Day 28 of the End to End in 2019 was the first of several spent on the Severn Way. This long distance path goes all the way from the source of the Severn in Wales to the sea at Avonmouth. Over 200 miles long, I did not walk the whole length as you will see but I was walking it for quite a few days. Personally, I liked the route. It’s lovely to be in sight of the water and the scenery is diverse as the river changes. There are also many interesting places along the route. I would like to go back and complete the walk to the source of the river sometime in the future.
You can find out more about the Severn Way here:
https://www.ldwa.org.uk/ldp/members/show_path.php?path_name=Severn+Way
Walking beside the Severn there was plenty of historical sites, like the villages of Old and New Passage which had been the crossing points before the Severn Bridge was built. Each has its own historical trail. There was also my first motorway services, the Severn Bridge Services. There would be no more walk-ins to motorway services until Cumbria on the M6. There was also Oldbury on Severn Nuclear Power Station, the first of several nuclear plants I would see on the LEJOG. No longer providing electricity to the National Grid this massive building dominated the river front and was like the ones Bob used to work in some years ago. Wild flowers and butterflies were numerous but only one herd of cattle took any notice of me (they decided to take the opposite direction).
I finished my walk that day at St Mary’s Church, Shepperdine. A small tin chapel (again, there would be several more of these on the whole LEJOG), it was erected in 1914 and regular services are still held there. It was lovely, it was open and there’s no better way to finish a day’s walk than to reflect on the remembered bible in a well loved spot.
From the remembered gospel
Seeing the infant Jesus for the first time, two elderly people, Simeon and Anna, were quite excited. Simeon said ‘Now let your servant go in peace’. Anna said ‘Look, there he is!’
I use this version of Anna’s song, based on Luke 2: 36-38, for evening prayer at the Mobile Chapel of St Scholastica
Anna’s Song
Look there he is,
See where I am pointing:
The one to liberate us all,
To set the world free to spin
And wheel across the universe.
Don’t miss this, see there:
Just look where I am pointing.
Glorious is the Creator,
Glorious is the Companion,
Glorious in the Spirit:
Holy Three, Holy One, now and forever.
Amen, Amen, Amen.
JAL: 29.04.2020 in Longdendale