Blackpool

When I was initially planning on going to England I had never heard of Blackpool let alone consider it as a potential place to stay. The reason I ended up here is because I found a hotel that wouldn't break my wallet, and it was targeted towards digital nomads, with a co-working office space. Everywhere else I looked at in England was pricier than what I was comfortable paying. I didn't go to Blackpool expecting much, nevertheless, I was pleasantly surprised by this city and found many hidden treasures. Here in this post I want to share some of them with you.

I will start with the beach. My hotel was about a three minute walk away from the beach and this turned out to be a wonderful blessing. Almost daily I went for a walk or run and that boosted my mental and physical health. This is actually the first time I have ever lived next to the sea, so it was a new experience, seeing the beach daily. Although, the beach at Blackpool was so different compared to the ones I am used to back in Australia. It is so flat with the land slowly, gradually, sinking into the sea. Combined with a huge tidal difference, this meant that at low tide I could walk sometimes nearly 200 meters out onto ground that is covered at high tide. I loved exploring the beach at low tide where I needed to navigate lagoons formed by the retreating water. The final blessing is that Blackpool is on the west coast of England, so I had wonderful sunsets looking out over the sea.

I took this picture on my first evening in Blackpool. After finishing work I bought some takeaway food and quickly rushed to the beach. I watched the sunset as I ate my first dinner in Blackpool.

The sunsets truly were amazing. I took this picture in my final week in Blackpool, with my proper camera.

Some more sunset, and late afternoon pictures. I always loved those moments when the sun was hidden by a cloud but its rays shined forth even more visible because the source was hidden.

And this was my favourite sunset while in Blackpool, on my second Saturday here. I had spent the day at church and then I went to an elder's place for lunch. When I returned to the hotel, I saw there was still an hour of light left so I thought I would get a quick walk in and I am so glad I did.

The tide this day was incredibly low and the sea quite calm. I walked out all the way to where the small waves were breaking onto the beach. Where I was standing to take the above photo was on a slight bank in the sand that pushed out further into the sea. As I stood there, I watched the waves approach and each one seemed like it would continue on past my feet yet none ever did. The sun sunk lower and and as it did it lit up the sea and waves with a beautiful golden light. The scene constantly changed as hundreds of small waves were ever approaching, causing the light to shimmer and shift in its reflection. The waves would stack on top of each other, cross over and then break apart, at times breaking the light's reflection, at times bringing it together. It was truly a beautiful scene and I thanked God for such a wonderful day. I hope this photo and my words can do some justice to this wonderful moment.

As I mentioned before, I loved exploring the beach at low tide and there was the occasional relic to discover. The above images show this old pipe that is only visible far out on the beach when the tide is really low. These pictures also show how the topography of the beach was dynamic with lagoons and sandbanks breaking apart what initially seems like a smooth transition from land to sea.

Large sections of the beach often had these ripple patterns in the sand. Further out, or near lagoons that hadn't drained yet, they were still water logged. The sand of this beach is not as fine quality as what we might get in Australia, and further out the sand became more like mud than it was sand.

At the center of Blackpool is the Blackpool Tower. It is over 100 years old and it was inspired by the Eiffel tower in Paris. The tower rose high over Blackpool and I could often spot it while walking around. Apparently there is a viewing platform at the top but it was closed during my stay in the city.

All along the coastline of Blackpool there is a sea wall between the beach and the city. At high tide the water always came up to the wall, engulfing the entirety of the beach. The above images were taken a few kilometers north of the Blackpool tower. Here the land rose higher and with it the sea wall was taller as well.

Another photo of the beach showing the undulating nature of the sand. The pillars here are part of the same pipe line that was pictured earlier. I imagine that at high tide the water would shift the sand and so I wonder if with time the topography of the beach is always changing.

One day I wanted to compare the difference between high and low tide. I took these pictures near the hotel at the same location on the same day: the first is in the morning at high tide, the second in the afternoon at low tide.

There were many seagulls here but also other kinds of birds that I'm not familiar with. These two were quite chill as I walked past.

Fleetwood

To the north of Blackpool is the town of Fleetwood. Blackpool itself is located on a straight bit of westward facing coast situated between a bay and an inlet to the north and south. The Blackpool tram connects the city to Fleetwood which is situated on the northern bay. I took the tram one morning at low tide to see the large sandbank that extends three kilometers out into the bay which is exposed at low tide.

These were some of the pictures I took looking out over the beach at Fleetwood. At low tide the mud and sand seemed to stretch out all the way to the horizon.

I walked west along the coastline until eventually I rounded the point where the bay meets the sea. Here the beach mud flats ended and the beach looks similar to what it does at Blackpool. I was even able to spot the Blackpool tower far off in the distance, and you can just make it out in the above image.

The Dunes Park

To the south of Blackpool is a section of coast where there was no sea wall and the natural coastal dunes were preserved. I again took the Blackpool tram (this time going south) to the end of the line. From there I walked along the beach, and the dunes, until night fell.

These two images were taken together: the left looking to the dunes, the right to the sea.

As I walked I had this beautiful view looking out onto the sea. The sand here was mixed with water such that it was slightly reflective and gives a slight illusion that the beach has disappeared and only the clouds remain.

I initially walked along the beach but then I found a path to walk within and on top of the dunes.

From the top of the dunes I had a good view looking out to sea.

As well as inland towards all the houses and towns that were built up in this region.

As I walked, there was a moment where the clouds parted and the tufts of grass were lit up by the golden light of the setting sun. I rushed to get this picture as the view only lasted a moment before the sun was hidden again behind the clouds.

I kept going forward until dusk and then took a bus back to Blackpool rather than walking all the way back to the tram stop.

The Blackpool Gardens

Most of my walks were on the beach but there was a park and some gardens a few kilometers inland. These gardens seemed to be a fairly typical English park and I enjoyed exploring it one afternoon.

The park was lovely to walk through, and being spring time there were several flower beds that were just coming into bloom. There were also several statutes, including a couple lions, that did seem appropriate as I was in England.

There is also a lake at the park with many aquatic birds to be seen. I walked around the lake while I listened to an audio book.

I found this little hedged garden in the park that was full of fascinating plants with wonderful aromas.

For those who knew me from my high school days, you will know how much I used to love taking pictures of flowers. Exploring this little garden I felt a little of that love and interest re-emerge within me. There were some pretty flowers here but also some of the leaves on the plants had fascinating textures and patterns.

Finally I wanted to finish with this story. Twice while I was in Blackpool I saw huge flocks of birds near one of the piers. The first time I saw it I was far away and I couldn't initially tell that it was a flock. It looked more like a cloud on the horizon, but this cloud seemed to move in ways completely abnormal to how clouds should move, which made me suspect I was looking at a flock. The thing is, I haven't seen many big flocks of birds like this so I just stood there amazed to see so many birds in one place moving together almost like a dynamic fluid in the air, with a will of its own.

The second time I saw these flocks, I had my camera with me so I was able to capture some good pictures to share with you here.

The flock moved and flowed around the pier, sometime resting other times flying up high, or out to sea before returning. There was generally a big portion of the main flock but smaller sub-flocks would sometimes break away and then merge back in with the main flock later.

I felt really lucky to be able to capture this moment in three frames where the birds rose all at once to take to the air.

Some bonus content: this was the main co-working room at the hotel I was staying at. The place is called Somewhere Different and it was a really nice hotel with a good community of guests. I really enjoyed my time here as it was a good opportunity to connect with other people living the digital nomad lifestyle. The owner was also lovely and really made this place feel more than just a hotel but a true experience. If you ever are remote working in England, I can highly recommend Somewhere Different.

Thanks for reading – Edward

Written 23rd of April 2024