Picture of the month

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Taken from a high point on the drumlin on which Bardsea village is located and looking to the south west, this photograph shows the small hamlet of Well House and the more distant ancient woodland of Sea Wood. This 23.7 hectare woodland, which is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), has a long history with evidence of it having belonged to Lady Jane Grey. It stretches from the shingle west shore of Morecambe Bay, off to the left of the photograph, to its boundary with Birkrigg Common on the high ground to the right. The wood's proximity to the shore provided the means by which felled oak timber was floated at high tide to the ship builders in Ulverston, 2.7 miles to the north. The woodland is a rare example of where ancient broadleaf trees grow on boulder clay that overlies limestone, the latter being well exposed along the shore at the wood's eastern boundary. Sea Wood is owned and managed by the Woodland Trust. Permissive pathways afford free access for the public.