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| Sketch map of West Kirby, Red Rocks and Hoylake |
The North Wirral Coast is very productive for birdwatching, has some excellent walking and is easily accessible by bus and train (the trains run every quarter of an hour). There are a few waders on the estuary all year round, the numbers increase enormously on passage and in Winter. At this time of year it's always useful to take a turn around the marine lake at West Kirby for sea ducks or even divers. The Red Rocks area is a good place to check out passage migration and do a bit of seawatching. Hoylake offers a big sandy beach popular with gulls, ringed plovers and white wagtails.
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| Hoylake beach looking towards the Dee Estuary |
You can walk to Hilbre Bird Observatory from Red Rocks or West Kirby. Being an overly-cautious sort with one eye on the train timetables home I've never got any further than Middle Eye, the island before Hilbre so I don't cover it here.
West Kirby on the Dee Estuary is at the end of one of the Merseyrail lines. Cross the road from the station and go straight down Dee Lane and you'll get to the marine lake. There are generally a few gulls and a wader or two loafing round on the slipway if it's not in use by the sailing centre. The South Parade makes up one side of the lake and a retaining walkway takes you around the outside. Towards the southern end check out the rocks by the small concrete platform, this is a favoured roosting spot for redshanks and turnstones. Any sea ducks will tend to be at this end of the lake.
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| Scaup, West Kirby Marine Lake |
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| Redshanks, West Kirby Marine Lake |
Walking round the perimeter of the lake gives you a chance to check out both the lake and the Dee Estuary. Most of the waders near the lake will be dunlins and redshanks, black-tailed godwits and curlew will be further out. And there's always the chance of something else being out there if your luck's in. Brent geese winter off Hilbre, sometimes a few will come in to graze on the edge of the lake.
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| Light-bellied brent geese, West Kirby Marine Lake |
Walking north from West Kirby to Red Rocks the paths run through a thin strip of sandy marsh. A high path runs alongside the golf course, if you're doing this walk in Summer look out for lizards basking on the boardwalk. There are a couple of lower-level paths running parallel to this that work better if you're not steady on your pins. Most of the passerines will be skylarks and meadow pipits, as you approach the reedbeds around the small pond you'll bump into a few reed buntings, in Summer you'll find reed and sedge warblers.
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| Walking from West Kirby to Red Rocks |
In Spring and Autumn the trees and bushes along this stretch are always worth checking out for passage migrants.
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| Red Rocks |
Red Rocks is a small outcrop of the local red sandstone. It's a good vantage point for a bit of seawatching on the turn of the tide.
From Red Rocks you can walk down to Hoylake's North Parade either along the beach or, if the tide's in, along Stanley Road then turning left and down King's Gap. This is the beginning of a long stretch of roads and paths that would eventually take you over to New Brighton. Look out for wagtails on the beach and by the golf course: pied wagtails are around all year round, in Spring they're joined by white wagtails on passage.
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| Ringed plovers, Hoylake. |
Quickest way to Hoylake Station from the beach is to go down from King's Gap: the road takes you straight there.
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