Thor’s Stone, Thurstaston Common

Wow I live just a couple of miles from here, down the road in the next village! I run by this stone a few times a week. It's well-known locally and I think it's mainly pre-teen couples carving their initials in. The rest of the park isn't treated with any disrespect so it's not just people being terrible in general. People keep stealing that brass inscription by it, though, which is a bit more troublesome. That's probably organised metal thieves rather than locals.

The ridge is I think the highest part of the Wirral and has commanding views over the Irish sea and the beginning of the mountains of north Wales, where it's certainly likely people would gather for ceremonies. It feels like a bit of an intersection of England, Ireland, and Wales. But this rock itself is set back from that in a hollow so isn't in as interesting a location.

I proposed to my wife in the country house of which this stone is in the grounds of, too.

I grew up in Neston which is about 6 miles away. We used to get there on our bikes along an old dis-used railway line that was converted in to a walking path called the Wirral Way and pretty much allows you to go the whole length of the Wirral (a peninsular of land between the River Dee and the River Mersey), without touching a single road (there's that one quiet road in Heswall...).

You can then come off at points and explore relatively large parks like this one. We had such freedom as young as 11 ranging out and no-one ever new we were out that far.

The whole area of Thurstaston Common for a kid is like a giants playground. You run up and down the rocks, all moulded and curved with the water, the footfalls and general life going on around it. 30 years ago it was covered in graffiti maybe not so much but it was always drawing people there. My Dad went there as a child.

What you can't see from the photos is that you are on a high point looking over the River Dee with it's salt water marsh land, beeches and on the other side is Wales and the mountains with Moel Famau peaking in the distance.

And while the it might the graffiti might not be so great there is a beautiful history to the life spent around it. Not far from there is a vantage point that many Viking coins are found. As if people sat down and they fell out of their pockets. There were Viking longboats unearthed not far to the north.

If you ever get the chance its one of the most beautiful places you'll see in that quiet, reserved kind of a way.

Who ever the said the Commons were a tragedy!

An interesting article, I grew up near here and have spent many hours clambering up and over the rock. It's absolutely packed on a sunny day.

Perhaps strangely I feel like the scale of the graffiti makes it better than if there was just a bit. It's not a small blemish, but absolutely part of the rock itself.

always heard it referred to as 'Thor's Rock' locally.

I wonder if the name varies by area even within the local vicinity.