Brockholes

Brockholes is the jewel in the crown of Lancashire Wildlife Trust’s nature reserves with royal visits and a fancy floating visitor centre. 

There are 250 acres to explore with a network of footpaths criss-crossing a wetland and woodland habitat. The main focus lies on the regenerated gravel pits which have filled with water and now provide a habitat for migratory waders, ospreys and other birds.

The water is surrounded by a circular footpath dotted with hides. Those nearer to the visitor centre are excellent and there are also stations set up to watch smaller birds battling it out over the feeders.

There’s an excellent binoculars shop there if you’re serious about bird-watching and if you’re just a beginner there are regular guided walks where you can have wildflowers and bird species pointed out. If you’re really lucky you might see an otter – or a badger. The name of the reserves comes from ‘brock’, the old English word for badger.

Brockholes is undergoing some development across the water so it can be muddy with heavy machinery. Also, the hides which are further away from the centre can be popular with local teenagers – and they’re not there for the bird-watching.