Charles Sinker Fields

UPDATE: Work at Sinkers Fields has finished for the season and the bird hide is open again. See below for information about visiting Charles Sinker Fields and accessing the hide.

When visiting the hide, please park at the NNR car park at Morris Bridge. A small car park with 2 spaces next to the hide is available for blue badge holders only. Please avoid parking in areas where local access is impacted such as along Moss Lane.

The site formerly known as "The Flooded Fields" are a birdwatching hotspot on the edge of Whixall Moss.

Location

Morris's Bridge
Whixall
Shropshire
SY13 2RT

OS Map Reference

SJ 49504 35192
What3Words: multiples.knees.cherubs
A static map of Charles Sinker Fields

Know before you go

Size
12 hectares
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Entry fee

Free. A code for the bird hide can be obtained below.
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Parking information

Parking is available at the NNR car park at Morris Bridge. A small car park with 2 spaces next to the hide is available for blue badge holders only. Please avoid parking in areas where local access is impacted such as along Moss Lane.

Grazing animals

None

Walking trails

The fields can be viewed by the new all-accessible bird hide. They lie on the edge of 2500 acres of lowland raised peatbog and one of the wildest locations in the Midlands. There are various trails across the Mosses and it is possible to walk along the canal towpath to the Mammoth Viewing Tower, located 1km from the fields and offering views over England's third largest peatbog.

Visit www.themeresandmosses.co.uk/visiting-the-mosses for more information about the nature and wildlife in the peatbog along with the walking trail maps. You can also read about the work that has been done to restore this amazing landscape. 

Access

Please use the hide to view the fields. They can also be observed from the canal towpath.

Accessibility: Green

All individuals can enjoy watching the birds visiting Charles Sinker Fields from the bird hide. It’s 300m from the main NNR car park (which has designated disabled parking) to the fields. There is a canal bridge to cross with steep incline either side, but alternative parking is sometimes available in the layby's by the fields - but please park responsibly. Limited parking is also found by the hide for blue badge holders.

Dogs

No dogs permitted
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Facilities

Bird hides
Accessible trails

When to visit

Opening times

All year round.

Best time to visit

Any time

About the reserve

Charles Sinker

Charles Sinker was a founder member of Shropshire Wildlife Trust in 1962.  Professionally, he was the first warden of Preston Montford Field Centre and the Field Studies Council first national director.

In 1962 he published a paper highlighting the extraordinary ecology of the Meres & Mosses, which has formed the backbone of efforts to conserve them ever since.

The fields

The fields lie below the Whitchurch Branch of the Llangollen Canal, right on the edge of Fenn's, Whixall and Bettisfield Mosses National Nature Reserves, which cover over 2500 acres. The Mosses were drained for decades to allow for peat to be extracted commercially and one of the main drains ran across these peatland-edge fields. The original drains became insufficient as annual rainfall increased in recent years, so excess water collected on the fields, soon creating a haven for wetland bird species. However, during dry summers, the fields soon dry out and the wetland habitat  disappears, along with the myriad of wetland wildlife.

The site has been given a makeover, thanks to funding through the BogLIFE Project. To ensure that the majority of the fields remain wet for the whole year, bunds have been created to hold water on the site, rather than allowing it to drain off onto surrounding low-lying land. 

The bird hide offers clear views over an area of open water, where birds such as teal, lapwing and curlew can be seen. The remaining ditches are home to water voles and areas of sedge and rushes provide ideal habitat for other small mammals, such as wood mice, field voles and harvest mice,

The hide is open all year-round to everyone, but anyone planning to visit need to complete a short online application to obtain the code. Occasionally, school groups will also visit the hide, during which times, we ask other visitors to the hide to be respectful.

Click here to complete the hide code form.

Contact us

Location map

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