Formby Beach and Red Squirrel reserve
Formby is one of my favourite places to explore. With miles of beautiful coastal views and pine wood forest, it’s easy to understand why it’s such a special place.
Imagine taking an early morning walk through the pine wood forest, with sounds of pine cones cracking beneath your feet. The sun piercing through the timber as you gaze up through the canopy looking for red squirrels. Once you’ve embarked on your adventure through the forest you’re met with breathtaking sea views and 500 acres of sand dunes which uncover prehistoric footprints. Sounds bliss doesn’t it?
In the summer months Formby can get very busy so I prefer to go during the winter when it’s much quieter and more chance of seeing a red squirrel!
The coastline here is rapidly eroding often revealing prehistoric mud layers, some of which contain human and animal footprints dating back from 3,500 to 7,000 years ago!
The dunes can recede as much as four metres a year, making this one of the fastest eroding coastlines in the UK. Although they aren’t meant to be climbed as this can damage and erode them quicker, they offer some exceptional views on a clear day with views of the Cumbrian mountains.
In 2008, the native red squirrel population here was almost wiped out by the squirrel pox virus which comes from the American grey squirrel, however it seems the population is starting to recover again.
Formby is not only managed to protect the red squirrel but also for the nationally endangered amphibian, the natterjack toad. Which by the way can be heard at dusk croaking in the distance! It’s definitely worth waiting around for that.
The different habitats around Formby provide homes and food for a wide variety of insects including moths, butterflies and birds such as oyster catchers, bar-tailed godwits, dunlins and sanderlings which feed at the water’s edge of this nature reserve. I also can’t possibly forget to mention the sea life here with jellyfish, seashells and scuttling crabs!
Did you know? Formby is also famous for asparagus! I find that fascinating, but they have their own asparagus trails you can explore. Since the 1800’s, asparagus was grown and supplied regularly to large ocean liners on the area’s transatlantic crossings.
Formby is the perfect place to visit for all age groups to enjoy. There’s plenty of parking with toilets on site so if you take a flask of tea and a picnic you could spend all day exploring what is on offer! Plan your next adventure and visit the National Trust website for more information:
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/formby
