‘A wild swimmer’s paradise’: the beach on top of a Yorkshire moor

02.01.2024 - 11:57 / theguardian.com

Gaddings Dam was built as a mill pond in about 1833, when the Industrial Revolution positioned West Yorkshire and the north of England as the centre of the developed world’s cotton-spinning and weaving mills. It sits above the market town of Todmorden, out of sight on the moor of Langfield Common, with a sandy beach that claims to be the highest in England.

The Gaddings Dam Preservation Company bought the deeds to the reservoir in 2001 for £1,500, on the condition that it was preserved for the people of Todmorden. These days, with restricted access to water in lakes and reservoirs, Gaddings has become a much-valued and popular local swimming spot.

It is wild, nearly always windy and, as one of the regular dippers calls it, “a wild swimmer’s paradise”.

The Gaddings Dam Preservation Company bought the deeds to the reservoir in 2001 for £1,500 on the condition that it was preserved for the people of Todmorden

We have just finished production of a feature documentary, Wild Water, about the local community who use the dam, particularly the swimmers who dip all year round. So we embarked on the 9km circular walk of Stoodley Pike to take in the glorious views and industrial heritage – and enjoy a cold water plunge.

Gaddings Dam is accessed by a range of walking routes, the most direct of which is a 20-minute hike up an eroded steep path. At its start, opposite the Shepherd’s Rest pub, we meet up with some of the main characters from the film.

There is Clive, who reckons he takes 500 to 600 dips a year and can often be found playing his banjo on the shoreline; Jamima and Donna, who swim most days, but every week as part of the Saturday Morning Crew; and Vicky, who has to steel herself to climb what she lovingly refers to as “the hateful hill”.

The Wild Water film centres on a cast of regulars who swim in the dam come rain or shine – and it is mostly rain

The sun is making a rare appearance in one of the wettest corners of the country. Recently, we were told that there haven’t been more than two days without rain in the past six months, which, true or not, seems believable. The chat on the way up is of wind direction, the weather (of course), and the water temperature, which is estimated at 5C. After 15 minutes, we stop at Vicky’s regular spot to have a breather and take in the views. The Calder Valley shimmers with moorland, fields, lakes and pockets of houses as wind turbines gently turn in the distance.

Energy restored, we head for the summit, and as we hit the top of the steps, the glory of the dam reveals itself, along with the wind. The body of water never fails to look anything less than spectacular: rugged, windy, industrial … and inviting. Rather than heading to the beach, we go to the regular