Warton Crag from Silverdale return via Leighton Moss.
Start. Silverdale (Shore Road).
Route. Silverdale - Stankelt Road - Hollins Lane - Fleagarth Wood - Quaker's Stang - Crag Foot - Crag Road - Occupation Road (track) - Beacon Breast - Warton Crag - Strickland Wood - Three Brothers - Peter Lane - Summer House Hill - Leighton Hall - Grisedale - Leighton Moss - Storrs Lane - Red Bridge Lane - Silverdale Golf Course - The Row - Lamberts Meadow - Bottoms Well - Bottoms Lane - Stankelt Road - Shore Road.
Notes. The rain of the morning had passed, with the odd rent in the cloud cover revealing patches of blue sky, I decided to head for Silverdale see what the extensive woodland of this small limestone peninsula would reveal. I jested promising Sue a fish and chip dinner, she was packed and ready long before I was.
We left Silverdale strolling east via the tarmac surface of Stankelt Road, after leaving the village we entered Hollins Lane, almost immediately a sign promised we'd reached a woodland path to the shore and Brown's Point. The forest was alive with rivers of wild garlic, swathes of snow white flowers running down the hill side. A good path ushered us down hill, at the foot of Heald Brow a finger-post inviting us to Quaker's Stang, we obliged, the path, raised above the salt marsh guiding us passed Quaker's Stang depositing us at Crag Foot. A short ascent of Crag Road followed enabling us to access the Occupation Road, a stoney track cutting it's course across the shoulder of sylvan Warton Crag. Between dry stone walls we ascended, at the first opportunity we turned right, crossed a stile to leave the stoney track, our ascent continued through scrub land and rough cow pastures, weathered limestone broke the surface, woodland flora guarded the path edges. After passing through a gate the path swung round to the east before ascending to the summit.
For the past half hour we'd been picking our way through large tracts of bluebells and other wild flowers, the summit was no different, as we descended following the right hand of two paths the woodland floor had a distinct blue hue to it, the path we trod guided us to a split rock, we turned left letting the path shepherd us back to the Occupation Road. To our right a gate and stile permitted access to a green trod leading through narrow pastures edged by scrub and limestone scars, this pleasant trod shepherded us to The Three Brothers Rocking Stones, three erratic boulders deposited on a limestone shelf at the end of the last ice age. From these glacial boulders the path ushered us to Peter Lane, our guide to the delights of Summer House Hill.
After resting and drinking in the views from Summer House Hill we descended passing to the right of the Gothic pile of Leighton Hall, a narrow tarmac track directed us through Grisedale, passed Grisedale Farm and onto Leighton Moss. We popped into the public hide, which was full of people with much larger equipment than ours, feeling slightly deflated we wandered on to the Leighton Moss Visitors Centre, had a look round then continued on to Red Bridge Lane. A few yards passed the railway station a path traverses the manicured lawns of the Silverdale Golf Club, walkers have the right of way, signs ask you not to dawdle, can't slow the golfers down, we dawdled to their disgust. This path placed us at The Row where a narrow trod leads down to Lambert's Meadow, we exited this enclosed pasture at the south corner next to Bottoms Well. A stoney track then conveyed us under limestone cliffs passed some smart housing into Bottom's Lane, we turned left to access Stankelt Road once more, all that remained to re-trace our steps of earlier, then make haste to Arnside Fish and Chip Shop.
Spite wall, built alongside The Limes when it was new, the owners of the older, adjacent house objected to the proximity of the new house overlooking their home and gardens, one of only four remaining in the United Kingdom.
Ramsons, Wild Garlic, Broad Leaved Garlic, Wood Garlic, Bear Garlic, whatever you decide to call the stuff rivers of it flow through Fleagarth Wood east of Silverdale village.
Allium ursinum if you prefer Latin, the smell was quite overpowering but it made for a pleasant stroll through the woodland.
We've escaped the tree cover and strong garlic aroma into views to Carnforth over the salt marsh bordering Morecambe Bay.
Sylvan Warton Crag seen from the embankment en route to Quaker's Stang.
Carving it's route across the shoulder of Warton Crag the Occupation Road.
From Beacon Breast views to Grange-over-Sands.
Bluebells near the summit of Warton Crag.
Hawthorn, a woodland plant belonging to the rose family.
Another view from Beacon Breast, Heysham and it's power stations seen across Morecambe Bay.
Looking to Arnside Knott with a grey crown of Lakeland hills reaching across the skyline.
Glacial erratic on the approach to Warton Crag.
Exposed limestone on the summit of Warton Crag, with the vast expanse of Morecambe Bay stretched out before us.
Locally called The Split Rock it marks a path junction, we turned left keeping high as long as possible.
Another glacial erratic, one of three, christened The Three Brothers Rocking Stones.
Views over Leighton Park from Summer House Hill.
We're in the public hide at Leighton Moss, apart from this view I'm looking up and down the row of bird watchers all with bigger equipment than me, it's embarrassing.
Hemmed in on three sides by woodland, Lambert's Meadow.
We exited the meadow at it's southern end next to Burton Well.