Are you sitting comfortably?

Then I’ll begin by telling you a story of mermaids and their purses, of whelks and sharks, of seals and seaweed, as I sit in the storytelling chair. And the storytelling chair is such a dramatic, beautiful piece of furniture that it would inspire anyone and everyone to dream of the sea and its secrets. I was lucky enough to get to sit in this chair in early August as I gathered with Lancashire Wildlife Trust, our partners and volunteers to celebrate the launch of the Lancashire Living Seas Wildlife Trail at Rossall Point Tower near Fleetwood. We heard more about the stories helping people understand the sea, connect with nature and get outdoors.  I discovered the story of the journey of Ayla, the little cucumber fish of Wyre and her friend, Cato the Shore Crab, a story I shared with my niece when I got home. This tale is one of various family stories, highlighting the hidden depths of our wonderful Morecambe Bay and Irish Sea, all specially designed to engage children, and available on the website.

The sunshine on the day meant that the sea and the sands looked their absolute best, despite the odd rumble from the sea defence works taking place nearby.  It gave us an opportunity to go up to the top of this amazing “space age” tower to see the view.  And what a view it was, taking in Barrow, Heysham, Arnside Knot but sadly not the Isle of Man on this occasion.  I chatted with one of the observatory tower volunteers and he explained to me how rare it was to be up there with only a breath of wind – not your usual Fleetwood weather.  He has seen grey seals and seal pups from the view point, wandering over from the colony on Walney. He has his fingers crossed that when the big sea defence rocks are in place, the seals will come over to this shore, haul out and have a bask in the sun in front of him. Sadly, he explained he had never seen a mermaid…

We heard another lovely story of the Balfour Beatty sea defence workers taking the most delicate care of nesting ringed plovers, and guarding their chicks – we can all do our bit for wildlife in whatever situation we are in.

I was shown different types of mermaid purses which are the egg cases of sharks and rays. I discovered that catsharks are common in the Irish Sea and lots of their young can be found swimming around the Barrow area. Whelk egg cases look like bits of sponge, and nothing like whelks. I came away feeling there is so much that is hidden there to be discovered. Assuming the sea is dirty and polluted and nothing lives there is so far from the truth. The sea is an amazing eco-system that keeps our planet in balance and needs our protection.  We rely on the oxygen it produces and the food resources it provides. In fact, the oxygen for one in two breaths taken on earth is produced by ocean living algae. That is half of the breaths we take!

Finally, for me, a good walk along the beach or stroll along the prom clears my head of all the clutter that gathers there, day- to -day.