Map reference
OS 1:50,000
Sheet 97
Grid ref SD458 837 (reserve car park)
Size
350 hectares
Status
Special Area of Conservation (SAC)
Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)
Access From the car parking area there is a circular walk which crosses one of the better areas of remnant vegetation on boardwalk and then uses the main track to return (0.8km/0.5 miles). Visitors may walk elsewhere on the reserve but walking may be difficult due to uneven ground and deep water in drains. Ticks may be present on the reserve in large numbers. The Trust is currently upgrading access on the reserve and further trails will become available in due course.
Directions By car From Kendal take A590 towards Barrow in Furness. At the end of the dual carriageway at Gilpin Bridge, continue for 1km/0.6 miles. Immediately before a signed parking layby on the west-bound carriageway, a track leaves the road. Go through the gate and follow the track until a small car parking area is reached. From Grange/Barrow in Furness on the A590, pass the junction for Witherslack and continue for 0.6km/0.4 miles. The track to the reserve is on the right immediately after the parking layby. Please take care when turning into the reserve from this direction, as the road can be extremely busy. By bicycle The reserve is on National Route 72 (Walney to Wear). By public transport Buses run from Barrow in Furness, Ulverston, Newby Bridge, Grange over Sands and Kendal to Witherslack.
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Foulshaw Moss
What to expect on the nature reserve: habitat, wildlife and more (hover over an icon for more info)
Seasonal highlights on the nature reserve
Spring
Butterflies and moths: green hairstreak butterfly, emperor moth
Plants: cottongrass
Summer
Butterfly: large heath
Plants: bog rosemary, sundew
Insects: dragon and damselflies, bog bush cricket
Reptiles and amphibians: adder and common lizard
Autumn
Birds: Osprey
Plants: cranberry, bilberry
Winter
Birds: hen harrier, snipe
Mammals: red deer
All year
General: views across open moss
Hazards include: ticks, adders, deep water filled holes, soft wet ground
Foulshaw Moss is the largest of three raised mires making up the Witherslack Mosses. Over thousands of years, a layer of peat up to six metres deep has built up, making Foulshaw Moss higher than the surrounding land. Drainage around the moss has made the moss drier than it would naturally be and drainage and tree planting on the moss itself in the 1950s and 1960s has further reduced the water table. This means that the characteristic bog vegetation of Sphagnum moss, cotton grass, cranberry and bog rosemary is only present in small areas rather than covering the site. Since acquisition in 1998, the Trust has been working towards restoring the mire by felling conifers, blocking internal ditches and re-wetting areas of surrounding land.
What to see
A large herd of red deer frequent the moss and in summer common lizards can be seen. Adder and slow worm may occasionally be encountered. Breeding birds include tree pipit, reed bunting, snipe and barn owl. Emperor and northern eggar moth, and large heath and green hairstreak butterflies can be seen on the areas of remnant bog vegetation at the northern end of the site. There is also a pond here where a number of different dragonflies including the emperor may be seen.
History
Foulshaw Moss was purchased in 1998 with help from the Heritage Lottery Fund. Since then, a number of additional areas have been acquired.
Find us on
Protecting Wildlife for the Future
Registered in England as Cumbria Wildlife Trust Limited,
a Company Limited by Guarantee No. 724133.
Registered Charity No. 218711.
General
What to see
