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About Kielder Water and Forest Park

About our award winning park

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Kielder Water & Forest Park

Where we are and what we do.
Kielder Water & Forest Park is located in the North East of England near to the Scottish Border.

Within the site there are many attractions such as Kielder Observatory and the holiday park Kielder Waterside. The area is ran by the Kielder Water & Forest Park Development Trust.

Kielder Water & Forest Park Development Trust is a registered charity working at Kielder to promote sustainable development, provide recreational facilities, improve knowledge of the natural environment and encourage the arts.

Members, who have appointed directors/trustees to serve on the board, are Northumbrian Water, Forestry Commission, Calvert Trust Kielder , Kielder Observatory Astronomical Society and Northumberland County Council. Affiliate organisations that are not members but have a close working relationship with KWFPDT include Arts Council England, Northumberland Wildlife Trust, Environment Agency, The Scout Association and local decision making bodies such as the parish councils. For more information on the wider park please visit www.visitkielder.com.

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Explore Kielder Water & Forest Park

The ultimate outdoor playground

With over 250 square miles of working forest, more than 26 miles of shoreline around northern Europe's biggest man made lake and the darkest skies in England there is plenty in Kielder Water & Forest Park for you to explore.

Please can we remind all visitors that entering the water for unauthorised swimming, water sports / inflatables fun or just for a quick cool down is not allowed. We like to keep all our visitors safe and to do this we must request that you stay out of the water and it’s hidden dangers at all times.

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Art & Architecture

Art & Architecture

The UK’s largest open air art gallery.

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Birds of Prey

Birds of Prey

Home to over 60 types of birds plus wallabies.

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Kielder Castle

Kielder Castle

The former hunting lodge of the Duke of Northumberland.

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Kielder Observatory

Kielder Observatory

Discover the darkest skies in England.

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Kielder Salmon Centre

Kielder Salmon Centre

The largest conservation hatchery in England and Wales.

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Mountain Biking

Mountain Biking

Try your hand at our famous trails from adrenalin fuelled to family friendly.

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Nature & Wildlife

Nature & Wildlife

The largest red squirrel hide in England and record breaking Osprey’s.

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Tower Knowe

Eat, discover and shop at our sister site.

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Local Attractions

Use Kielder Waterside as a base to explore the local area

History of Kielder

From a small village to the largest man-made lake in northern Europe.

A brief overview of how Kielder and the park became what it is today.

The initial plans for Kielder started in the late 60’s and were approved by parliament in 1974. The scheme originally happened to help with the unexpected rise in demand for water to support the booming industrial economy. The reservoir is owned by Northumbrian Water and holds 200 billion litres of water.

To build the reservoir the Kielder Valley had to be flooded which meant the loss of a school railway and numerous farms and homes. The reservoir was officially opened by the Queen in 1982 and took a further two years to fill with water. The scheme wasn’t without controversy and Northumbrian Water made a commitment to make the local economy sustainable which is what led to what is now know as the Kielder Water & Forest Park Development Trust.

Tower Knowe has an interactive exhibition where you can view the area as it was developed and learn in more detail about the full project and what has happened since.

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About Kielder: Its History and Reservoir

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Walking

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Events at Kielder

What's on while you are here

Latest News

Upcoming events and activities

Entering Reservoirs is not allowed

Now the hot summer days are back, we are seeing a lot of visitors usin...

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Winter Updates

After a busy year Tower Knowe Visitor Centre and The Street Diner at K...

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Pleasure boat hire

Pleasure boats are back on Kielder Water! One hour pleasure boat h...

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Urgent appeal for visitors to stay out of reservoirs

We are highly concerned that a tragedy could occur if visitors conti...

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