Wirral

The Wirral peninsula in Merseyside sits between the River Dee and the River Mersey, forming a compact area of towns, coastline and green space. Major centres include Birkenhead, Wallasey, West Kirby and Hoylake. Birkenhead contains Birkenhead Park and the Cammell Laird shipyard on the riverfront, while Seacombe hosts a Mersey ferry terminal. The coastline runs from sandy stretches at New Brighton to rocky shores on the Dee, and the estuary mudflats support wintering and passage waders.

Much of the western shore is linked by Wirral Country Park and the Wirral Way, a long footpath on a former railway line; the park was designated as Britain’s first country park in 1973. At low tide small boats and walkers head from West Kirby across the sands toward the Hilbre Islands, a group of tidal islands with breeding birds and seal sightings. The area’s mix of town, coastline and reclaimed industrial land shapes local patterns of walking, boating and birdwatching.