Walking the Severn Way - Stage 29

Monday, 6th June, 2011
Oldbury-on-Severn - Severn Beach…   HOORAY!!!

Only 7.5 miles

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In this issue…

• The end of an era… 
• Large Skippers abound
• Stile challenges

Hello and welcome along again to the FINAL stage of our meandering stroll alongside the River Severn, through some of the most beautiful countryside of Wales and England tracing the whole of its length right from the source at Plynlimon high up in the Mid Wales mountains to its end at the Bristol Channel. Join us now for 210 miles of the stunning River Severn Way with its wonderfully diverse scenery, its fabulous flora and fascinating fauna.

Click here to see how far we've travelled to date 

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Thanks for joining Pam and me on our FINAL STAGE of our walk alongside the ever-changing River Severn with its diverse abundance of flora & fauna. We’re very glad you made it!
And what’s in your sandwich box today - anything interesting? Flask of tea done? All sorted and booted?

OK… Let’s go!!!
Our final day of our long distance walk starts with grey clouds but at least it’s not raining! As we leave Oldbury-on-Severn the views are great but after a while it can become a little monotonous as there’s little change. We just seem to walking along a raised man-made dyke that stretches for miles ahead. It’s pleasant enough walking with soft grass underfoot but a tad tedious. But the cows seem happy - and somewhat curious…

The timing and scheduling of these last few stages has been more relaxing as there have been no buses available to get us back to the start, so the need for timing has been far less critical. Today is a taxi ride back to Oldbury-on-Severn for the car and our return to Slimbridge for our final night’s sleep under the stars at our campsite.
Our last lunch together on our Severn Way is greeted with a little sadness but there’ll be other adventures to share in the future so don’t stray too far will you?
Aha.. and here comes the sun to uplift the spirit and bring a welcoming cheer! And the immediate warmth in the air brings out a few butterflies… mainly Large Skippers…

Always a delight to see.
OK - let’s get cracking for the last 3 miles.
When my legs start to ache I often stop to do a bit of gentle yoga-style stretching which causes Pam some amusement as bending over, my rucksack slips over my head, and I end up doing an odd forward-roll ending in an ungainly lump! Must remember to take the sack off first in future!
Our last stretch gives us a challenge or two with a couple of stiles:-
 
Ad did someone lose a finger I wonder on this one!

The Second Severn Bridge, connecting England to Wales across the river, draws closer and marks almost the end of our walk.
This  is the last bridge we’ll pass and carries the busy M4 at the head of the estuary - The Bristol Channel. This is one of two Severn Bridges within close proximity but this one is the latest one - opened in 1996. The other, carrying the M48 is just a couple of miles north of this one and was opened 30 years earlier in 1966. There is also a railway tunnel which crosses under the river close to this handsome suspension bridge.
Our path crosses right over the bridge itself and quite high so we look down on the traffic.

A short mile later and we’re walking on a sort of promenade which is quite pleasant and then…
we’re here! This is it! The end of a 2-year project. We’ve arrived at Severn Beach and the finish of our 210 mile walk together.
I don’t know about you but I feel this is a bit of an anti-climax. First of all there’s no sign anywhere to say this is the end of the Severn Way and although this is the recognised end there’s an optional extra 14.5 miles which would take us into the heart of Bristol city. We never intended to do this extra stretch. This is the official end. But there’s nothing here that trumpets that. There’s not even a pub nearby for a celebratory drink. Oh well… would one of you care to take a photo of us to mark it?
  
Both Pam and I would like to thank you all for joining us on this lovely walk.  We’ve shared a little fun, we’ve seen some wonderful flora & fauna and we’ve certainly enjoyed your company. We hope you’ve enjoyed ours.

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We'll make them most welcome. The more the merrier! I know I've said before that I quite like walking on my own but you're so quiet I hardly notice you're there! Walking The Severn Way together it's really only at the end of each stage you tend to make a comment, and talking of comments... Don't forget to leave one below; help, advice, silly banter, words of encouragement are all very much welcomed and I know then you're definitely following us!
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Bye for now

Paul and Pam
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