South Walney

We travelled west, through the town of Barrow to Walney Island, and the Cumbria Wildlife Trust’s excellent reserve at South Walney. It’s a fascinating landscape, all sand dunes, shingle, salt marsh and sea. In the middle are lagoons which incorporate an oyster farm. Fascinating flora, and good for birds.

There are great views in all directions. There were some people we passed, but not many. The visitors to Cumbria mainly head to the Lake District to the north. I think Barrow itself is an obstacle. An industrial town and home to BaE Systems shipbuilding yard and facilities, where the submarines carrying the UK’s ballistic nuclear missiles are constructed, it does not fit the tourist image of Cumbria. Looking across to it across the sands the big shipbuilding “ hangars” really dominate the town (extra).