When visiting the serene Styal Woods in Styal Country Park it’s hard to imagine you are only a short walk from the busy Manchester Airport. The famous Quarry Bank Mill itself offers a fascinating visit at any time of the year. It’s the oldest working cotton mill in the world and winner of a prestigious Heritage Award (previous winners have been the Channel Tunnel and the Thames Barrier!). The water wheel (built 1851) that runs the factory’s machines is the most powerful in Europe. We love to visit on a late spring or summer evening when the crowds of visitors have gone and you can immerse yourself in the peace and tranquillity of this amazingly beautiful place. Don’t miss our next walk from Styal!
A nature highlight was finding these intriguing structures on the leaves of Beech trees. They are the galls produced by the Beech Gall Midge (a tiny fly). After hatching from an egg laid on the leaf the larva causes the leaf to produce these strange growths within which it can feed in complete safety until it emerges into the outside world as an adult fly.
