Beach Rides - Formby? *Pic*

[jnb]

So I am on leave in 3 weeks time and want to take my cob to the beach. After a lot of research, OH has moaned about going to Lincoln/Norfolk (it is 3-4 hours drive!) so I see Formby as a day trip being suggested.
Has anyone been?
We are 100ish miles away, luckily most of it motorway.
What do I need to know? I understand I have to park at Lifeboat road, is it free to park? How far on horseback is it to the beach and could OH (dodgy hip) walk to take photos/scrape me off the floor?
I have HUGE 7.5 ton lorry, is there a height limiter on parking?
Also, tides, I don;t want to turn up and there is no beach to ride on *I need a rolling eyes emoji*
Pic of us at our first ever show on grass (3rd ever!)
Excuse my fatness & looking down

 

[scats]

How about Hoylake beach by me? May be a bit closer for you?

 

[jnb]

How about Hoylake beach by me? May be a bit closer for you?

I'm not even slightly familiar with that area, can you park near the beach? Is it busy (no idea what Ruari will make of it!)
I will Google

 

[scats]

Not a busy beach other than dog walkers really. You can ride up to West Kirby. We park by one of the grass verges at the front at Meols (houses set back and huge grassy area infront) and just walk up the prom, which is relatively quiet. We get on the beach by the Hoylake life station.

 

[jnb]

I am not very good in situations where I don;t know where I'm going and OH will compound the situation by asking 20000 questions that I don't know the answer to like : how far is it, where do we park, is it far to the beach, what's the traffic like, is there mud/dangerous areas......
I'll have to drive up there to suss it out otherwise he'll make it a miserable experience by moaning all the way there and back

 

[RHM]

Parking is good if you get their nice and early, think it’s £5 for the day if I remember correctly. Would have to check online re tide times but it’s a great beach for riding as there is a no dog half so you don’t have to worry about being chased! Have a great time!

 

[abb123]

Someone I know got their lorry stuck in the car park at Formby Beach. Ended up having to stay overnight with the horses before they could be rescued

Other than that it is a great beach for riding and the woodland is beautiful too. Just don't go far out if the tide is out as it is very easy to get trapped by the incoming tide.

 

[Hallo2012]

Lifeboat road car park is National Trust so you can check prices online i think?

its a big car park but the road to/from is narrow so you need to be confident or go early as car drivers IME do not wait and will push on then squeeze past! no height limit i have seen HGV lorries there.

its a 10 min walk from lorry park to beach via dunes and the sand is deep and its VERY up and down so hard work even for a fit human or horse so depends how bad his hip is. My pony is eventing fit and he puffs going up as the sand is so deep.

beach is vast and normally empty so at low tide you have literally MILES of space.

tides you can google too.

 

[jnb]

Ooh, it doesn't sound like OH will be able to get onto the beach there then. His hip is quite bad. I looked on Google Earth and it looks like about 500 yds on a sandy path, just shows even that is deceptive.
Back to the drawing board...scats idea could be do-able but not sure I fancy travelling 2.5-3 hours and tacking up on the side of a road with a cob that's green as grass and I don't know where I'm going. Riding up a prom is about as far removed from riding through our village as we could get & I'm not very brave, anxious to give baby cob a nice calm experience too.
Why is everything so bloody difficult? I'm 53 and I just want to ride on the beach for the first time before I'm too old to do it. Sigh

 

[lar]

Hoylake prom isn't like Blackpool prom though! It's very very quiet (the only issue you're likely to have with traffic is it's where we all go for our first lesson as learner drivers because it is so quiet and straight) and you can park very close to where you get on the beach.

You could park at West Kirby if you're thinking Wirral as there are a couple of car parks there which I've seen horse riders using but WK does get VERY busy on fine days.

 

[lar]

It's years since I've been but what about Ainsdale? Can you still park on the beach there?

 

[ycbm]

I was going to ask that. Last time I rode at Formby I parked on the beach.

 

[Courbette]

My friend rides on Ainsdale, I went with her and we parked near the old Butlins site not too long ago

 

[ycbm]

It's Pontins, Butlins for posh people, in the old days. Very run down now.

 

[Courbette]

It's Pontins, Butlins for posh people, in the old days. Very run down now.

I did think after I pressed post that it may have been a Pontins

 

[scats]

Ooh, it doesn't sound like OH will be able to get onto the beach there then. His hip is quite bad. I looked on Google Earth and it looks like about 500 yds on a sandy path, just shows even that is deceptive.
Back to the drawing board...scats idea could be do-able but not sure I fancy travelling 2.5-3 hours and tacking up on the side of a road with a cob that's green as grass and I don't know where I'm going. Riding up a prom is about as far removed from riding through our village as we could get & I'm not very brave, anxious to give baby cob a nice calm experience too.
Why is everything so bloody difficult? I'm 53 and I just want to ride on the beach for the first time before I'm too old to do it. Sigh

When I say prom, it really is just a relatively quiet, wide road with a beach on one side and houses the other. I can go and take some pictures for you this week if you want? Will show you the grassy bit I park by, there’s plenty of room for tacking up and you are well away from any cars because the grassy area is like a small field area that’s set back from the road (hard to explain).

 

[Lexi_]

Basically what Hallo2012 said about Formby! This is the horse route to the beach - it’s narrow and straight up the dunes. A bit alarming if your horse throws a strop, as Monty decided to do ?



It’s lovely but you either need to go out of season or nice and early in the day because especially at the moment, Formby is super busy and parking might be an issue. This is it in Feb:



There is a boardwalk route for pedestrians which might work for your OH though? I went with share horse in Feb and his owner managed to get a buggy down that road!

Scats, you’re Wirral aren’t you? I did a BHS ride a few years which took in a nice mixed use bridleway but also looped onto the beach near a sailing club. I can’t remember which beach it was!

 

[wish upon a star]

I go to Formby quite regularly and love it. It's £15 at lifeboat road for the day or free for National Trust members. It's a proper tarmac car park but is a narrow lane down. There's usually an ice cream van too in summer!
The bridle path is steep but there are alternative footpaths for people which aren't as bad. Lots of beach and if you time it right the sea isn't too far out.

 

[scats]

Basically what Hallo2012 said about Formby! This is the horse route to the beach - it’s narrow and straight up the dunes. A bit alarming if your horse throws a strop, as Monty decided to do ?

View attachment 52212

It’s lovely but you either need to go out of season or nice and early in the day because especially at the moment, Formby is super busy and parking might be an issue. This is it in Feb:

View attachment 52213

There is a boardwalk route for pedestrians which might work for your OH though? I went with share horse in Feb and his owner managed to get a buggy down that road!

Scats, you’re Wirral aren’t you? I did a BHS ride a few years which took in a nice mixed use bridleway but also looped onto the beach near a sailing club. I can’t remember which beach it was!

Yep I’m wirral. That was probably West Kirby sailing club, possibly caldy beach that you looped on (bridlepath leads straight onto it) but I think there’s one in Thurstaston too.
We are very lucky to have access to some great beaches. Frustratingly my yard is 1 mile from the beach, but the main road to get there is horrendous so we box up. I have ridden there on a friend’s sensible horse but my girls are too sharp to have on a busy road like that that goes over a railway bridge. Such a shame really.

 

[lar]

Yep I’m wirral. That was probably West Kirby sailing club, possibly caldy beach that you looped on (bridlepath leads straight onto it) but I think there’s one in Thurstaston too.
We are very lucky to have access to some great beaches. Frustratingly my yard is 1 mile from the beach, but the main road to get there is horrendous so we box up. I have ridden there on a friend’s sensible horse but my girls are too sharp to have on a busy road like that that goes over a railway bridge. Such a shame really.

I think it'd be the one at Thurstaston. I don't think you'd want to ride near Wekka sailing club. It's way too boggy.

 

[Pippity]

Not a busy beach other than dog walkers really. You can ride up to West Kirby. We park by one of the grass verges at the front at Meols (houses set back and huge grassy area infront) and just walk up the prom, which is relatively quiet. We get on the beach by the Hoylake life station.

I never thought of riding there! My gran lived in Hoylake, so I spent a lot of time there as a kid. I'm plotting a visit now.

 

[photo_jo]

The best option for you then is probably Southport, there's a free carpark off the roundabout south of the pier and you're straight on to the beach

 

[Flicker]

OP if you’re anxious, why don’t you take a day and scout out some options, then you can plan which works best for you and OH.

 

[jnb]

Thank you all , some food for thought. Annoyingly I’m going to Sandbach to a clinic next weekend but won’t have time to carry on up to Formby or wherever & anyway cob will be exhausted.
I think we will have to drive up & check where is best for us. Thanks once again

 

[Flicker]

Don’t forget to post some pics on here from your ride ?

 

[scats]

Thank you all , some food for thought. Annoyingly I’m going to Sandbach to a clinic next weekend but won’t have time to carry on up to Formby or wherever & anyway cob will be exhausted.
I think we will have to drive up & check where is best for us. Thanks once again

If you head my way, let me know! The kettle is always on x