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When? Started: 1993 Who? Started with staff and friends from U H S, Chester. Organiser: Martyn Harris We walk every Wednesday and Saturdays, New Years day and May Day. How many walk? Walks take place as long as there are at least 2 wanting to walk on that day. More walk on a Wednesday than on a Saturday. Most ever: 29. Current group size walking: 2-7 in mid-week and 2-4 on Saturday. Where do we walk? Saturday: Anywhere in North and Mid-Wales, Peak District, Shropshire and the Long Mynd and as far North as the Trough of Bowland. Thursday: Anywhere within about 40 miles of Chester. Type of walk: Distance: 6 – 14 miles (but usually under 10 miles). Climb: up to 4000’ (but usually very much less!). People involved on walks in 2024:- Martyn Harris, Fran Murphy, Sue and Michel Pelissier, Mike Dodd, David Savage,, Ed Meads, Nigel and Elaine Taylor, Winston Feather.

Thursday 24 December 2009

The West Kirby Round 24th December 2009.

The West Kirby Marine Lake - the start of the walk and the end of the walk!
Waiting at the Margaret's mince pies stop!

Walk stats: Distance:7.4 miles; Climb:264'.
Time:3 hours 7 minutes; On the move walking average:2.7 m.p.h.;Overall walk average:2.4 m.p.h.
Group:Martyn, Richard, Roger, Time, Sylvia, Dave J., and Georgie.
Not the best of weather conditions, but at least it was dry and the wind on the coast was almost none existent! Distant views were another matter with low cloud/mist accompanying us throughout. Hopeful of some good birdwatching, but alas the tide was too far out and the birds near enough to see were only few. The star birds on the Marine Lake were the Goldeneye (male and female) and the Mergansers (also male and female).
Not to be outdone, we decided to make a detour to the Gilroy Nature Reserve where the drama of the day was to take place. Georgie the Jack Russel, no longer a puppy, decided to chase some ducks on the pond by running across thin ice. Unfortunately she went through the ice and had to be rescued by Dave wading knee deep in cold icy water!
At this point Dave, Sylvia and Georgie made a rapid return to the car while he rest of us carried on the planned route, at this point just over a mile away from the start.
We stopped at the War Memorial on the top of Grange Hill, where we had the luxury of park benches to sit on and Margaret's mince pies to savour.
Birds seen or heard today included:Goldenye, Merganser, Black-headed gull, Herring gull, Common gull, Redshank, Curlew, Shelduck, Oystercatcher, Meadow pipit, Blue tit, Great tit, Coal tit, Blackbird, Coot, Moorhen, Mallard, Fieldfare and Dunlin.
After walk drinks were taken at the Dee View in Heswall, where the beer sampled was a Cottage brew called "Christmas Cracker", which didn't quite live up to its name.
Both photos were taken by Richard.

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