3rd February 2018 - Sudbrook and Portskewett

After last week’s ‘walk turned into pub review’ blog, we return with a real walk. A rather lovely one too. As mentioned last week I wanted to get maximum use of the small section of map that I had paid for. So, this week we walked around Sudbrook and Portskewett. This is the Welsh side of the Severn Estuary between the two motorway bridges. Don’t worry, it’s nicer than it sounds.

The new Severn Bridge.

We parked up next to the level-crossing through Caldicot industrial estate. This is quite a common dog walking spot. Be careful though. The locals don’t seem to like picking up after their dogs. Watch your step. The path follows the water northwards up to Sudbrook. The weather was a bit grey but the vista was still fairly nice. Avonmouth industrial estate is clearly visible across the water.  

VICTORY!

Sudbrook itself has a few oddities and follies of interest despite its small size. There is the small ruined Trinity Presbyterian church which is sadly fenced off. Also of interest is the pumping station. This was built in Victorian times to pump water out of the Severn Tunnel. Amazingly it’s still going today. Hopefully it’s had a few upgrades since then. There are plenty of information boards dotted about which amazingly haven’t been vandalised.

Enjoying a quick break.

The next stop is Black Rock Picnic Site. This is a great spot to view the estuary from. Both bridges are clearly visible and there are plenty of information boards about the area. My favourite was the board describing the local fishermen who go out into the mud and shallow waters at low tide to collect their catch. You really do need some local knowledge to even think about venturing out into the estuary. Its waters are lethal.  

Checking out the local information.

The path continues up to next bridge but as we live right next to it we decided to head back through the fields to Portskewett. Not much to see here so we followed the path back over the railway lines into some more fields. There is another small ruined building here but not much else to see. This is a great shorter walk. Although we did find ourselves stopping a lot to look at things of interest. So, it’s not far distance wise but it still ended up taking over three hours. It probably would have been over four if we’d read all the information in Sudbrook. I highly recommended walk for history and geology buffs.

A rare chance to check out the world underneath you.

10th February 2018 - The Rose Inn Redwick

Apologies for the absence of several weeks but holiday and injury has kept us from you (a dislocated shoulder since you ask). Today’s walk started out as a walking blog but has now become a pub review due to the honking state of the weather. There is a small area of Severn Estuary on the Welsh side which requires you to buy the map which shows almost entirely the English side on the south, which is annoying as I had to buy a map of somewhere else to get a tiny bit of where I am. Anyway, since begrudgingly forking out for this map we have been making maximum use of it. Today we planned to walk the section from near Summerleaze to Goldcliff. However, the aforementioned weather made other plans. 

Lamb shank. Drool.

We parked at the end of a narrow lane that leads to a sewage treatment plant just past Pill Farm. There are usually several cars parked here so arrive early, unless of course the weather is awful. We followed the track down to the water and scrambled up onto the bank. We were hit in the face with a howling wind blowing freezing rain straight at us, so back down again we went. Out of the wind it was just dreary rather than completely miserable. Why we didn’t bring waterproof trousers I’ll never know. 

Every pub should be decorated like this. 

We decided to cut it short at Redcliff where The Rose Inn is situated. This is a great old fashioned pub. No brewery association as far as I could tell. The walls were covered in various brass objects like pubs used to be. It had a large car park and despite being in the middle of nowhere it seemed quite popular. Obviously, Chuck was made to feel very welcome and was fussed over quite a lot. The drinks selection was pretty good. Prices were reasonable too. But they cater to the ale drinker rather than the connoisseur spirit drinker. 

Specials board. And the lamb shank was very special.

After a few we decided time was cracking on and dinner wasn’t going to cook itself. So we decided to stay and eat in the pub. The food was home-cooked fayre of a good standard. It wasn’t going to win any Michelin stars but that isn’t the idea here. It was tasty, well cooked and there was plenty of it for the price. The menu was extensive and there was a specials board too, so plenty of choice. 

Can we go yet? Chuck getting excited over the pub stop as usual.

When we saw a gap in the rain we set off back for the car along the road. It hadn’t been much of a walk but at least we got out for a bit. We still did 90 odd minutes in the wet stuff, so not a bad effort. Anyway, The Rose Inn, Redcliff is highly recommended for both food and drink. I’d certainly head back there.