Another very interesting video. Some comments. 1. You are correct, the white structures with X on top are navigation aids. The short one is a front range mark and the tall one is a rear range mark, for downbound ships in the stretch just upstream. When the pilot/helmsman has them in line, they are on course. 2. The cars would be from Portbury Dock, not imported thru Sharpness. 3. The two inbound ships are small general cargo ships, or 'mini bulkers', carrying around 3 to 4,000 tons of cargo. First one looked fully loaded, second partly. Cargo most likely cement from Santander or fertilizer (potash) from Antwerp or Baltic ports.
That's brilliant information - thank you! I will pin your comment - I knew one of my knowledgable viewers would know the answers. Thanks for clarifying and giving a lot of useful and interesting information. Thanks for watching too! Cheers, Paul
Thank you! To add No.4. The original Sharpness & Glos canal was built long before any docks at Avonmouth. The first dock at Avonmouth, and Portishead Dock are contemporary with the 'new' Sharpness Dock.
Thank you Daryl! It is a huge (and long!) river, and it will get much, much wider yet as we get to the final stages. I have thoroughly enjoyed and feel privileged to have (nearly) walked the entire length of this beautiful and majestic, but also wild and dangerous, river. Cheers, Paul
Hello Paul - greetings from Poland A lovely walk following The Severn Way to Oldbury. Lots of interesting things to see. I had no idea that both power stations are being decomissioned - what is replacing them I wonder? From memory, Sharpness Docks biggest import is fertilizer and biggest export is scrap metal! Those ships looked like bulk carriers to me. I have no idea what they were carrying. I really hope you were not too tired by the time you had completed the return journey, back to your car. I hope subscribers realise that no only did you double the walk, but you also had to double up on part of the video where you filmed yourself walking along! Well done old friend.
Final land clearance of Oldbury power station is due to start in 2096 and it will finally finish in 2101 so I guess nothing will replace them for quite sometime to come
Looks like they are planning to build a new nuclear power station there soon, but not on top of the Magnox reactors of course. The whole site is now owned by Hitachi, and it was sold to them recently. Cheers, Paul
Thank you Michael - you are too kind, but it was a mammoth one for sure! A very long and quite tiring by the time I got home. I do feel privileged to have done it though, and the next two should be easier, in theory! yes, you are quite correct about the fertiliser and scrap metal - that is still very much the case. Although I knew a lot of this route, I am completely unfamiliar with the final two sections, so I am really looking forward to that. Hope you are having a good week! Cheers, Paul
Wow! What a video! Such a long walk on such a hot day! An awesome achievement which required dedication. You still gave us loads of interesting facts too! A really beautiful, peaceful scenic video. Thank you!
Thank you Louise - this one was mammoth! You can't break this one half way as there are no stops or road access with parking en route. The final two should be easier. I have become quite attached to Sabrina though, and I will be a little sad when I film the last one, I think. It has been an amazing journey to follow the river along its entire length. Thanks for a lovely comment! Take care, Paul
Really enjoyed this one Paul, especially the music. Out of interested we lived on our narrowboat for about 18 months , moored in Sharpness marina, in the old pond that leads to the now disused sea lock.
Thank you Bernard! Glad you enjoyed it. Ah, yes, I remember passing that at the end of Severn Way 23. Sharpness is such a fascinating area. Cheers, Paul
Thank you Frank! It is the reverse for me - I am familiar with a lot of this section, but I am completely unfamiliar with all of the rest towards Severn Beach and Bristol Harbour (Severn Way Link) . I think I last went to Severn Beach in 1969? So, it will be an interesting walk , I feel. Cheers! Paul
Ah, a great episode Paul, I did twice visit the Winbound pub back in the 90’s but didn’t revisit some 25 years later and while not surprised it was gone due to its remote location I was indeed surprised as to why it had gone, sad though.. I myself went along towards the oldbury power station too and was surprised with all things you could see, it was so interesting. The final dates for decommissioning is 2100 or so.. seems really odd that most of the life of a Nuclear power station is without making power but it will keep some folk in employment for quite sometime yet…
Thank you Lee! Yes, that's true - it goes into a 'care & maintenance' stage before the towers can be dismantled, and the whole thing bulldozed over. It seemed to have an exemplary safety record and no issues with 'leakages' of stuff into the Severn, unlike other utility companies that shall remain nameless!! Just found out the Windbound was originally The New Inn - name changed around 1960 I think. Cheers! Paul
Thank you Jonathan! And, yes, I fully agree with you. In fact, I would add that this entire river is underrated, and this amazing walk alongside it, which very few seem to do, or, indeed, know about, apart from small sections in the urban areas. It has been an incredible experience, which is now drawing to a close, and to its final destination, Bristol. Thanks for watching and the comment. Paul
Yes, it looks like Berkeley Pill is a combination of Conigre Pill, the Doverte Brook, and the Little Avon River, which itself seems to rise in the Cotswolds at Hawkesbury Upton. Cheers, Paul
Ah,Paul,you have outdone yourself with this video! I am running out of superlatives! This was full of information- I knew about Berkeley Nuclear Power Station but not that it had been decommissioned- it had a very short lifespan ( you mentioned Oldbury’s , Berkeley was decommissioned in 1989- think that’s 27 yrs) To my shame I had never heard of Oldbury! They are so near to each other,they are like one complex! I looked up NDA and it stands for Nuclear Decommissioning Authority. All these confusing acronyms! I did ‘feel’ for your feet & legs in all that morning dew! So uncomfortable! ( & it occurred to me that it was ideal territory for ticks) but you very sensibly do cover up. We have a ‘World’s End ‘ near us & on my travels I have often seen this sign. It must signify something - can’t think what! I felt very sad seeing the Teddies cuddling by the fence. Put there for a reason. The ships going up the Severn looked like sister ships? I looked up the one mentioned & it is off the coast of Brittany at the moment- you can track them- & is heading for Sweden & has been in different ports these last few months!
Yes! Ticks! I always tuck my socks (two pairs!) over my trousers - something I learnt from school trips to the Brecon Beacons on survival training in the 1970s - doubt if they would dare do that now! Isn't there a famous pub with the same name (world's end) in London?I have no idea where it originates from. The nuclear power station is in essence like a super efficient steam engine - inside it is a mass of pipes, condensers, turbines, fans, cooling equipment. Incredible piece of engineering. The reactors are behind two huge thick concrete walls. But, it takes sometime due to half life of the spent uranium (100 years) before it can be dismantled. Thanks so much Diana Cheers, Paul
Great to see you back on the Severn, getting very close to journey's end,have walked this stretch many times usually when the rain is horizontal 😁the random gate and handrail you passed we had to put in so the salmon fisherman could access his pitchers with the obligatory,danger do not enter sign on the gate⛔.I have got some photos of when they were building the second Severn crossing as we always seemed to be down severn beach doing maintenance.
Thank you! Just two sections to go (including the 'Bristol Link') - very few sections of The Severn Way seem to be used by walkers (why?); from what I have seen on the 24 walks along its length so far, I get the impression that the next bit might be one that is, judging by the number of times I see it on my Facebook feed. I don't know the next bit at all - I think I was last in Severn Beach around 1967-1968, but too young to remember then! Amazing to think how a big 'seaside' resort it once was.... It has been an fantastic experience to have (nearly) walked all of Sabrina - and I have a real feel for this incredible river and her moods now. I think the suprising thing for me was just how wide and fast it was flowing just a few miles from the source on Mt. Plymlymon by the time I had got to Llanidloes in Powys, Wales - I has expected a wide stream, I think. You could already tell it was destined for 'big things' even 100s of miles back then. Cheers! Paul
Thank goodness you had use of the few well placed benches on the walk. It's amazing what you covered that day & it was a super video with wonderful views & really interesting information. I hope your boots have stopped squeaking.
Thank you Faith! Glad you enjoyed it. Yes, my boots have stopped squeaking! They dried out at Oldbury in the sunshine - my feet were dry though, but my legs were soaked. I keep my boots well waxed with plenty of dubbin. It was quite a day! I left home at 4.30am and got back home at 9.30pm - the longest time I have ever spent on one video, as well as nearly two days editing it all! Still, at least I won't need to walk back to my car on the final two sections. Take care, Paul
Hi Paul, What a great walk and one that brings back many memories for me! Opposite the chapel at Sharpness there were railway sidings and in the early 60s my oldest brother took me to see all the steam locos that were there for scrapping. The stone built structure at Hill Pill has always intrigued me it looks as though it could have been a loading jetty and the pill has probably silted up considerably over the years. I remember the Windbound very well and the wooden hulk that used to be on the bank there which was burnt sometime in the mid 70s, the pub later became a residential home for adults with learning difficulties and they ran a very good cafe there that was in the early 2000s it was demolished to make way for a new nuclear power station that was going to be identical to one in North Wales which was going to be built first the idea being that any construction problems would be resolved before building the one near Sheperdine, The crane at Oldbury Power Station was part of the power stations extensive cooling system and was used to lift the sluice gates, you can walk around the back of the power station and see the now very overgrown ponds that were also part of the system.
Thank you Grant! It was an awesome walk, if a tad tiring, especially on the way back, walk. That would have been a brilliant, but slightly depressing, sight to see all of the soon to be scrapped steam locos lined up. I think the new nuclear power station at Oldbury (to be built by Hitachi, like the GWR IET trains!) is still going ahead. Wow! Those sluice gates must have been very heavy to lift if they needed that crane, but I can imagine the force of the water behind them. I would have loved to have visited The Windbound when it was open - wonderful location. Thanks for watching, Take care, Paul
A wonderful panoramic walk with superb images of the Severn. The light was something special, especially the early morning light - I guess not long after daybreak. One reason the path seems so little used, might be the lack of public transport in the area, which as you point out, creates logistical headaches for the intrepid hiker. Perhaps things will improve with housing developments at Sharpness. All very enjoyable. Thank you.
Thank you Malcolm! Glad you enjoyed it. It was a super, if a little tiring and, at times, very hot walk. My plan didn't really work as the temperature kept climbing all day, up to around 30 by 7.30pm when it started to dip. I was melted by the time I got back to the car - with the a/c on full! Less miles on the next one - I will let the train and bus take the strain. Cheers, Paul
Yes, that's true Haydn, with regard to Gloucester. Not sure if they arrived by rail from Abingdon to Gloucester though - they certainly left there via that route. As the viewer says on the comment pinned to the top, it looks like the cars imported aren't imported to here though, but arrive by lorry from Portbury Dock and then moved via road to Sharpness. Cheers, Paul
Thank you. Yes, I mentioned that on both this video, and in my Bristol video - 1373 was when it became independent from both Gloucestershire and Somerset . Looks like the border between South Glos and Bristol on the Severn Way is at Crooks Marsh at Chittening Warth. I will be sure to look out for that on the final section. Cheers, Paul
Another very interesting video. Some comments.
1. You are correct, the white structures with X on top are navigation aids. The short one is a front range mark and the tall one is a rear range mark, for downbound ships in the stretch just upstream. When the pilot/helmsman has them in line, they are on course.
2. The cars would be from Portbury Dock, not imported thru Sharpness.
3. The two inbound ships are small general cargo ships, or 'mini bulkers', carrying around 3 to 4,000 tons of cargo. First one looked fully loaded, second partly. Cargo most likely cement from Santander or fertilizer (potash) from Antwerp or Baltic ports.
That's brilliant information - thank you! I will pin your comment - I knew one of my knowledgable viewers would know the answers.
Thanks for clarifying and giving a lot of useful and interesting information.
Thanks for watching too!
Cheers,
Paul
Thank you! To add No.4. The original Sharpness & Glos canal was built long before any docks at Avonmouth. The first dock at Avonmouth, and Portishead Dock are contemporary with the 'new' Sharpness Dock.
A very beautiful walk and took up most of the day I imagine. I also never realized just how big the Severn is. Amazing. Thank you Paul.👍
Thank you Daryl!
It is a huge (and long!) river, and it will get much, much wider yet as we get to the final stages.
I have thoroughly enjoyed and feel privileged to have (nearly) walked the entire length of this beautiful and majestic, but also wild and dangerous, river.
Cheers,
Paul
Hello Paul - greetings from Poland
A lovely walk following The Severn Way to Oldbury. Lots of interesting things to see. I had no idea that both power stations are being decomissioned - what is replacing them I wonder?
From memory, Sharpness Docks biggest import is fertilizer and biggest export is scrap metal! Those ships looked like bulk carriers to me. I have no idea what they were carrying.
I really hope you were not too tired by the time you had completed the return journey, back to your car. I hope subscribers realise that no only did you double the walk, but you also had to double up on part of the video where you filmed yourself walking along! Well done old friend.
Final land clearance of Oldbury power station is due to start in 2096 and it will finally finish in 2101 so I guess nothing will replace them for quite sometime to come
Looks like they are planning to build a new nuclear power station there soon, but not on top of the Magnox reactors of course. The whole site is now owned by Hitachi, and it was sold to them recently.
Cheers,
Paul
Thank you Michael - you are too kind, but it was a mammoth one for sure! A very long and quite tiring by the time I got home.
I do feel privileged to have done it though, and the next two should be easier, in theory!
yes, you are quite correct about the fertiliser and scrap metal - that is still very much the case.
Although I knew a lot of this route, I am completely unfamiliar with the final two sections, so I am really looking forward to that.
Hope you are having a good week!
Cheers,
Paul
Beautiful scenery ❤. Thank you for sharing it to us 🌼🌸🌹.
Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it.
Cheers,
Paul
Wow! What a video! Such a long walk on such a hot day! An awesome achievement which required dedication. You still gave us loads of interesting facts too! A really beautiful, peaceful scenic video. Thank you!
Thank you Louise - this one was mammoth! You can't break this one half way as there are no stops or road access with parking en route.
The final two should be easier.
I have become quite attached to Sabrina though, and I will be a little sad when I film the last one, I think.
It has been an amazing journey to follow the river along its entire length.
Thanks for a lovely comment!
Take care,
Paul
Really enjoyed this one Paul, especially the music. Out of interested we lived on our narrowboat for about 18 months , moored in Sharpness marina, in the old pond that leads to the now disused sea lock.
Thank you Bernard!
Glad you enjoyed it.
Ah, yes, I remember passing that at the end of Severn Way 23.
Sharpness is such a fascinating area.
Cheers,
Paul
Hi Paul i enjoyed the walk great views and info👌👌
Thank you Roy!
Hope you are having a great week - just off to vote, then filming.
I will try and catch your Kingswear video later.
Cheers,
Paul
Another interesting video. Thanks. A stretch that I have not walked, but look forward to the next part where I have walked a few times in the past.
Thank you Frank!
It is the reverse for me - I am familiar with a lot of this section, but I am completely unfamiliar with all of the rest towards Severn Beach and Bristol Harbour (Severn Way Link) .
I think I last went to Severn Beach in 1969? So, it will be an interesting walk , I feel.
Cheers!
Paul
Berkeley was frequently flooded when spring tides were high hence the sluice gates installed in 50's
Yes, that's true. My mum, who grew up nearby in Slimbridge, remembers the flooding there. Cheers, Paul
Ah, a great episode Paul, I did twice visit the Winbound pub back in the 90’s but didn’t revisit some 25 years later and while not surprised it was gone due to its remote location I was indeed surprised as to why it had gone, sad though.. I myself went along towards the oldbury power station too and was surprised with all things you could see, it was so interesting. The final dates for decommissioning is 2100 or so.. seems really odd that most of the life of a Nuclear power station is without making power but it will keep some folk in employment for quite sometime yet…
Thank you Lee!
Yes, that's true - it goes into a 'care & maintenance' stage before the towers can be dismantled, and the whole thing bulldozed over.
It seemed to have an exemplary safety record and no issues with 'leakages' of stuff into the Severn, unlike other utility companies that shall remain nameless!!
Just found out the Windbound was originally The New Inn - name changed around 1960 I think.
Cheers!
Paul
Very interesting, the Severn estuary is so underrated.😊
Thank you Jonathan!
And, yes, I fully agree with you.
In fact, I would add that this entire river is underrated, and this amazing walk alongside it, which very few seem to do, or, indeed, know about, apart from small sections in the urban areas. It has been an incredible experience, which is now drawing to a close, and to its final destination, Bristol.
Thanks for watching and the comment.
Paul
Pill is also the little Avon flow they join at Berkeley.
Yes, it looks like Berkeley Pill is a combination of Conigre Pill, the Doverte Brook, and the Little Avon River, which itself seems to rise in the Cotswolds at Hawkesbury Upton.
Cheers,
Paul
The weir is a sluice gate to stop the pill being tidal in berkeley.
It looks like this one was done first, and the one at Oldbury in the early 1970s. Oldbury suffered similarly to Berkeley
Ah,Paul,you have outdone yourself with this video! I am running out of superlatives!
This was full of information- I knew about Berkeley Nuclear Power Station but not that it had been decommissioned- it had a very short lifespan ( you mentioned Oldbury’s , Berkeley was decommissioned in 1989- think that’s 27 yrs) To my shame I had never heard of Oldbury! They are so near to each other,they are like one complex!
I looked up NDA and it stands for Nuclear Decommissioning Authority. All these confusing acronyms!
I did ‘feel’ for your feet & legs in all that morning dew! So uncomfortable! ( & it occurred to me that it was ideal territory for ticks) but you very sensibly do cover up.
We have a ‘World’s End ‘ near us & on my travels I have often seen this sign. It must signify something - can’t think what!
I felt very sad seeing the Teddies cuddling by the fence. Put there for a reason.
The ships going up the Severn looked like sister ships? I looked up the one mentioned & it is off the coast of Brittany at the moment- you can track them- & is heading for Sweden & has been in different ports these last few months!
Yes! Ticks! I always tuck my socks (two pairs!) over my trousers - something I learnt from school trips to the Brecon Beacons on survival training in the 1970s - doubt if they would dare do that now!
Isn't there a famous pub with the same name (world's end) in London?I have no idea where it originates from.
The nuclear power station is in essence like a super efficient steam engine - inside it is a mass of pipes, condensers, turbines, fans, cooling equipment. Incredible piece of engineering. The reactors are behind two huge thick concrete walls. But, it takes sometime due to half life of the spent uranium (100 years) before it can be dismantled.
Thanks so much Diana
Cheers,
Paul
What a amazing video, true dedication to be up so early in the morning to film. I had forgotten the Windbound had closed and interesting to know why.
Thank you Ted - that is very kind of you.
Paul
Great to see you back on the Severn, getting very close to journey's end,have walked this stretch many times usually when the rain is horizontal 😁the random gate and handrail you passed we had to put in so the salmon fisherman could access his pitchers with the obligatory,danger do not enter sign on the gate⛔.I have got some photos of when they were building the second Severn crossing as we always seemed to be down severn beach doing maintenance.
Thank you!
Just two sections to go (including the 'Bristol Link') - very few sections of The Severn Way seem to be used by walkers (why?); from what I have seen on the 24 walks along its length so far, I get the impression that the next bit might be one that is, judging by the number of times I see it on my Facebook feed. I don't know the next bit at all - I think I was last in Severn Beach around 1967-1968, but too young to remember then! Amazing to think how a big 'seaside' resort it once was....
It has been an fantastic experience to have (nearly) walked all of Sabrina - and I have a real feel for this incredible river and her moods now. I think the suprising thing for me was just how wide and fast it was flowing just a few miles from the source on Mt. Plymlymon by the time I had got to Llanidloes in Powys, Wales - I has expected a wide stream, I think. You could already tell it was destined for 'big things' even 100s of miles back then.
Cheers!
Paul
Thank goodness you had use of the few well placed benches on the walk. It's amazing what you covered that day & it was a super video with wonderful views & really interesting information. I hope your boots have stopped squeaking.
Thank you Faith!
Glad you enjoyed it.
Yes, my boots have stopped squeaking! They dried out at Oldbury in the sunshine - my feet were dry though, but my legs were soaked. I keep my boots well waxed with plenty of dubbin.
It was quite a day! I left home at 4.30am and got back home at 9.30pm - the longest time I have ever spent on one video, as well as nearly two days editing it all!
Still, at least I won't need to walk back to my car on the final two sections.
Take care,
Paul
Dubbin is magical stuff.
Lovely video thanks for sharing now put those tired feet up ❤
Thank you Jane!
Yes, they are all rested now, and itching (not literally!) for their next wanders!
Thanks for watching and commenting.
Take care,
Paul
Hi Paul, What a great walk and one that brings back many memories for me!
Opposite the chapel at Sharpness there were railway sidings and in the early 60s my oldest brother took me to see all the steam locos that were there for scrapping.
The stone built structure at Hill Pill has always intrigued me it looks as though it could have been a loading jetty and the pill has probably silted up considerably over the years.
I remember the Windbound very well and the wooden hulk that used to be on the bank there which was burnt sometime in the mid 70s, the pub later became a residential home for adults with learning difficulties and they ran a very good cafe there that was in the early 2000s it was demolished to make way for a new nuclear power station that was going to be identical to one in North Wales which was going to be built first the idea being that any construction problems would be resolved before building the one near Sheperdine,
The crane at Oldbury Power Station was part of the power stations extensive cooling system and was used to lift the sluice gates, you can walk around the back of the power station and see the now very overgrown ponds that were also part of the system.
Thank you Grant!
It was an awesome walk, if a tad tiring, especially on the way back, walk.
That would have been a brilliant, but slightly depressing, sight to see all of the soon to be scrapped steam locos lined up.
I think the new nuclear power station at Oldbury (to be built by Hitachi, like the GWR IET trains!) is still going ahead.
Wow! Those sluice gates must have been very heavy to lift if they needed that crane, but I can imagine the force of the water behind them.
I would have loved to have visited The Windbound when it was open - wonderful location.
Thanks for watching,
Take care,
Paul
A wonderful panoramic walk with superb images of the Severn. The light was something special, especially the early morning light - I guess not long after daybreak. One reason the path seems so little used, might be the lack of public transport in the area, which as you point out, creates logistical headaches for the intrepid hiker. Perhaps things will improve with housing developments at Sharpness. All very enjoyable. Thank you.
Thank you Malcolm!
Glad you enjoyed it.
It was a super, if a little tiring and, at times, very hot walk. My plan didn't really work as the temperature kept climbing all day, up to around 30 by 7.30pm when it started to dip. I was melted by the time I got back to the car - with the a/c on full!
Less miles on the next one - I will let the train and bus take the strain.
Cheers,
Paul
You mentioned the cars at Sharpness. I believe they used to export cars from Gloucester docks, Morris I think, to Ireland?
Yes, that's true Haydn, with regard to Gloucester. Not sure if they arrived by rail from Abingdon to Gloucester though - they certainly left there via that route.
As the viewer says on the comment pinned to the top, it looks like the cars imported aren't imported to here though, but arrive by lorry from Portbury Dock and then moved via road to Sharpness.
Cheers,
Paul
According to my grandfather they were “piggy backed “ by road. Towed by a lorry with their front wheels off the ground??!
The ship JSP TORNOE according to Vessel Finder it is now on it’s way to Kalmar Sweden
Thank you!
Looks like it was carrying fertiliser according to another viewer's comment.
very new ship too.
Cheers,
Paul
Don’t forget when you get to Bristol, it is a city and county of Bristol, not south Glos or North Somerset.
Thank you.
Yes, I mentioned that on both this video, and in my Bristol video - 1373 was when it became independent from both Gloucestershire and Somerset .
Looks like the border between South Glos and Bristol on the Severn Way is at Crooks Marsh at Chittening Warth. I will be sure to look out for that on the final section.
Cheers,
Paul