The Heritage Ride 6

I pass some other cycle tourists using the Sustrans network then carry on the old railway line to Southport, via the lovely wooded dunes at Ainsdale. The contrast between the fertile farmland of the plain to the barren but welcoming dunes is stark.

There is more contrast down the road as the natural dunes give way to the concrete of the pleasure park. This was the fun fair that Rosemary and I were first taken to. I remember candy floss, the house of fun and the helter skelter. Rather disconcertingly they all seem to be still there. Even the go-kart track that I loved; it is still there.

There is something odd as I look out past the pier – I can see the sea. My memory of Southport sands was that the sea was never seen. Must be climate change.

North of Southport the sands are replaced by salt marsh, with Blackpool in view across the estuary.

Southport Pier