Sefton’s Gateway to the Coast – Crosby Coastal Park .

Crosby Coastal Park is an excellent starting point for exploring Sefton’s Natural Coast. Crosby Beach is now the permanent home to ‘Another Place’, the sculpture by internationally acclaimed artist, Antony Gormley. The beach has been awarded the Quality Coast Award by Keep Britain Tidy. The QCA award tells visitors that the standards of beach management are of the highest quality in the UK.

Visitors can walk along the Sefton Coastal Path and take in views of the sea, the Wirral and North Wales. Access to this strip of coast is good with four train stations plus car parks at Crosby Marine Lake, Mariners Road and Hall Road. The 22 mile Sefton Coastal path starts here and a section of the national cyclepath network runs the length of the Park.

At just over 4 miles long, covering over 900 ha, the park boasts a large marine lake popular for water sports, formal gardens, amenity grasslands and a children’s playground. The coastal strip between Hall Road and the Seaforth Docks is fronted by a sea wall and promenade. To the north of Hall Road, as far as the Alt estuary, the Hightown Dunes and Meadows provide a quiet retreat and the remains of ancient environments are sometimes revealed on the beach.

Crosby Leisure Centre, located on the seafront at Mariners Road, provides pools, toilets, a café and free cycle hire.

The Crosby Lakeside Adventure Centre  is a £10 million centre offering a variety of water sports, activities for young & old alike, a fitness suite and fitness classes, premier conference & meeting suites plus the fantastic Lakeside Bistro & Bar.

Nearby Waterloo and Crosby centres offer excellent eating and shopping opportunities. Hot and cold food concessions also operate on the site at peak times.

Crosby Coastal Park is popular for birdwatching, especially during the spring and autumn migration (Hall Road in particular is an excellent spot for seawatching) and the dune habitats support some rare plant and animal species, including Isle of Man Cabbage, Yellow-horned Poppy, Natterjack Toad and Sand Lizard.