A Silverdale and Arnside Adventure

Birds, Bays and Tidal Bores 

Exploring the northwest corner of Lancashire and the southwest edge of Cumbria in June I realised that this area is a unique spot.  It appears to have its own beneficial microclimate.  We had travelled up to Silverdale from the rain in Manchester and were delighted to arrive in glorious sunshine and with a refreshing tea (and some warm sticky toffee pudding!) provided on the terrace of our B&B overlooking a beautiful, well tended garden. 

The weather forecast for the larger area was poor, but Charlotte (who runs Challan Hall B&B with Mike) assured us that it would be fine and sunny in Silverdale.  She was right too...

The garden at Challan Hall

Fresh air, mild exercise, walks, exploring the coastline and a spot of wildlife watching were on the agenda for the next three days starting with a stroll along the beach north of Morecambe from Hest Bank to Bolton-le-Sands. This windswept stretch overlooks Morecambe Bay and the shifting light over the sands and water channels is enticing.  The perfect spot to sit and enjoy the view can be found close to Bolton-le-Sands just by a small headland to the north.

Windswept seat with a view

Having picked up a visitor's map we decided to head for the viewpoint at Jack Scout on the headland to the south of Silverdale.  A local dog walker helped to point us in the right direction as it isn't very well signposted.  After crossing a field of cows we approached the edge of the headland and the views opened up. 

Visitor's map of Silverdale

At 6pm on almost the longest day of the year the light was beautiful, silvery shimmers highlighted the channels where the tide had receded and picked out the different layers of water.

Early evening light over Morecambe Bay

As I scrambled down a rocky path to get a better view my foot slipped and I twisted my ankle, not the best start to a holiday. Undeterred, I got a sports ankle support the following morning and managed to get by wearing my walking boots for most of the time. 

View from Jack Scout

Challan Hall is located in Silverdale, in a lovely spot overlooking Gait Barrows National Nature Reserve and Hawes Water. It is just over a mile away from Leighton Moss RSPB Nature Reserve which is a beautiful site for spotting birds and wildlife. Home to elusive bitterns, bearded tits, lapwings, gulls, swans and lots of ducks it is super place to visit.  Watching a marsh harrier swooping about and hearing the calls of the bitterns is magical.  There is always a friendly robin around too.

Friendly robin at Leighton Moss

We managed to get close to a lapwing and I was surprised at just how colourful its plumage is as it reflected the afternoon light.

Lapwing

We were also amazed to see an osprey, it is a marvellous bird to see in flight.  Unfortunately I didn't have a great zoom lens but here is the best photo I managed to take.

Osprey flying over Leighton Moss reserve

The next village to the north of Silverdale is Arnside, no longer in Lancashire but over the border into Cumbria. Arnside sits on the southern bank of the River Kent estuary as it opens out into Morecambe Bay and is where the famous 8 mile crossing of Morecambe Bay guided walks begin. 

Arnside Knott is a hill above Arnside, managed by the National Trust, that has far reaching views north to the Lake District fells, across the bay to Grange over Sands and out over Morecambe Bay to the sea. The views are well worth the effort it takes to get to the top.

Looking towards the Lake District

Looking over Morecambe Bay

It was fascinating to watch rain falling in the Lake District from the top of Arnside Knott, we could see the dark bands of rain sweeping across the fells, while the sun shone on Arnside and Silverdale.

If you head up there look out for some interesting tree roots around the top, some looking like man-made sculptures, but formed by nature.

Tree roots

Nature's sculpture

Returning down the hill and into town we noticed that the tide was out and there was just a small flow of water from the River Kent into the bay.  Sand flats were everywhere, with small channels of water in between. This is what it would be like when doing the cross bay walk, mainly sand with a few patches of water to cross. I must say though, that the bay walk should not be done independently as the shifting sands are dangerous.  It should only ever be attempted in an organised walk with a knowledgeable guide.

Within 5 minutes of our arrival I noticed an unusual movement of water in the centre of the channel. This continued moving steadily towards the bridge spanning the estuary and got wider as it moved. Groups of people were watching and I realised that we were seeing a tidal bore for the first time! Although it wasn't a high wave it was very effective, within 20 minutes the area of sand was filled with water.

(if you can't see the video click here)

Not long afterwards it looked like this:

After the tidal bore

If you are planning a visit to see this, it is usually visible about 2 hours before high tide and a seasonal siren will sound to warn of the incoming tide.  We returned the following day so we could hear the siren as well as seeing the bore again.

For more information about the area pop down to Arnside railway station, where you will find the Information Centre behind the station waiting room. You will need to cross the bridge over the tracks.

While you are over that side of the tracks there is a scenic walk along a sweeping bay to your right, sheep graze the salt marsh and birds gather at the shoreline, the Lake District hills can be seen across the water. I spotted egrets, black-headed gulls and a variety of ducks.

Looking towards the Lake District from Arnside

Ready for a bite to eat? We found a super cafe/deli on the Promenade at Arnside, called Wagtail, that serves excellent salads and some tasty looking cakes.

Another visit to Leighton Moss, this time including the Shore Hides in the late afternoon, gave us the opportunity to chat with a local who recommended some places to eat. We tried one of his recommendations, the New Inn at Yealand Conyers, for our evening meal and weren't disappointed.  

We saw plenty of black-headed gulls and a couple of Mediterranean gulls.

Black headed gull doing exercises!

Since the B&B was right next to Gait Barrows National Nature Reserve we made sure to take a walk through there to see the wildflower meadows and one of Britain's most important limestone pavements. I am so glad we did.  The meadows were beautiful, overflowing with grasses, orchids and other wildflowers.  When we found the limestone pavement we were amazed at the extent of it and of the wonderful, natural rock gardens that had seeded themselves in the cracks or 'grikes' as they are officially called. New words for my mental dictionary, Grikes are the deep fissures in the rocks and Clints are the wide flat limestone blocks.

Wildflower meadows

Walking over the limestone pavement

Nature's own rock garden

I was fascinated to see how plants had colonised the grikes creating nature's own rock gardens, it was a fabulous sight.

A final visit to Leighton Moss on our way home brought the reward of watching a marsh harrier hunting for food. What a splendid end to the trip.

Marsh harrier in flight