Lake Vyrnwy Dam

The dam across the Vyrnwy Valley, Montgomeryshire, was the first large masonry dam, and was completed in 1888. Water from the reservoir supplies Liverpool, travelling there along a 70 mile aqueduct.They have a bike hire and cafe in the car part. You can hire a bike to ride around the lake the road surface is great with some spectacular views of the lake and dam.The dam at Lake Vyrnwy is often associated with practice bombing runs for Operation Chastise in The Second World War. Better known as the “Dambusters” raid, Lancasters of 617 Squadron breached the German Möhne and Eder dams and damaged the Sorpe dam in May 1943. However, the association with Lake Vyrnwy seems to be something of a local myth as the dam was never actually used for this purpose. So where did this story originate? It seems that at least one scene in the famous 1955 film, “The Dambusters” was shot at Lake Vyrnwy leading to the mistaken belief that the wartime RAF Lancaster bomber crews practiced there.