What we’re about
This is a group for anyone interested in wildlife and nature. We'll be visiting local nature reserves, national parks and interesting habitats.
Our local patch will include a rather broad definition of Merseyside covering not just the Mersey itself but also Deeside, Wirral, the Sefton coast, the West Lancashire plain and the Ribble. Furthermore, Liverpool is ideally situated within easy striking distance of many national parks and areas of outstanding natural beauty including Anglesey, Snowdonia, the Lakes, the Yorkshire Dales and the Forest of Bowland and we will be exploring these on longer weekend trips. There may also be the occasional expedition abroad.
While there are already many outdoors and hiking groups available on Meetup, I've always been slightly dissatisfied by their offering, which often involves racing around at breakneck speed in an effort to climb the highest mountain or clock up the miles . Rarely do those in these groups take an interest in the places they walk through or the wildlife they (don't) see. This group will be different. We will be taking life at a slower pace and, sometimes literally, taking the time to sniff the roses. Yes, there will be an element of hiking sometimes here. We might even occasionally do some adventurous stuff (I'm rather partial to a spot of wild camping and multi-day expeditions to remote parts of the country, for example). However, the emphasis will always be on finding wildlife and building up an understanding of the habitats we are in. There may even be a reading list!
What kind of wildlife will we be looking at? Well, birdwatching will always be a central part of any trip. Mammals are interesting, of course, but with the exception of seals and the odd fox, they tend to be harder to find. We'll also be looking for butterflies, moths and dragonflies. Sometimes we'll be looking at flowers, particularly orchids, which serve as the entry drug to the mysterious world of plants. In the autumn we may take an interest in the third kingdom and go looking for mushrooms and toadstools.
The core events will be visits to nature reserves around our region held on the weekend. The nature of wild places is that they tend to be, well, remote. Therefore you may need access to a car to get to many of these. Furthermore, I will be limiting numbers to maintain a small group size, as I'm not a fan of bus parties. In addition, I hope over the summer when the days are long to organise some shorter evening walks, and these will be accessible by public transport for those coming from work. There may be the occasional weekend camping trip.
You will need to bring a pair of binoculars on every trip as you won't see much without this essential piece of kit. I can advise on buying these if needed. You may well want to bring a camera as well.
Please note that dogs are not allowed on any trip (the rise in dog ownership in recent years has been a disaster for wildlife).
When I'm not outdoors, my second love is a nice country pub so after each trip we will be having a "debriefing" in a local establishment, and I hope this will build up a community of like-minded naturalists (I realise that traditionally Meetup events are held in the worst pubs and dodgiest bars, so we may be bucking the trend here).
