenance, hedge laying and woodland management. If anyone is interested in coming along for a morning to lend a hand or get involved for the full day, the group meets at 10am on the 3rd Tuesday of the month (except August) for an outdoor practical session. Bring old clothing, waterproofs, insect repellent, lunch and snacks, a hot drink and a pair of gardening gloves. For more info and to book a place please contact Chris on 077699 54956.

Yorkshire Water have started on the embankment work.

Halifax Courier:
Published on Saturday 2 February 2013 09:09
Vital work is about to begin to strengthen a 155-year-old underground tunnel at Ogden Reservoir.
Beginning this month, engineering experts will strengthen the 140-metre long tunnel, which runs underneath the embankment and was built in 1858.
Yorkshire Water bosses say work is needed to keep the tunnel strong and protect the pipe inside, which transports water to keep levels healthy at the downstream beck, which in turn feeds the nearby river.
Engineers will also strengthen the reservoir embankment with 3,500 tonnes of earth.
A local ecologist will help advise on the removal of about 12 trees to allow for the work, and will also install bat and bird boxes. The footpath around the reservoir will be unaffected by the work, but some other footpaths will be temporarily closed in the surrounding area.

Tim Dyke, project manager, said Yorkshire Water had written to local residents and signs would update visitors on the scheme’s progress. He said: “We take the safety of our reservoirs extremely seriously and this work is vital to ensure Ogden continues to effectively perform its primary role of topping up local water courses in times of need.
“We want to reassure visitors that their recreational fun should not in any way be impeded and we’ll work hard to complete the job as quickly as possible.”
Chris Sutcliffe, Calderdale Council’s area countryside officer, said: “This site is enormously popular with both human and wildlife visitors - only this year we had a yellow-browed warbler nip to us for a few days. I’m pleased to see Yorkshire Water improving the site and we hope their improvements will ensure people can continue to visit here for years to come.”
The work is part of a £60m investment by Yorkshire Water on reservoirs.

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Visitor Centre
We have a few new faces in the visitor centre now, so many in fact that it is open every day of the week. Why not take the opportunity to have a stroll around and call in for a coffee (yes, got the drinks machine fixed as well) and say hello.

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Also see Whats On

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