The post earlier about Stocks Reservoir interested me. Our family used to go for walks around there regularly. I remember the rebuilt church of course and the stories behind it, including about exhuming the old churchyard and reburying them there, and I've visited it many times. But I also remember that it was possible to walk through the woods to the water's edge and there was a lot of interesting stuff to be found.
This was broadleaf woodland, not the pine that was grown around much of that area. I don't know if it was an old woodland though, but it was perfectly possible to make out where the original lanes had been and even better, where houses had been. One in particular must have been an old farmhouse as the layout was of a pretty large and square house (there were still walls remaining up to about one or two feet) and in the middle, the steps down to the old cellar. As kids we poked around a few times, wondering if you could get in, but it seemed to have been filled in. There was what had obviously been a cottage garden and an orchard too. As you got closer to the water there was clearly an old lane, and when there was a drought, a stone bridge would emerge out of the water, leading to an 'island'.
I found this link to a fantastic site
http://dalehead.org/1995_drought_year.htm with photos of the 1995 drought and the bridge was 'Grange Hall Bridge', though it was in better shape in '76 and '83.
I know my parents have photos of this so I'm going to have to ask for copies now! Do any of these remains still exist, and can you even gain access to that area?