A new Art Trail of sounds and sculpture exploring the special landscape and history at the Fenn’s, Whixall and Bettisfield Mosses National Nature Reserve on the Anglo-Welsh border near Whitchurch, Shropshire, UK will launch on 3rd July 2021, available through to the end of October 2021.

Two internationally significant wetlands are connected by bringing sounds from New South Wales, Australia into the Mosses landscape. The soundscapes edited by Andrew Howe (UK) and Kim V. Goldsmith (AUS) feature recordings of wildlife, water and trees, poetry, history and memories of life on and around the peatbog. The piece “I am Walking” by Howe/Goldsmith explores the personal and collective experience of walking across the respective landscapes of the Mosses and Marshes.

Artists Elizabeth Turner and Keith Ashford have produced a series of waymarking sculptures which look at measuring tools and their connection with the Mosses landscape.

To minimise disturbance to wildlife, the immersive soundscapes are designed to be experienced by walking in the landscape and listening with headphones via smartphone using the Echoes app. The sounds are triggered as you walk through specific locations along the trail. With the app and your location enabled, you will be able to find the Fenn’s and Whixall Sound Trail using the search facility. It is recommended to download the walk before you visit so that you can stream the walk as an offline map, since mobile phone signal can be unreliable for some phone operators at the Mosses.

The Art Trail is approx 3 miles long / about 2 hours, starting from the Morris Bridge car park at Whixall Moss. The paths are well marked and level but often wet and boggy, and may not be suitable for wheelchairs.

The Art Trail is part of the Mosses and Marshes art project led by Andrew Howe and Kim V. Goldsmith, supported by National Lottery funding from Arts Council England. Many thanks also to Natural England, Shropshire Wildlife Trust and for their assistance; and to Stephen Barlow for ecological advice and contributing bird recordings.