Photo-a-Day  (Sunday, 17th October, 2010)

Nice picture. I left Orrell in the 1970's and had never heard of the Water Park. Is it what was once known as Abbey Lakes ? I used to fish there.

just a gentle ripple on the water,wheres all the birds or have they migrated already?

It is, what was Orrell Reservoir At the bottom of Sandy Lane.

Beautiful! my sister lives in Orrell but I don't know it either.

It was Orrell Reservoir.

The picture above is viewed from the over flow between what we Orrell’ers would know as the 1st and 2nd rezzi. The camera man is stood where the path used be, which ran up to the reservoir house (which is now the lodge house).
The water in the picture is the 1st reservoir at the bottom of Sandy Lane and for those who are not familiar, the original reservoir was almost twice the size and stood some 15 to 20 Feet above Sandy Lane and was estimated to be around 40+ feet deep.
The trees in the far distance stand where the embankment used to be and at the back of that embankment was what we new as ‘Gordon’s Orchard’ Which had some cracking fruit trees in it of which some of the antique trees still exist today,
I have fond memories of Orrell rezzies, and some not so fond. I do recall shortly after the reservoirs where converted and I was one of the unfortunate Miners who was on strike back in the 80’s I was always a keen angler and took a walk onto the ‘Water Park’ on a Friday tea time to see who was catching anything, to my dismay, on the road side of the 2nd lake (bottom of moss road) I saw a youngster adrift in the water about 15 feet out, immediately I entered the water to rescue whoever it was and brought the youngster back to the banking where its distraught parents were awaiting. I never new the outcome of that event as my heart was pounding and I left the scene, the youngster was OK as far as I remember, but did that scare the C**P out of me.
We are fortunate to have these lovely lakes and surrounding woodland on our doorstep.