Buggy friendly and dog friendly walks in Sefton and the Wirral: 11 routes where the pram, the dog and the toddler all cope
Which paths take a buggy, where the dog can run, where the summer beach bans bite and what every car park charges, on both sides of the Mersey.
There is a family walk nobody writes guidebooks about: baby in the pram, dog's lead wrapped twice round your wrist, four year old asking to be carried, and you trying to remember whether this is the beach with the summer dog ban. Here are the walks on both sides of the river where the wheels roll, the dog gets a run and the car park does not spoil the afternoon.
Dogs first. Sefton has two summer dog free zones, on the beach at Ainsdale and Southport from 1 May to 30 September, and asks for close control elsewhere on the coast. Wirral Council has a borough wide dog control order whose beach detail was not on the pages we could reach, so read the signs at the slipway and check the council's Public Spaces Protection Order page before anyone comes off the lead.
Sefton: the coast side
Formby pinewoods and beach. Formby carries the National Trust's top three pawprint dog rating, and well behaved dogs are welcome across woods, dunes and beach under close control. The Trust asks for leads near the dune pools from spring to late summer, when natterjack toads breed, and away from the shore birds in winter. For the buggy, choose Lifeboat Road: a hard path leads to a boardwalk to the beach, though blown sand builds up on it. Victoria Road is just over half a mile of uneven woodland and dune, a carry rather than a push. Parking is £9 per car for non members, free for members and Blue Badge holders. Toilets at both car parks open 9.30am to 4pm (portaloos at Lifeboat Road for now) and refreshment vans appear in spring and summer. Freshfield station for Victoria Road, Formby station for Lifeboat Road.
Crosby Coastal Park and the Iron Men. The promenade from Waterloo to Hall Road is flat and surfaced, with Antony Gormley's 100 Iron Men on the sand beside you. The rule is close control, not a ban, but heed the warning: there is soft sand and mud, and visitors are told to stay within 50 metres of the promenade at all tides. The figures vanish for about an hour either side of high water, so check Gladstone Dock tide times. Pay and display car parks are at Crosby Lakeside, Blucher Street and Burbo Bank; Hall Road is closest to the Iron Men. Blundellsands and Crosby station for the figures, Waterloo for the marine lake and playground.
Ainsdale and the Southport front. Ainsdale is where the dog rule has teeth: from 1 May to 30 September the beach is dog free for 200 metres either side of the main entrance, down to the tide line. Cars park on the sand for £10 a day from 1 April to 30 September, shutting on high tides. Toilets close October to March but the Changing Places facility stays open all year. Sand defeats most buggies. Ainsdale station is a short walk. In Southport the dog free stretch runs 555 metres south from the Pier over the same dates, and the promenade is as flat as it gets.
Lunt Meadows. Inland near Sefton village, Lunt Meadows is a wetland reserve of bird hides and grass paths, plus a new tarmacked path the Wildlife Trust says suits prams and wheelchairs and sits outside the flood area. The rest is unsurfaced, wellies advised, dogs on leads near the grazing animals. Parking is £4 by the Learning Centre, which has toilets and baby changing. No station; this one is a drive.
The Wirral side
Birkenhead Park. Joseph Paxton's 1847 park, the one New York's Central Park copied. Birkenhead Park has flat drives round two lakes, a playground and a visitor centre with cafe, toilets and baby changing open 9am to 4.30pm daily. The council page sets no dog rules beyond fouling, so keep them close near the lakes. The catch is parking: there is currently no car park inside, so use the surrounding streets or Birkenhead Park station on its edge.
Wirral Country Park and the Wirral Way at Thurstaston. The old railway line is the best pram and dog walk on the peninsula; from Wirral Country Park the Wirral Way runs 12 miles; the council's management plan rates the West Kirby section good for wheelchairs, prams and buggies, while south towards Gayton it turns to limestone chippings with loose stones. Dogs are asked to be on a lead around the visitor centre. The beach is reached by steps, so the buggy stays on top, and the council says do not scramble the moving cliffs. Visitor centre, cafe and toilets open 10am to 4.30pm April to September, 10am to 3.30pm October to March, with a Changing Places toilet. Parking is the country park tariff: £1.20 for an hour up to £6 all day, 8am to 6.30pm, card or phone only, Blue Badge holders free. West Kirby station is 5km north, on the Wirral Way.
Royden Park and Thurstaston Common. Royden Park at Frankby has woodland, a lake, a walled garden, a cafe, toilets and a miniature railway whose running days are on the model engineering society's Facebook page. Paths round the lake and gardens suit a buggy; Thurstaston Common next door is sandy and rooty, better for the dog than the pram. Same parking tariff, no cash, no station.
Eastham Country Park. Woods on the Mersey bank with a Victorian bear pit, a dog free area, toilets open 10am to 4pm, and the Mimosa Tea Garden from 10.30am to 5.30pm in spring and summer only. Eastham is small, and ships slide past the end of it. Main paths take a buggy; the ones to the shore do not. Country park tariff, no station in walking distance.
West Kirby Marine Lake and the Dee. The wall round West Kirby Marine Lake is a flat loop with water both sides, the best or the most nerve testing buggy walk in the borough depending on the wind. The council lends Sand Cruiser beach wheelchairs free. Dee Lane has toilets and a car park at the £1.20 to £6 tariff. Hilbre is the adventure for older children: the council says the crossing from Dee Lane takes 45 minutes to an hour, that you must always check tide times first, and that dogs must be on a short lead at all times. There are toilets on the island and seals all year. Leave the pram at home. West Kirby station is at the end of the line.
Port Sunlight. The soap village is a walk rather than a park: flat pavements, lawns and free parking. Dogs are welcome outside but only assistance dogs go inside the Trust's venues, including Port Sunlight Museum, which has toilets and baby changing. Port Sunlight and Bebington stations are a short walk.
The FamDays verdict
For a pram and a dog on the same outing, the Wirral Way from West Kirby and the Crosby promenade win on surface, cost and trains. Formby is the better day if the dog needs a run and you have £9 spare. Save Ainsdale and Southport for October to April, and treat Hilbre as a reward for older legs.
