URPoint Details
Tunstall Reservoir was a water supply storage reservoir completed in 1879, and now used solely to maintain minimum regulatory flows on the River Wear. It is situated in the north Pennines and lies 3.5 km north of the village of Wolsingham. It was constructed with a puddle clay core, which extended upward from the cut-off trench excavated into the rock foundation on the hillsides.
The reservoir borders the Backstone Bank and Baal Hill Woods Site of Special Scientific Interest. At the northern end of the reservoir, there is a small marshy area where the nationally scare Thread rush, Juncus filiformis, occurs; to protect this, Northumbrian Water has designated the marsh as a private nature reserve. The rest of the reservoir is used by Tunstall fishery for both Boat and Bank Fishing
- Type:
- Landmark