I love digging through archives. But there’s no denying that some days are a little dull: after several unproductive hours you have to force your eyes to focus on the paperwork. And then occasionally, you turn up a document of real significance, one that wakes you up and …

People didn’t hang around when they wanted to change things in Victorian England. Richard Thomas Gillow, the owner of Leighton Hall in the 1840’s decided he wanted to drain the Moss for agriculture. Efforts had been made before with limited success, but this time he …

It’s weeks since I finished writing the book but it only seems real now there’s a cover. My colleagues at Carnegie Publishing (Anna Goddard and Lucy Frontani)   have sent me a mock-up — not the finished thing, there are a few photoshop flourishes yet to …

Chair of the RSPB Steve Ormerod was one of the speakers at a celebratory lunch this week to mark the 50th birthday of the Leighton Moss reserve. He joined staff, volunteeers, local supporters and representatives of funding organisations for an outdoor lunch in the new walled …

Midge is my two year old collie-labrador cross: is that a Lolly or a Cabrador…? Anyway, she’s my regular, enthusiastic companion on walks around the area. Admittedly she’s much more interested in squirrels, deer and other dogs than the finer points of local history. But …

The walk across the salt marsh from Crag Foot to Jenny Brown’s Point is one of my favourites. And like nearly every other walker I meet,  I’m intrigued by its name: Quaker’s Stang. It begs the immediate questions: who was this Quaker…and what in the …

  I’m sure it is no surprise to many local people, but it never occurred to me that the Crag Foot chimney had ever been any taller than it is today. Not so long ago it was quite a bit higher  — as this photo …

Birders flocked to the RSPB’s Education Room at Leighton Moss on Saturday and Sunday (May 8/9) to enjoy a 50th Anniversary History Exhibition. John Wilson, founder Warden at the reserve, was on hand to share memories of the RSPB’s early days. But he also chipped …

I think we can now say with confidence that the Crag Foot chimney was linked with the 1840’s pump that drained Leighton Moss. Some accounts had suggested that the square-sided chimney was part of the old mine workings that pepper Warton Crag (see my earlier blog …

BBC Autumnwatch has been a wonderful showcase for the wildlife attractions of Leighton Moss and Morecambe Bay. Four days of filming and live broadcasting brought an unaccustomed bustle to the Yealand villages. I’ve just walked across the Moss and there are more visitors than usual: …