Caldicot to Chepstow 2 June 2016

This was a day of bridges.  And if it were not bridges it would have been pylons.  We caught a train from Newport to Caldicot, from which we walked beside the railway a little while, before turning down to the bank of the Severn over the M4 motorway.  The embankment took us back under the M4 again just where the bridge over the Severn began.  The vegetation was rough grassland and not of interest, except a pool with Brackish Water-crowfoot.  Hemlock Water-dropwort is one of the most common plants all along this coast and here we found a striking black-and-yellow caterpillar on it: the larva of the Dingy Flat-body Moth Depressaria daucella, whose British distribution appears to mirror that of its food-plant.  Eventually we reached the east end of the village of Sudbrook, where the railway (at its west end) goes into a tunnel beneath the Severn, delivering trains to London and Cheltenham.  We passed the rudimentary remains of the C12th church of Holy Trinity, most of which has fallen into the estuary (human bones from the graves are apparently sometimes washed ashore).  Continuing along the edge of the estuary we came to a park-like area, where we had a view of two lave-net fishermen wading out into the Severn across a channel between the shore and a rock area known as Lady Bench exposed only at low tides.  They walked gingerly across the swift waters to lower their nets into the main stream to trap salmon.  The low cliffs here are of Old Red Sandstone.  From here we bordered a saltmarsh area, the last bit of coast on the Wales Coast Path, where we could say goodbye to Sea Club-rush, English Scurvy-grass and Sea Milkwort.  We walked inland through improved meadow, colourful nonetheless with Red Clover and Meadow Buttercup, up St Pierre Pill.  We skirted a golf-course (where inadequate signing led to us having to talk to a local golfer about how to refind our path) and on through more fields (rather more docile cows  than heretofore) to the village of Mathern.  At the end of the village we crossed more fields to the edge of the M48 motorway and eventually to a paved way to a tunnel underneath the major junction where the Severn Road Bridge leaves across both the Wye estuary and the Severn.  The tunnel walls were painted by members of a youth project with skilful graffiti referring to features of the area, such as walking, fishing and cycling.  We were then at the edge of Bulwark, a southern suburb of Chepstow, with occasional views of the second Severn bridge.  A garden escape here appeared to be Cambridge Cranesbill Geranium x cantabrigiense with prominent projecting stamens.  The path then led along the east edge of Chepstow through woodland and some industrial areas with views over the Wye, which was largely brown mud because of the low tide.  A celebratory statue of a leaping salmon brought some silvery illumination into the gloom of the trees.  We stopped for a snack on a seat with a view over the Wye to Sedbury, where we could see where we had started the Offa’s Dyke walk 13 years ago.  After passing a massive old quarry we walked through more woods where there was an educational trail, including a dramatic spider's web stretched across a tall Ash tree.  We entered Chepstow through the remains of medieval walls with guard turrets, climbing up and then down streets towards the central area to Station Road and a large Tesco’s, before crossing the main road by St Marys Church into the centre at Beaufort Square, where we could find a place for coffee and a Post Office for sending American postcards (for which we had been waiting for almost a week, as the path never went anywhere near such a facility).  We then walked past the castle, down to the Information Centre to check the exact whereabouts of the start (end) of the official coast path.  This was just round a corner beside the River Wye.  There was a circular plaque in the ground to mark it, surrounded by a stone circle, with a magnificent backdrop of the Wye and cliffs opposite, and the third and fourth bridges, over the Wye by road from Chepstow to Sedbury, and, close by, a railway bridge.  We had now completed the whole Wales coast.  We walked to the station for a train back to Newport, and celebrated in the gardens of the Newbridge-on-Usk hotel where we were staying, drinking Pimms seated in the sunshine and watching Salmon jumping in the Usk below.  We thought back to the features of the day, one of which was a Jay, flying out of trees and crossing our path, and another was along the path beside Chepstow when, after a scurrying noise as of something being chased, a Grey Squirrel leapt over our heads from a garden fence on our left and into the trees on the other side of the path.  As to the longer view, the sense of achievement of having walked the whole coasts of England and Wales, parts of which will look different now from when we passed them years ago, as the coast is always changing, was mixed with a little melancholy to think that this particular saga is over.  The greatest impression has been the huge variety of natural and human history we have been privileged to encounter.

Pylons, Portskewett Depressaria daucella caterpillar

Under the Severn Bridge Brackish water-crowfoot

Lave-net fishermen Bay north of Sudbrook

Church ruins, Sudbrook Leaping salmon sculpture

Saltmarsh with English scurvy-grass End of coast path

Cambridge cranesbill

Meadow buttercups and red clover View over mudbanks of the Wye to Sedbury

Tunnel under M48 Chepstow Castle

Road bridge over the Wye Wye, Sedbury cliffs and railway bridge

THE END

Nash to Caldicot 1 June 2016

Having parked in central Newport near to the railway station (which has no parking), we took a taxi to the Newport Wetlands NNR Visitor Centre.  From here we followed the coast path west and around the perimeter of the reserve, a power station standing between it and the mouth of the Usk.  Although the OS map shows large lakes occupying most of the reserve, these are now almost entirely reed-beds, with only a small amount of open water.  Tufted Duck was the only water bird we saw, and there were few other birds to be seen.  There were, however, lots of Southern Marsh-orchids and one stem of Marsh Helleborine in bud, emerging through a dense growth of thistle, dock, Common Fleabane and Hemlock Water-dropwort.  We continued on the path, which on the southern edge of the reserve bordered the mud and saltmarsh of the Severn estuary.  We were unable to continue along the sea-wall, however, and the path diverts inland up a minor road to the few scattered houses of Saltmarsh.  Just before the Nash-Goldcliff road is reached a path goes east through fields and only comes out briefly along the road at the beginning of Goldcliff, before diverting south through fields again to the edge of Goldcliff Pill, which it then followed NE back into the far end of Goldcliff.  The Farmers Arms pub here was closed, although approaching lunchtime, so we continued east along the road to the track leading through a bird reserve, Goldcliff Lagoons, composed of several open water lakes, with hides overlooking.  We saw Lapwing here, plenty of Redshank, a few Dunlin and a lone Turnstone.  The coast path diverts east from here to a minor road leading to the shore, where we found a private house called Seawalls that had a rudimentary shop and sold basic food and drink, which one could consume in an attached room, summer-house or outside tables.  In an area with no other facilities (other than the now distant NNR visitor centre) this was welcome and we could take a break from a cold wind and dark cloudy skies.  Here the trail went to the top of the embankment and continued there eastwards for mile after endless mile, the, at first, vague outlines of the first Severn bridge helping to draw us on.  There was saltmarsh of Sea Plantain, Thrift and English Scurvy-grass, but generally the shore was plain mud, with occasional small groups of Shelduck, one group of Oystercatchers, a lone passing Cormorant, and a Heron frightened up by our presence from the inner ditch.  For a long time the embankment was cow-grazed and easy to walk, although with little botanical interest, apart from some Rest-harrow and Narrow-leaved Birdsfoot-trefoil.  The day was too windy, overcast and cool for much insect activity (only three butterflies in total), but we came across a Drinker Moth caterpillar in the path.  After we passed the smelly sewage-works south of Urdy, the grassland management of the embankment changed somewhat, so that there was hardly a flowering plant to be seen, and the path was rutted by vehicles driving along, probably in connection with bird-shooting, as private rights to this were asserted on a notice at the beginning of this section.  The only relief was a solitary Little Egret in a saltmarsh pool.  The walk here became more of a drudge (but then we had already walked a solid six miles of uniform embankment) and we were glad when the path turned inland beside a sluice towards Severn Tunnel and Caldicot stations, passing over the persistently noisy M4 motorway.  From the bridge we saw that we were just past the tollgate where we had had to queue on the way to this holiday - now it really felt that the end was very close indeed.  Although we walked to Caldicot, when we got there we found that few trains stopped there and we had to walk back to Severn Tunnel (only a mile away) to catch one to Newport and avoid waiting over an hour.

Newport Wetlands reed-marsh and power station separating it from the Usk Seawalls shop Distant view of the Severn Bridge - the goal in sight

Marsh helleborine in bud Narrow-leaved birdsfoot-trefoil

Southern marsh orchid Drinker moth caterpillar

Hemlock water-dropwort Sluice

M4 tollgate from bridge

St Brides Wentlooge to Nash (Newport Wetlands Reserve) 31 May 2016

At Lighthouse Inn there was a notice saying that the way east along the embankment was closed because of work on a bridge by National Rail, across which the path used to go at the end of the embankment.  We had noticed this the day before and found out from the internet that the way was closed until the end of June.  So we set off on the nearest alternative by road B4239 into which the path eventually runs.  When we got to this junction we found that the embankment way was open after all, a new temporary bridge having been provided!  (Moral: don’t trust information from anybody.)  That we had missed this part of the walk was particularly sad because we would now be on or by roads for several miles, although from the B4239 the coast walk briefly left roads on a paved path across grassland, over the Afon Ebwy, under the A48 by a tunnel whose walls were gaudily decorated by local gangland, and eventually into a road through an industrial estate.  We were in Newport, at least its southern fringe.  A few streets later we passed the preserved Transporter Bridge, which if it had been working could have provided a much needed lower crossing point of the River Usk and saved several miles of walking.  All one can do is look at it with regret.  The path then follows busy main roads to the A48 road bridge, although a new park area off the road going under the bridge meant we could get a few minutes respite from the noise and dust, a route which the official path has not yet recognised.  Having crossed the wide Usk we took a road south and then east entirely through factories to the other end of the transporter bridge, where a path led down the east bank of the river.  This gave a little respite because, although there were factories above us beyond the inland scrub and hedgerow, there was saltmarsh on the other side, with English Scurvy-grass conspicuously in flower.  Within a mile we were forced inland by factories occupying the bank and passed through more fumes and noise until we found ourselves following a cycle path towards Pye Corner.  This ran through rough scrub with little natural interest but at least it was "sort of" rural.  An excellent wooden seat here with a high back gave great support to our lunch-time rest.  Before reaching Pye Corner we turned south off the cycle track into footpaths through a meadowland reserve.  This was damp grassland recovering from more intensive use, as could be told by the fact that the dominant plant was Meadow Buttercup, but there were a few Southern Marsh-orchids to brighten the way and we saw our first Small Copper of the trip.  Straight ahead all the way was the prominent steeple of Nash Church.  We then reached the Nash road and crossed this following the coast path, but now we were in unpleasant poached cow pasture, with no plant interest, difficult rough ground (that would be especially difficult in wet weather), and frisky-going-on-belligerent heifers.  There was, however, a Mute Swan nesting on a stream bank here, apparently unperturbed by the cattle.  Only after a mile did we find ourselves in more pleasant paths through the edge of the Newport Wetlands National Nature Reserve, leading to the visitor centre run by the RSPB.  Here we got a refreshing drink/ice-lolly sitting before a picture window overlooking a large pond which had Mallard, Coot, Moorhen and Little Grebe.  From here we phoned for a Newport taxi back to our start.

Newport Transporter Bridge River Usk and road bridge

Nash church Rough pasture beyond Nash

Belligerent heifer Mute swan on nest

Cardiff to St Brides Wentlooge 30 May 2016

We took a taxi to St Brides Wentlooge and walked this section in reverse.  There is a useful car-park at the bottom of the road to the shore, at Lighthouse Inn, although we were not aware of this at the time, and walked down via footpaths from the village through long wet grass soaking our trousers and boots.  The only advantage to this was recording of more wetland plants, including the tallest Celery-leaved Buttercup we have ever seen, over a metre high (the maximum in Stace is 60cm).  Once at the shore we mounted the embankment of what is now essentially saltmarsh at the edge of the Severn Estuary, with North Somerset and Avonmouth visible in the grey horizon across the water.  This continued for miles west all the way to Cardiff.  Near Peterstone Wentlooge there was a low stone wall called Peterstone Great Wharf just beyond the embankment which seemed to have once enclosed a channel of water.  Beyond it there was grassy saltmarsh that may once have been enclosed as fields, before some later sea invasion.  There was just one diversion, because of construction of a higher embankment to protect a disposal site for hazardous waste situated just behind the embankment (how did this get through the planning department?).  This work was supposed to have been finished last September, but it looks as though the money ran out half way through.  This meant more long wet grass and a complicated route, so that having just dried out we were soaked again.  The embankment flora was the usual rough wasteland plants like docks, Hemlock Water-dropwort, and Hoary Cress.   There was however one colony of Austrian Yellow-cress, the first time we had encountered it.  Unfortunately it was not quite in flower; the lower leaves, however, are only toothed rather than distinctly lobed as in the otherwise similar great yellow-cress.  Insects included Sloe-bugs, the red-and-black bug Corizus hyoscyami and Red-headed Cardinal Beetle.  There were few birds of note, only an occasional Heron, but a large colony of Lapwings on the green saltmarsh fringe before the outer mud.  One group flew up in noisy agitation, flapping around wildly, as we saw a Hen Harrier flying out of the melee and across the embankment inland.  We also saw a Kestrel and a Buzzard.  When got to the former rubbish tip of Lamby, preventing further progress along the shore to the mouth of the Rhymney River, we had to turn inland up the eastern side along a new-made canal with a wide path, beside which we were surprised to find some Sea Clover.  There was also a lot of Pale Flax and one early Bee Orchid in flower.  After a mile we met a road, Lamby Way, with a path beside it continuing westwards, across a bridge over the Rhymney, to a roundabout where a path came off going south down the west bank of the river, just away from a road.  Nearby we saw a number of plants of Helleborines (not yet in flower) we assumed would be Broad-leaved.  In an area of wasteland there was a flowering shrub of Quince.  As the path reached the shore once more we found ourselves passing the Pengam Moors settlement of traveller families that had opposed the siting of the coast path across the head of their beach.  Whether it was a mark of revenge or whether it had always been so, the path and beach were hideously strewn with rubbish such as the remains of washing machines and burned-out cars and much other miscellaneous waste not bearing too close examination, the by-product we presume of their scavenging work.  There was also a collection of crowded hen-coops at one spot and dogs continually barked from behind a fence separating the housing and caravans from the track.  It was an experience redolent with history, conflict, class division and culture clash.  From this beach a track rose up a hill created out of a former rubbish tip, past a factory and sewage works, over a stream and along roads through a mile or more of industrial estate that was suddenly left behind as we reached the residential area where we had finished on the previous day.  From there it was the same walk to Jolyons, stopping off for coffee and roasted peppers at Bar 44 in Castle Street.  This evening we ate at Bully’s, a French restaurant.  It had been a fairly warm, initially sunny, later cloudy day, which brought out a smattering of insects, but no great quantities.  Most noticeable were the Thick-thighed Flower-beetles Odemera nobilis on the blooms of Ox-eye Daisy.  While most flowers attracted some insects, it was noticeable that nothing came to the flowers of Hemlock Water-dropwort, despite its abundance.

Oedemera nobilis Hoverfly Helophilus pendulus (rain has spattered the petals with spots of yellow pollen and grey grime)

Embankment at St Brides Wentlooge.  The distant dim grey bit is England. Flowery road verge, Lamby Way Quince

Former wharf, Peterstone Wentlooge, with hemlock water-dropwort Pengam Moors