Children’s own blog posts
Kids of the Wild is really keen to encourage children outdoors into nature so we are publishing occasional articles of kids writing, about their outdoor adventures or experiences in nature.
I am excited to present the very first of these posts about a day out spotting red squirrels and exploring an old lead mine. Many thanks to Loretta for this excellent piece of writing and some great photographs too. We love it!
(See bottom of page if your child would like to contribute)
Killhope Lead Mine and Red Squirrels
By Loretta L aged 8
Killhope Lead Mine is in Upper Weardale in the North Pennines which is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. I went there with my parents. We had to drive through a ford to get to the car park which was fun!
First, we went to see the red squirrels and spotted at least four of them at the hide, climbing and running.
There were also birds – pheasants as well as smaller birds, and rabbits.
Then we walked around a circular track in the woods then back to the building with the museum and the café. Then we had lunch in the café – yummy beans on toast.
After that we looked through the museum about lead mining. Miners mined here because lead can be used for lots of things, such as waterproofing roofs. The lead was extracted from something called galena but first they had to get the galena by mining.
We went on a mine tour and I liked the dark bits. We had to take special lights and helmets. It took a while but I enjoyed it loads. There were a lot of things to see. The lights were not very good and at least half of the time we were walking through water. I was glad I had wellies on!
Finally we saw the bits involving water and I got a bit tired. The water wheel is very big. The water came from reservoirs above the mine on the hillside.
I like being out in nature where I learn lots of things about animals as well as history, geography and geology. Walking is also good exercise.
On the way home we had this view:
Thank you very much Loretta – we’d love to visit Killhope having read this, and the view looks stunning! What a great account of a fun and educational day out and well done for snapping that cute red squirrel. And thanks to Loretta’s Mum for the pics.
Get writing
If your child would like to produce a short article (with photos) about a nature adventure, activity, animal or event please complete the form on the contact page (your email will not show publicly) and I will be in touch with my contact details for you to send the work to. They do not have to write for their own blog.
To read more children’s articles see Children’s Writing.