However depending on the crops in the field it can occasionally produce, Autumn The first lighthouse was built here in 1838, but the present building dates from 1906. Fourteen of us met up in Hale village for a morning walk past the agricultural fields to the Mersey estuary around Hale Lighthouse, and it proved to be a very relaxing few hours. His watch was stolen and he had to go to court because they knew the youths that did it. Nice area for a short walk, free parking, plenty of grassed areas to explore and see the lovely wild flowers and birds. It also 2.07 ha (5.11 acres) Halton Borough Council Wood. Historically, Pickerings Pasture, as part of Hale Marsh, was for hundreds of years, a place where cattle and horses grazed and ducks and wading birds would feed and roost, at high tide. Pickerings Pasture, Mersey View Road, Halebank, Widnes, WA8 8LP Mainly flat terrain with good paths throughout. Oak, elm, alder, wild cherry and sycamore are common species. Register to join the conversation about this ride, Subscribe me to the mailing list for advance info & the best from the blog. I headed over to Pickerings pasture this morning to look for a Firecrest that had been reported yesterday,this is the first time I had visited the reserve which lies right on the edge of the river Mersey. Barn and short eared owl. Peak conditions occur (September-November) can be very productive with often good numbers of. I make him write a blog about our adventures. Winter 31/12/2016). Walking the Mersey: Dungeon to HalePoint, Malick Sidib at Somerset House: the photographer who captured a youthful, joyous Mali, How the light gets in: an imperfect introduction, Paul Nash and World War One: 'I am no longer an artist, I am a messenger to those who want the war to go on for ever and may it burn their lousy souls', Only in England: photos by Tony Ray-Jones and Martin Parr, David Hare's Page Eight: classy television, Leonard Cohen's 'Anthem': That's how the light gets in, At Manchester Art Gallery: The Sensory War 1914-2014, Walking the ancient sandstone cliffs of the Mersey, Richard Thompson: windswept in NewBrighton, 2012: Friday Walks, Hedgerows and Broomsticks | a sense of place. Throughout the 18th century, flatboats and barges brought rock salt across the river from the Cheshire shore to Dungeon, where it was refined before being shipped onwards. We were soon back at the car with me snoozing in my bed on the back seat. Lighthouse is situated at the end of Lighthouse Lane, and has a small enclosed Wigg Island 36. SC037654, Image credits: River View Pickerings Pasture L BIMSON, Hale Marsh, Pickerings Pasture & the Duck decoy. The Version table provides details related to the release that this issue/RFE will be addressed. Wild Poppies Sandstone Quarry 41. Within a 30-minute drive of this hotel, guests can visit Wrexham. Children like to play in grass areas but sadly far too much dog litter. Glad the pics and post can be of use. Its a big job and can only be done by degrees. Theres a rough surface car park about half a mile down Dungeon Lane, much frequented by plane spotters who take up positions along the lane with folding chairs, flasks and binoculars, waiting for the planes coming in to land on the last minute or so of their descent to the runway. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. An open horse paddock to the north of Burnt Mill Farm is grazed throughout the Well done. The Jubilee Bridge and Mersey Gateway Bridge along with Ethelfleda, the railway bridge, spanned the river where it narrowed further upstream. There is a mix I am happy for British Cycling to send me cycling news, content, offers and tips: This ride is initially limited to members of The FC's Friendly Cyclists Satdy Club. 20200120_125632 by Mal Davies, on Flickr 20200120_105402 by Mal Davies, on Flickr 20200120_110655 by Mal Davies, on Flickr my family moved to speke in 1936, I left speke for Australia in 1965 , I often recall the happy times of my childhood spent walking and paddling at oglet, It was amazing seeing where you played as a lad, thank you for sharing it dad xx. Cheshire. The web page of the Mersey Estuary Conservation Group reports that dunlin, turnstone, teal, black-tailed godwit, redshank, pintail, and shelduck visit the estuary, while it is nationally important for wigeon, lapwing, curlew, golden and grey plover. RM 2NCJW6E - Thomas Pickering, left, is sworn-in by Secretary of State James Baker at the White House in Washington Monday, March 20, 1989 as the new U.S. Planes taxiing along the runway attracted a couple of plane spotters who were ready with their cameras. My dad said that he was a month too late or maybe eleven months early. On the way back we called in at Hale park to try and relocate the over wintering Firecrest but no joy after a good hour searching. The reserve has large areas of woodland and shrubbery. flocks which will often contain, Spring My distant cousin Graham Houghton are researching our family tree which seems to indicate that we can relate to Thomas of Hale (1690 to 1730) although there is an earlier Isabel Houghton who used to live in the Manor House. He would take his Observer Book of Birds and wander down Dungeon Lane to the lighthouse on a nature ramble or climb over the fence and go walking in the fields: This is what I was writing about in Mother Natures Son, it was basically a heart-felt song about my child-of-nature leanings. . returners from August such as, Autumn enclosed by Carr Lane, Town Lane and a narrow tributary of the Mersey, the old football pitch and occasionally include, Autumn , close scrutiny can reveal something rarer. This is where my love of the country came from, Paul said. Please use email: garybroad50@gmail.com for general enquires Email for wildlife records & photographs only: pickerings123@gmail.com Male bullfinch. origins and history of globalization epoch; objects of affection central idea. migration. Ive never seen that many rhododendrons since. Sometimes, however, rather than play with his friends, Paul preferred to be alone. Some of the rubish will be dug up as part of a time team programe 2101 to see how people lived in Widnes during the 19c.That was then, now it is a most wounderful nature area with excellent parking and refreshments area most summer weekend provide by the friends of pickering pasture. I grew up in Moore on the other side of the River between Warrington and Runcorn and was born in Warrington. Hopefully a petition against the development across this greenbelt land and the demolition of historic buildings will be agreed and started. Th meadow justifys a visit alone along with the chance to see the many butterflies they attract i.e skippers, coppers, blues, meadow brown, gatekeepers, tortoiseshell, orange tip, peacock, speckled wood and comma. more. Joe the Cocker here again. with dog walkers ,families and all ages we have even took a packed breakfast with us on Xmas morning ! Use this tool to build your own journey or choose from an exciting range of specially selected tours. In a couple of minutes they could be in Dungeon Lane, which led through the fields to the banks of the Mersey. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. (September-November) can be exciting and frustrating in equal measures. When we reached the end of Oglet lane we turned into Dungeon Lane and then right onto Baileys Lane. Map Of Area Walking down the Mersey towards Runcorn bridge Love this page and hope you dont mind weve used two of your photos of Yew Tree Farm and land to illustrate what will be lost on our page. Merseyside. WIRRAL Puddington Western Cattle egret-T hree in field opposite Castel House. It also provides a good post-breeding roost of, Autumn It was constructed in the early eighties, when a thick duvet of clay was draped over the pungent industrial detritus that had been accumulating on the site . Next port of call was Hale village for a history lesson.John middleton lived in Hale from 1578-1623 and was an english giant who was 9 feet 3 inches tall according to legend.He was that tall he slept with his feet out his cottage window! looked relatively interesting (which turned out to be Carr Lane Pools) - in set-aside depending on the time of year. CHESHIRE AND WIRRAL BIRD NEWS AND UK MEGAS POSTED DAILY,TWITCHES AND MORE! Further along a Great White Egret was busy feeding, and above it a small flock of Pink Footed Geese were winking as they flew. visits can produce, Summer That is assuming that my dad can sort out his navigational issues! inaccessible, but can be viewed from a number of areas. Looking over Carr Lane Pools from the track we saw a very strange looking goose with the Canadas, which we agreed was a cross between a Canada and Bar-Headed. It wasent that long before Malc picked up a Little stint with the Dunlin flock,we managed to get on the bird a few times as the tide flooded the field. that the Pools are on private land and can only be viewed from the road. around Burnt Mill Farm and Carr Lane is mostly arable, with a mix of crops and bushes. It is situated next to the Widnes 207076, Scotland no. (June-August) is often quiet with many of the breeding birds becoming elusive. These include: the port of Liverpool, Birkenhead docks, the Manchester Ship Canal, the Trafford Centre, MediaCity UK at Salford Quays, and a great deal more. Flocks of up to several hundred Canada geese roost on the marsh during high tides with Black tailed Godwit & little egrets an increasing sight. Attend the public meeting at Runcorn Town Hall on 11th Feb at 6.30. From July post-breeding dispersal of finches can often be found around It is also advisable to carry hand sanitising gel, vinyl gloves and a mask. www.thefriendsofpickeringspasture.org.uk, Pickerings Pasture, Mersey View Road, Halebank, Widnes, WA8 8LP. Lots of work has obviously gone on here. on the pools fluctuating with the weather. (September-November) often fails to produce the expected migrants around Burnt The footpath heads south and skirts the woodland for 300 yards until it meets the footpath along the northern bank of the river. It frightened the life out of me and my dad had to calm me down as I was spinning on my lead. CLICK ON LINK. From this junction we followed the muddy Mersey Way along the shore towards Liverpool John Lennon Airport. However the paddocks can still often produce small numbers of. Good numbers of Teal feed along the creeks on the marsh and flocks of waders may be seen roosting on the marsh (Golden plover, Lapwing, Avocet, Curlew, Redshank, Greenshank, Dunlin). There are many Liverpudlians for whom this stretch of the river has provided a welcome opportunity to experience a quite wild and appealing area of countryside close to the city not least for those who were rehoused on Speke Housing Estate in the postwar period, among them Paul McCartney. There are safety reasons for closure but there are no reasons why it cant be realigned. Hi people. Clincton Wood. sections of reed and scrub. The first part of the ride is mostly on main roads from the car park at the Environment Centre, Halewood Park, Okell Drive, Halewood (Halewood Triangle) and out to Hale Village, with its pretty thatched roof cottages, where we will take a look at the statue of the 'Big Fella' John Myddleton (also known as 'The Childe of Hale'), and his final resting place in the church graveyard on the way down to the now disused lighthouse on the banks of the Mersey. Carr lane pools held good numbers of Teal and 12 Black tailed godwits.A walk down to Hale lighthouse was unproductive with the neighbouring fields holding good numbers of Curlew. numbers of, Spring In his biography of McCartney, Many Years from Now, Barry Miles describes how Paul and his brother Mike, like thousands growing up on Liverpools new housing estates, were raised on the border of country and city: For Paul and Michael, the best thing about living in Speke was the countryside. Vice President Dan Quayle stands at left center. such as, Spring Where relevant,comply with recommended social dista WIRRAL West Kirby Marine Lake 7Scaup,5 Red-breasted Merganser and 14 Brent Geese. We have credited this page for the pictures. I couldn't bear the thought of having nowhere to go birding locallythat A Green Flag Award winning Local Nature Reserve with acres of wild flower meadows and a fabulous view across the upper Mersey estuary. Pickerings Pasture, Widnes: , , Pickerings Pasture, Widnes, Tripadvisor However the Bridge 47. Winter (December-February) Pickerings Pasture is a parkland area along the banks of the River Mersey. There are salt marshes between the village and the river which can flood at particularly high tides or during storms. Plenty of photo opportunities on this ride! (LogOut/ Hale is a beautiful village with many thatched roofed houses. Created from waste land, well done ! Pickerings Pasture: Chillaxing Place - See 104 traveler reviews, 23 candid photos, and great deals for Widnes, UK, at Tripadvisor. Any feedback is appreciated In the village itself, a bird friendly garden gave us good views of Goldcrest and Redwing . If you are a resident of another country or region, please select the appropriate version of Tripadvisor for your country or region in the drop-down menu. Happy days. Starting from - The Environment Centre, Halewood Park, Okell Drive, Halewood (near to Halewood Triangle).The precise location can be pinpointed on the What 3 Words app as: "allowable.lizard.sweeping", L26 7YD, This Cycle : St Helens ride is open for anyone to join. The shore regularly holds, Spring However if considering a walk extension, there is a Series of a zig-zagging shallow steps which ascend to cross the bridge over Ditton Brook, cycle path leads onto Runcorn Bridge. Working in Nether Alderley I've started spending my dinner hour birding the local sand quarries which are only a stones throw from wh COVID-19: Please adhere to current government advice and do not travel to see a bird. The major redevelopment of the 1980s saw the move to the new site near to the river at Oglet, and a transfer of ownership from Liverpool City Council to Peel Holdings, the company that now owns assets on both sides of the Mersey, from Liverpool to Manchester. Rather than drive an hour or more to Snowdonia, the Lakes or the Peak District we thought that we would explore our local area again. (March-May)is normally the most productive time of year in Hale Park and Heading back past the lighthouse walking East a few more waders were spotted for the trip, including a solitary Turnstone with a few Ringed Plover. Details: Carr Lane Starting from - The ride will start from the car park at Sherdley Park near the childrens play area which is accessed from The Score, off Elton Head Road St Helens, WA9 5DE (what3words app: fattest.demotion.automatic), WA9 5DE, This ride is limited to members of The FCs Satdy Club group only. I remember the tank traps and also the sand (there was sand in the 1960s!). There used to be extensive osier willow beds around the marshes which gave rise to another village occupation, basket-making. Working in Nether Alderley I've started spending my dinner hour birding the local sand quarries which are only a stones throw from wh COVID-19: Please adhere to current government advice and do not travel to see a bird. ^ ^ f .o 1 *> * .V n ..V * ,G O *. The Mersey Way closely follows the north bank of the river, heading to Hale Point before veering inland through Hale village in order to avoid Decoy Marsh, then rejoining the river at Pickerings Pasture for the stretch up to Runcorn and Warrington. tide, about two hours prior to high tide produces the best opportunity to see This ride is suitable for hybrid bikes (fitted with road and off-road tyres), mountain bikes and road bikes (with caution) and is mostly on hard surface roads and cycle paths. The rangers and friends of the pasture have put up to nestboxes to encourage breeding on site. We barely made it back to the car park when the heavens opened and we called it a day.