Make a splash!
Make a Splash at Martin Mere’s North West Puddle Jumping Championships
This February half term (10 - 18 Feb), children of all ages are being encouraged to grab their wellies, get outside and join in the fourth annual North West Puddle Jumping Championships being held at WWT Martin Mere Wetland Centre in Lancashire.
This year WWT’s new children’s character, Dusty Duck is joining in the fun again and helping kids create the biggest, craziest splash possible. Dusty was exclusively designed by the world-famous Aardman studios to help celebrate WWT’s 70th anniversary by getting children closer to nature.
At Martin Mere, children will compete against each other to see who can produce the biggest 
splash from their puddle jump everyday at 2pm. They will also be judged on their enthusiasm and jumping style. Daily winners will be announced throughout the half term and some lucky ‘super-splashers’ will receive a fantastic prize from Dusty Duck himself! It is 50p to enter and every contestant will receive a ‘splashtastic’ sticker to acknowledge their puddle jumping skills.
As well as the main puddle jumping competition arenas, there will be practice zones set up to help entrants perfect their splashing techniques. In previous years these areas have been a hive of splashing activity.
Centre Manager, Nick Brooks, said: “We know that children love nothing more than to splash about in puddles, so we thought we’d give them the chance to channel their inner splasher through our nation-wide puddle jumping competition at our Wetland Centres. We’ve really perfected the championships this year, with brilliant competition areas, practice puddle zones, great prizes and expert judging panels. It’s all a lot of fun and we know that children who love puddles often grow up to be adults that love the outdoors. So through these championships we’re gently nurturing a love that may help protect wetlands and the wildlife that depend on them for years to come.”
To join in the fun visit wwt.org.uk/martinmere or follow #wwtpuddlejumping
WWT Martin Mere Wetland Centre is open every day (except Christmas Day) from 9.30am to 4.30pm during winter months and parking is free of charge. Situated off the A59, it is signposted from the M61, M58 and M6. The Centre is also accessible via the Southport to Manchester and the Liverpool to Preston line by train from Burscough Rail Stations. Visit the web site http://www.wwt.org.uk/martinmere/ to find out what’s on all year round at Martin Mere and the other eight WWT Wetland Centres.
