Bewl Water is a

reservoir A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...

in the valley of the

River Bewl The River Bewl is a tributary of the River Teise in Kent, England. Its headwaters are in the High Weald, in Sussex between Lamberhurst, Wadhurst and Flimwell. The valley is deeply incised into Tunbridge Wells red sandstone, with a base of al ...

, straddling the boundary between

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

and East Sussex in England. It is about south of

Lamberhurst Lamberhurst ( is a village and civil parish in the borough of Tunbridge Wells in Kent, England. The parish contains the hamlets of The Down and Hook Green. At the 2001 Census it had a population of 1,491, increasing to 1,706 at the 2011 Census. ...

, Kent. The reservoir was part of a project to increase supplies of water in the area. It supplies Southern Water’s customers in the Medway towns, Thanet and

Hastings Hastings () is a large seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east to the county town of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to the north-west ...

. Work began to construct the reservoir in 1973 by

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use ...

ming and then flooding a valley. It was completed in 1975 having been filled with over 31,300 million litres of water. The project cost £11 million to build. It is now the largest body of inland water in south east England. In winter, when the flow in the River Medway exceeds 275 million litres per day, river water is pumped to storage in the reservoir. There is an outline plan to raise the water level by a further 3m to increase the yield by up to 30% to help with the growing water demand in south-east England. This will however put further demands on the River Medway to supply the additional water required with the potential for environmental degradation in the river and the eco-systems that it supports.

Leisure use

Bewl Water Outdoor Centre offers a wide range of training, team building and adventure opportunities, on and around the reservoir. These include sailing and windsurfing (formerly through Bewl Valley Sailing Club, now through Bewl Sailing Association Ltd), rowing and sculling (through Bewl Bridge Rowing Club), Canoeing, Kayaking and Pedalo hire (through Bewl Canoe Club), and trout & predator fishing. Paddle Boarding is also available. Recent years has seen the introduction of the Bewl Water Aqua Park, a floating obstacle course on the reservoir. Away from the water, there are many walking and cycling routes around the 12 mile Round Reservoir Route. Laser Challenge and camping packages can be booked, both with traditional camping pitches or more glamorous Mongolian Yurts available. There is also a waterfront cafe and conference facility that is available for venue hire, including weddings.

References

External links

Bewl Canoe ClubBewl Canoe Club Facebook pageBewl Sailing AssociationBewl Bridge Rowing ClubBewl Water Reservoir water level
{{authority control Tourist attractions in Kent Drinking water reservoirs in England Buildings and structures in the Borough of Tunbridge Wells Parks and open spaces in Kent Country parks in Kent Sport in Royal Tunbridge Wells Reservoirs in Kent Ticehurst