Gladhouse Reservoir Travel Guide

Gladhouse Reservoir is a reservoir in Temple, United Kingdom. The nearest service base is Gorebridge, roughly 10 km away.

Gladhouse Reservoir at a Glance

• What it is: reservoir (Attractions)
• Where it is: Temple EH23, United Kingdom — coordinates 55.7667, 3.1167
• Why it is listed: a source-verified entry in the CollabsTravel master database, matched against official gazetteer and geographic records before publication
• Time needed: two to three hours
• Best season: May to September

Quick Facts

Place type	Reservoir
Primary category	Attractions
Also good for	Waterfront
County / region	Temple
Region / state	Scotland
Country	United Kingdom
Postal address	Temple EH23, United Kingdom
Nearest city	Gorebridge
Coordinates	55.7667, -3.1167
Nearest base town	Gorebridge (10 km)

Why Gladhouse Reservoir Is Worth Visiting

Gladhouse Reservoir earns its place in this guide for a simple reason: it is a verified attractions in Scotland, United Kingdom,. Its position 10 km from Gorebridge also makes it an easy add-on rather than a detour that costs half a day. Visitors book it for waterfront as much as for attractions. And unlike listicle recommendations, everything on this page - coordinates, category, sources - was checked against official records before publication.

About Gladhouse Reservoir

In plain terms, Gladhouse Reservoir is a reservoir in the Temple area of Scotland, United Kingdom that travellers book around attractions trips. Beyond its main draw, the record tags it for waterfront too, so it rewards more than one kind of visit. Functionally it belongs to Gorebridge - the town most maps and locals will reference when describing how to reach it. Everything stated on this page comes from that verified record; where background history is quoted, the source is named at the end of the section.

The Story of Gladhouse Reservoir: History & Background

Gladhouse Reservoir, formerly known as Moorfoot Loch, is a reservoir in Midlothian, Scotland, five miles (8 km) south of Penicuik. It is the most southerly reservoir in Midlothian, as well as being the largest area of freshwater in the Lothians. It is used to supply Edinburgh with drinking water.

Lead passage from the Wikipedia article "Gladhouse Reservoir", reused under CC BY-SA 4.0 with a coordinate-verified name match; the source article carries the full referenced history.

The Beauty of Gladhouse Reservoir

What people mean when they call Gladhouse Reservoir beautiful is usually the built and curated detail on site - exhibits, gardens and views arranged specifically to be enjoyed. The light does most of the work: mid-latitude light gives the place two looks: clean blue summer noon and a low amber angle in spring and autumn. The seasons restyle everything around it - each season repaints it - plan the visit around the colour you want in your photos. And the beauty compounds with context: with 8 other verified places nearby, the Temple area reads as one continuous landscape rather than a single viewpoint, which is worth more than any filter on the photos you take here.

Getting There

Gladhouse Reservoir sits at 55.7667, 3.1167 in Temple, United Kingdom. Most visitors reach it by car, regional rail or local transit; pin the coordinates above rather than only the name - Gladhouse Reservoir names repeat across regions, and rural entries often lack street addresses.

Base yourself in Gorebridge and make this a half-day trip; services, fuel and lodging are easiest there. The run from Gorebridge is about 10 km (6 mi) each way, so allow Gorebridge as your anchor for the day.

Best Time to Visit

Late spring to early autumn (May to September) brings the warmest and most reliable conditions across United Kingdom. Shoulder months just before and after that window trade a little weather for noticeably lower prices and thinner crowds.

Gladhouse Reservoir Season by Season

• Summer (Jun-Aug) - peak season: the warmest, longest days and everything open, which also makes it the priciest and busiest window
• Autumn (Sep-Nov) - shoulder season: crowds drain away, the light turns photographic, and lodging rates typically fall
• Winter (Dec-Feb) - off-season: cheapest beds and empty viewpoints, but check for closures, snow or rain before committing
• Spring (Mar-May) - rebuild season: wildflowers, newborn wildlife and reopened facilities - the best balance if the weather holds

Things to Do

Planning what to actually do at Gladhouse Reservoir comes down to the setting it sits in:

• Arrive with the exact coordinates (55.7667, -3.1167) pinned in your maps app — rural place names repeat across states
• Give the site one unhurried hour before adding anything else to the day
• Pair it with the nearest named attraction on this page to make a full loop
• Chain the stop with what is nearby — see the list below before fixing your day route

None of this needs a rigid schedule - the honest pattern at Gladhouse Reservoir is one anchor at the nearest anchor town, one longer stop, and the rest of the time left for whatever looks better from the car window. That flexibility is what separates a good half-day from a rushed one.

A Perfect Day in Gladhouse Reservoir

Morning (start early). Have breakfast at Gorebridge and roll out before mid-morning - the light is softer, parking is open, and Gladhouse Reservoir is at its quietest before the day-trippers arrive. Give the main stop its full due first rather than saving it for later.

Midday. From Gladhouse Reservoir, Roseberry Reservoir is only 2 km away - pair the two rather than driving home for lunch; a picnic beats a reservation near most of these spots.

Afternoon. Keep going to Makeness Kipps (9 km) if the group still has legs; it is the standard second half of this loop.

Golden hour. End at the main viewpoint, waterfront or main street as the light drops; this is the hour Gladhouse Reservoir is genuinely famous for locally, and it costs nothing.

Evening. Sleep at Gorebridge unless the road out is long - leaving at dusk is the one mistake that can flatten an otherwise perfect day.

Know Before You Go to Gladhouse Reservoir

• Save the pin (55.7667, -3.1167) offline - reception in Temple is exactly as good as it needs to be and no better
• Check the official source listed at the bottom of this page for current hours, fees and closures before driving out
• Visit on weekdays: at most verified spots weekends triple the local traffic
• Bring the basics - water, layers, power bank - because facilities at this kind of place are self-service

Nearby Places Worth Combining

Gladhouse Reservoir does not sit in isolation - these verified places are all within a short hop and combine into a full loop:

• Roseberry Reservoir — attractions, about 2 km (1 mi) away
• Makeness Kipps — hiking, about 9 km (6 mi) away
• Gorebridge — city, about 10 km (6 mi) away
• Penicuik — city, about 10 km (6 mi) away
• Windlestraw Law — hiking, about 12 km (8 mi) away
• Loanhead — city, about 13 km (8 mi) away
• Peebles — city, about 14 km (8 mi) away
• Glencorse Reservoir — attractions, about 14 km (8 mi) away

Planning More of Your Trip

See everything in United Kingdom on the United Kingdom country hub, browse the full Attractions United Kingdom collection, or take in the whole Scotland region.