Jake Campbell (Poet); Tim Collier (Photographer); Mike Collier (Visual Artist) and Rob Strachan (Sound Artist) with Hive and Sam Wiehl 

A 30 Km Walk Along the Sefton Coastal Footpath, July 2014.

Image by Tim Collier

The walk followed the Sefton Coastal Path (a recognised ‘National Path’ – see http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/place-london/plain/A5839121) from start to finish over 4 days (2 weekends – 12/13 & 20/21) in July 2014 . The Footpath is approximately 22.5 miles long.

The project was organised and funded in conjunction with The Atkinson (see http://www.theatkinson.co.uk/) and the Sefton Coastal Landscape Partnership (see http://www.seftoncoast.org.uk/).

It was timed to coincide with the showing of the exhibition Walk On: From Richard Long to Janet Cardiff – Forty years of Art Walking at The Atkinson (from the 12 April to the 9 August 2014) which included work by myself and which I also co-curated and wrote a chapter for the accompanying book titled ‘On Ways of Walking and Making Art’. (ISBN: 978-1-906832-08-7 and see also http://walk.uk.net/portfolio/walk-on); and a chapter in ‘Walking, landscape and Environment’ published by Routledge – see https://www.routledge.com/Walking-Landscape-and-Environment/Borthwick-Marland-Stenning/p/book/9781138630109

The project was featured on Countryfile in April 2014 when Mike was interviewed by presenter Shauna Lowry who herself is a keen amateur wildlife photographer. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b041j5rr

See also https://www.theatkinson.co.uk/2014/06/10109/

The Sefton Coast stretches from the mouth of the River Mersey to Marshside, north of Southport and is England’s largest undeveloped dune system. It is a landscape alive with special wildlife and its coastal waters are ‘home’ to famous shipwrecks like the ‘Star of Hope’ and the coast’s special flora and fauna comprises nationally scarce examples.  It is a wind-swept land that is constantly in motion.

Images by Tim Collier

The title for the project was inspired by Phil Smith’s excellent book, The Sands of Time and our thanks to him for letting us use this reference. Anyone at all interested in the walk, or in the natural (and social) history of the Sefton Coast are encouraged to read The Sands of Time – please click here for further information about where to buy it.