Megget Water and Reservoir

Megget Reservoir is a man-made water body in Ettrick Forest, in Southern Scotland. The 259 hectares (640 acres) reservoir is held back by the largest earth dam in Scotland.

The reservoir collects water from the Tweedsmuir Hills, which then travels 28 miles via pipelines to the capital city, Edinburgh. The Megget Reservoir Scheme was first considered in 1963 and construction started in 1976. The reservoir was officially opened on 30 September 1983.

Retained by the largest earth dam in Scotland, the reservoir contains 64 million tonnes of water and supplyies up to 100 million litres of water daily, it takes 18 hours for this water to pass through 28 mile-long underground pipes, propelled only by gravity, to reach water treatment works in and around Edinburgh. Buildings, including an old ruin, farms and houses, were all moved above the proposed new reservoir level and a large earth fill dam was constructed before the valley was flooded.

The countryside around the Reservoir to the north is dominated by Broad Law which is the second highest hill in the wide expanse of hill country in Southern Scotland, the Southern Uplands. It has an elevation of 840 metres which makes it only ten feet lower than its parent, Merrick. Like many of its neighbours it is smooth, rounded and grassy, although the surrounding valleys have very steep sides. The route we will travel at this point is continually voted as one of the most scenic in Scotland for cyclists and motorcyclists.