The route begins by heading inland to Freshfield and past Freshfield Railway Station before leaving the habitation in search of unusual plants in a conifer woodland where it follows the Woodlands Walk Trail. During late spring and early summer, various species of helleborine (orchid) can be found growing in the shade of Scots, Corsican, and Austrian pines, while late autumn brings out fungi (waxcaps, russulas, and earthstars are reasonably plentiful). Fortunately for wildlife and walkers, the trees are well spaced, letting sunlight penetrate to the woodland floor and encouraging flora.
Dobson's Ride bridleway returns you from this unusual woodland onto the start of the aptly named Fisherman's Path, originally trodden by anglers on bait-digging trips. On the right of the path is an excellent illustration of the different vegetation to be seen in the gradual transition from a beach to a soil-based environment: first among alien conifers is a thick growth of silver birch, alder, and sycamore (relying on soil laid down by vegetation); then creeping willow, dewberry, and coarse grasses thriving on fixed dunes whose mat-like roots lock sand in place and provide rich humus.
Closer to the sea, marram grass planted to stabilise shifting sands survives on mobile dunes with deep roots. In very blowy conditions, a plume of sand trails from dune crests to be held further inland, while boggy pools and fresh water form wet slacks between dunes — vital environments providing a habitat for pyramidal and bee orchids.
Here too live Natterjack toads, jocularly known as Lancashire nightingales from their singing on muggy spring nights when high-pitched voices create a frenzied cacophony as males try to attract mates. Natterjack toads have occupied these slacks for centuries, are found almost nowhere else in Britain, and are strictly protected by law.
As you step out of the shelter of towering dunes onto the usually deserted foreshore, you will feel the force responsible for sculpting them: a stiff breeze rushes in off the Irish Sea on most days, whipping dry sand into snakes that coil on your feet. If the tide is out, the sea is a thin silver line on the horizon, but at high tide the feet of the dunes are washed by waves. Just as trees attempt to colonise dunes, woods have in several places been overcome by sea and sand (Gypsy Wood being an example). As you approach Formby Point, look out for dark bands of humus — potent reminders of fixed dunes that existed when mobile dunes were on land now permanently below the sea.
Behind you, you may pick out Blackpool Tower across the Ribble Estuary with Cumbrian mountains behind (in the last century, local landowners tried to stabilise dunes to allow a resort on the scale of Blackpool to be developed here, but elements proved too powerful). If the horizon is clear, peaks of Snowdonia and Anglesey are visible across the sea.
The Beach Walk leads eventually to the foundations of Britain's first lifeboat house, built in 1776 and serving the coast until 1918 when sands swept over the area. At the top of Lifeboat Road, Saint Luke's Church stands defiantly on the site previously occupied by a 12th-century chapel totally buried by sands; artefacts recovered from it are housed in the 'little church of the sandhills', including a Norman font and tombstones (including one to Richard Formby, armour bearer to Henry IV whose family gave their name to the town).
In the graveyard are old village stocks and the 'godstone' holding the market square cross before it fell into disrepair (made of wood sheathed in lead, holding a pool of vinegar in which residents left coins in return for goods during plague times, believed to make money safe to handle). The path leads back through asparagus beds reclaimed from the sandy landscape, with huge nettle beds marking old tobacco leaf dumps (relics of trade with America to Liverpool).
Incidentally, if you spot a lovely furry animal on the walk, do not be surprised: Formby is within the North Merseyside and West Lancashire Red Squirrel Stronghold, one of a few refuges left for red squirrels across the UK.
Acknowledgment: Text derived from the Out and Out Series; Discovering the Countryside on Foot. Pictures courtesy of Wikipedia.
