Xyliatos Dam

Xyliatos Dam is a small rockfill dam in the Nicosia district of Cyprus, built across the Lagoudera stream just above the village of Xyliatos, on the northern slopes of the Troodos mountains. Completed in 1982, the structure stands 42 metres high and holds back a reservoir with a capacity of 1.43 million cubic metres. Together with Vyzakia and Kalopanagiotis it forms the small group of dams classified in the Nicosia region of the Cyprus Water Development Department's monitoring network.

The reservoir's water serves irrigation and local needs in the surrounding valley, but Xyliatos is at least as well known for its setting as for its storage. The dam lies within a Natura 2000 protected area of pine-covered foothills, and the lake it created has become one of Cyprus's best-loved picnic and nature spots. A walking trail rings the reservoir, and the site draws birdwatchers, families and hikers year-round, making it a rare example of a working dam that doubles as a popular countryside destination.

As a rockfill embankment, the dam relies on a mass of compacted coarse rock for stability, paired with a separate watertight element to hold back the water. Its small mountain catchment fills quickly in wet winters and draws down through the dry season, a rhythm typical of the modest reservoirs scattered through the Troodos foothills.