Whixall Moss

Whixall Moss is right up there amongst our top mooring spots.

The canal runs through a vast, flat peat bog covering 948 hectares and spanning the English Welsh border. Sectioned into Whixall, Fenn's and Bettisfield Mosses it was harvested for peat right up until the 1980s when conservationists lobbied for its protection. In 1990 they succeeded in buying it and creating a National Nature Reserve.

The cold spell still had us in its grasp. With a clear sky overnight temperatures plunged to -6.7°C on the first night and -8.3°C the second. We woke to scenes of incredible beauty with thick white frost crystals clinging to every frond of grass and fringing the those leaves that still clung stubbornly to their branches.

A booklet we found at an information stand on the towpath had a map of the trails leading through the mosses. It told of the rare plants, insects and birds found on site. When Vicky took a photography walk amongst the winter wonderland it was eerily quiet and still. The plants were encased in hard ice and any creature with sense was doing what they could to keep warm and conserve energy.

A wooden struucture called the Mammoth Tower overlooked Whixall Moss. It was a great viewpoint but at 5m tall it also showed how high the peat had been before it was extracted.

Crossing the canal we gained entry to the Charles Sinker Hide by scanning a QR code, entering our information and receiving a code for the door lock. The hide overlooked a wetland scrape and we stayed gazing through our binoculars and taking photos until our toes went numb with the cold. There were pintail ducks, shovelers, starlings and a buzzard among others, but the highlight was seeing seven shy snipe together.

This mooring was so peaceful and quiet. It felt like it would be a really special place any time of year. We're already looking forward to revisiting on the way back up the Llangollen!Read more