The North(ish) Lass

Explore the North.

Tag: mindfulness

  • Places to go: RSPB Leighton Moss

    Places to go: RSPB Leighton Moss

    In need of a little bit of peace and quiet, or nature therapy? RSPB Leighton Moss, near Silverdale, is the perfect place to find it. There’s areas of the reserve that are accessible without an RSPB membership, such as visiting the Eric Morecambe Hide (found just off the Warton road (not accessible during very high tides)), and the Causeway and Lower Hides, found just along from the main reserve. The walk to the lower hide is about 3km each way, and a decent pair of welly boots is definitely recommended! Then again, it’s also the best place to see otters on the reserve (and apparently there are two cubs at the moment!), so I think it’s absolutely worth it!

    The reserve itself is a varied habitat, but is most famous for its reedbeds – the largest in north-west England. This precious habitat is home to all sorts of species, including Bearded Tits, Bitterns, Marsh Harriers, Otters, Greenshank, Redshank, and many many others! It also provides an essential breeding ground for migratory birds that arrive here in the late winter or spring, finding cooler or warmer climes (depending on which direction they’ve come from!) in order to lay their eggs and raise their chicks.

    There are seven hides across the reserve, with four being accessible to wheelchair users (you can download the trail map here). There’s also the skytower, which will take you up into the trees for a literal birds-eye view of the reserve, and view that stretches for miles in various directions. The tower is a great place to watch the incredible Starling murmurations that happen at dusk on lots of evenings – sometimes these formations have been estimated to contain over twenty-thousand birds as they undulate through the sky!

    Bearded Tit (courtesy of the RSPB)

    If you go during the week, or early in the morning, the reserve is generally quieter than at the weekends, which might afford a better opportunity to see some of the shyer birds and wildlife. One species that definitely isn’t shy, however, are the local robins, who are so used to humans and the birdseed they offer, they’re quite willing to fly onto your outstretched fingertips to take the seed, as long as you stand still for a bit. It’s amazing when they do it, and it was so cool seeing a robin up that close. Now, to just tame my resident garden robin to do the same…

    Aside from the wildlife, there’s a cosy café in which to warm up after a walk at this time of year, and a wildlife shop where the proceeds, of course, go towards the RSPB’s mission of saving nature. If you know anything about me, you’ll know how passionate I am about the natural world. Nature is under threat and it needs our help and intervention so, if by my going for a nice walk and buying a cup of coffee, I can help do a tiny bit – count me in!

    Marsh Harrier (courtesy of the RSPB)

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  • Nature In Autumn: What To Look Out For

    Nature In Autumn: What To Look Out For

    As the coldness creeps in and the nights get darker (remember clocks fall back for an hour this Sunday (26th October!)), it can be tempting to think that nature has gone to bed, that the flowers have died back, and she will only reawaken when the spring comes around in a few (and a bit) month’s time. But of course that’s not the case; there is a lot still to see, and unique things that nature shows us throughout the winter months, many of which can’t be seen at any other time of the year.

    Throughout the winter, many birds call the British Isles home, with many coming south or west to escape the harsher climes of Scandinavia, Russia, and others coming in from Greenland and Canada. Some of these migrants come in for months on end; arriving in late summer – September-time – and potentially not leaving until April/May, whilst others fly in between October and November, before leaving us in February and March.

    There are several species you can look out for in this part of the world as they fly in for the winter; Pink-Footed Geese arrive from Iceland and Norway, Barnacle Geese from the Arctic, you might see Teal ducks at RSPB Leighton Moss (they like wetlands and marshes), and perhaps Wigeons as well. Another prized sighting for a birder is some of our smallest migrant birds; Redwings, heard across the UK from October and Waxwings, which you might only see if there is a poor berry harvest in Scandinavia, and they choose to spend winter in the UK instead as a result.

    Aside from our feathered friends, other treasured things to see come Autumn are the brilliant red leaves of Virginia Creeper or Ivy, climbing and crawling its way up the front of a building it scarlet glory; or beautiful beech trees glowing cooper in the bright early November sunlight. Mushrooms are abundant on the forest floor and growing through tree roots and bark. I would urge you to make sure you know exactly what you’re doing if you plan to forage fungi, and seek out an expert guide or handbook for precise information.

    Of course there’s plenty of other life to find out and about in the woods and in the fields; throughout October and November you’ll be able to hear the bellows of stags in rut echoing out across the countryside, looking to secure breeding rights for the coming season. If you’re lucky, you might even see two stags go horn-to-horn and battle it out. Please be aware that stags can be more aggressive during this season, even those who are well used to humans (such as park dwelling deer). Keep your distance, and keep dogs on a lead/under control when around deer.

    Photo by Charlie Newman

    Other furry friends to look out for are wood mice, grey squirrels (busy burying acorns!), and hedgehogs preparing for the winter hibernation (okay, so hedgehogs aren’t fluffy per se, but they are still cute to look at!). This year’s fox kits will be being kicked out of the den by their mothers, so they’ll be lots of slightly-teenage looking foxes around for those who are patient enough to spot them, and badgers will be preparing their burrows for winter. Whilst these black and white denizens of the countryside do not hibernate, they will potential slow down as the months get colder, and spend more time underground, huddled together with the rest of the family!

    So there you have it! A short and sweet version of things to look out for this Autumn, with so much beautiful nature still be amazed by. I don’t know about you, but I always get a little sense of wonderment whenever I see a little wood mouse, or a hedgehog, scurrying across the garden wall; a bird (be it a visitor or a resident) chirruping away on a branch that’s losing its leaves… I love this time of year, and love being out and about in the cool crispness, enjoying the freshness of a glorious Autumn.

  • A Ride Through The South Tyne Valley

    A Ride Through The South Tyne Valley

    Sometimes going off the beaten track is the best thing to do. To get “lost” with purpose can be great fun (of course, these days, it’s difficult to get well and truly lost, what with near blanket GPS coverage in the UK). What you can do, at least, is try and veer away from the familiar, to take the road less travelled, so to speak. Sometimes you do this on purpose, more often than not, it’s by accident, and you end up asking yourself (or the other person in the car); “where the heck are we going?!” Well, as long as you have enough petrol, and don’t have an emergency/appointment to attend to, then just go with it.

    Anyway, a couple of weeks ago, I headed up to Northumberland with my mum and driving up the oh-so-pretty M6 (not), we noticed there was a ridiculous amount of traffic on the other side heading south, where people seemed to be sitting for a while. Mum’s immediate reaction was “I’m not sitting in that on the way back,” so we needed to find an alternative way. The problem is that between where we were and home… the Pennines are in the way, so it would involve going over them. We’d never done that before so it would be a little bit of an adventure, even just a small one.

    Image by David Head

    On a little bit of a side note – one of the things I like doing, and I find brings me a lot of joy, is pretending that I’m going on an adventure, even when I’m doing something really mundane. Maybe it’s because I loved fantasy or adventure books as a kid. I think it’s also that we have a tendency to focus so much on the destination, or are too busy looking at our phones/gadgets etc. that we forget to actually really look at the world around us. I know this is heading off into the mindfulness realm rather than about the North, but I find that it really works for me, and also helps me pay attention to my surroundings. I started trying to do this when I was going on walks, even setting myself the challenge of spotting things that began with ‘A’, ‘B’, etc. etc. so that I was really looking around me, and taking in what was there.

    So, anyway, back to the journey. We turned off into the countryside just after Haltwhistle (happily also avoiding long traffic lights at Brampton). It was foggy the morning we did this, and I was a bit worried we’d be driving through country roads in pea soup, but it actually burnt out within a couple of miles, to reveal beautiful countryside. That I’d never seen before. Because we’d always taken the “quickest” route from A to B, we’d missed out on this gorgeous winding road through the South Tyne Valley. It was wild enough with craggy hills, forests, and the river running through the valley. With the sun shining over the tops of the hills, and with the purple heather on the ground (mid August – early September for the best heather), it was a really beautiful ride.

    We stopped off in the village of Alston, which was a really pretty village, but like so many other places has clearly suffered in the downturn of economics/covid etc. There was evidence with independent shops that the community was trying to pick itself up, make the village vibrant and centred around the community, but it was still very quiet. It was such a shame because, as I said, the village architecture and surroundings were so pretty, and I felt like at one point it would have been a thriving town. Maybe, I was just there on the wrong day.

    Alston Village Centre

    Anyway, after that we headed towards Penrith, climbing up to the top of Hartside Summit (Altitude of 1903 ft). We pulled over into the car park at the top to take in the view. It was a little bit hazy over the Eden Valley, but still a far-reaching view. I imagine on a clear day you’d be able to see the coast and the Lake District Mountains, and potentially even further afield (I’ve heard some people say they can see the Welsh Mountains from high points in the NW (don’t know if you’d be able to see that far from Hartside; there might be some things in the way!). The drive down should be taken with care as there is plenty of hairpin bends (I would not want to be doing that in the middle of winter!).

    The rest of the journey was a pleasant amble through the countryside towards Penrith and then further down. Yes, it took us a bit longer than it would have if we’d have gone down the motorway, but the ride was much more pleasant and it was a really nice to get away from the traffic and into the countryside. I would definitely recommend it from time to time, just turn off the main road… sure keep an eye on the GPS… but then see where the country road takes you!