Editing River Mersey (section)

==Recreation==
The Mersey Valley Countryside Warden Service manages local nature reserves such as [[Chorlton Ees]] and [[Sale Water Park]] recreational sites and provides an educational service along the Mersey from Manchester to the Manchester Ship Canal.
<ref>{{citation|title=Welcome to the Mersey Valley Countryside Warden Service|url=http://www.merseyvalley.org.uk/site/|publisher=Mersey Valley Countryside Warden Service|access-date=27 August 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120921042145/http://www.merseyvalley.org.uk/site/|archive-date=21 September 2012}}</ref>

It is possible to canoe on parts of the river between Stockport and Carrington.<ref>{{citation |title =Canoe trail of the River Mersey |url=http://www.canoe-england.org.uk/media/pdf/EA%20Merseyguidedraft.pdf/|publisher=Canoe England |access-date=27 August 2012}}</ref> Liverpool Sailing Club located at Garston Coastal Park on the north bank of the estuary has a 1000 feet slipway giving access to river for water sports.<ref>{{citation |title =Liverpool Sailing Club|url=http://www.liverpoolsailingclub.org|publisher=Liverpool Sailing Club |access-date=27 August 2012}}</ref>

The wooded suburban stretch of the river from above Howley Weir to Woolston is also used for recreational and competitive rowing, operated from the Warrington Rowing Club.{{citation needed|date=April 2018}}

Angling has become popular on some stretches of the river as fish such as [[perch]], [[Barbel (fish)|barbel]], [[Thymallus|grayling]], [[carp]], [[Common roach|roach]], [[chub]], [[trout]], [[Northern pike|pike]], [[bream]] and [[dace]] have been caught.
Warrington Anglers Association have fishing rights on a large stretch of the River through most of Warrington. Prince Albert Angling Society also have a small stretch near Rixton.{{citation needed|date=April 2018}}

The river has also faced problems regarding the poaching of fish despite a strict 'catch and release' policy imposed on anglers for ecological reasons which applies to most UK waterways.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.warringtonguardian.co.uk/news/10529076.Pair_guilty_of_illegal_fish_poaching/|title=Pair guilty of illegal fish poaching|work=Warrington Guardian|date=5 July 2013|access-date=21 November 2015}}</ref>

=== Mersey River Festival ===
The Mersey River Festival, rebranded in 2018 as ‘River Festival Liverpool’, was an annual event held on the river Mersey during a weekend in May or June between 1981 and 2019 to celebrate Liverpool's maritime tradition. Originally organised by the [[Merseyside Development Corporation]], the festival was later overseen by [[Liverpool City Council]] and Culture Liverpool. The last event was planned to take place between the 8 and 10 May 2020, but was cancelled due to [[COVID-19 lockdown in the United Kingdom|COVID]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=McColgan |first=Claire |title=River Festival 2020 |url=https://www.cultureliverpool.co.uk/river-festival-2020/ |access-date=13 November 2024 |website=Culture Liverpool}}</ref> As of 2024, the event has not returned.

During the 1990s the festival was the largest event if its kind in Europe.<ref>{{Cite news |date=20 May 1991 |title=River Festival Set to Make Waves |work=Liverpool Echo |pages=7}}</ref> In the 2010s the event attracted tens of thousands of people and included music stages and other waterside attractions alongside regattas, visiting vessels, and tall ships on the river.<ref>{{Cite web |title=What time is Liverpool's River Festival: Guide to weekend waterfront tall ships Pier Head spectacular |url=https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/liverpool-river-festival-tall-ships-4066772 |access-date=13 November 2024 |website=Liverpool Echo|date=6 June 2013 }}</ref>

Notable musical artists who have performed at the event include [[Katie Melua]], [[Shola Ama]] and [[Russell Watson]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hunt |first=Helen |date=2014-04-28 |title=Mersey River Festival set for June spectacular on Liverpool waterfront |url=https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/mersey-river-festival-set-june-7039979 |access-date=2025-01-25 |website=Liverpool Echo |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Kazich |first=Michael |date=2016-06-04 |title=Mersey River Festival 2016: Shola Ama - 30-second review |url=https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/mersey-river-festival-2016-shola-11428040 |access-date=2025-01-25 |website=Liverpool Echo |language=en}}</ref> Captain David Hawker was the Mersey River Festival's official artist from the late 1990s until the last event in 2019.<ref>{{Cite news |date=7 July 1999 |title=Sea Festival Draws Ex-Sailor's Talent |work=Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph |pages=16}}</ref> The painter attended annually to capture on paper the boats, attractions, visitors, and events as they unfolded.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Davis |first=Laura |title=Mersey River Festival Captured in Paint |date=5 June 2015 |url=https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/mersey-river-festival-captured-paint-9401207 |access-date=13 November 2024}}</ref>