Wrekin Woes

Crossing the bridge to start our walk

Lottie having a run

far from the crowds

It was a cooler morning and we got up later. After a leisurely breakfast Van Man drove over to the service point to empty the grey water, fill with fresh water and empty the toilet cassette. By the time we had done these jobs it was 10.00.

We decided to visit the Wrekin. Getting there was fine but parking was impossible as everybody else had gone there too. There was a one way route to the parking areas and out again but the main two parking areas were full of cars and cars lined the road wherever they could stop. Having gone beyond the Wrekin without finding room for a mini to park, Van Man turned around in a wide driveway and headed back towards Shrewsbury. 

bridge over a side arm

We followed the one way route passing even more parked cars then met a man driving towards us, oblivious of the one way route. Fortunately the road widened just in front of us so Van Man squeezed by. The wrong way man drove on causing the cars following us trouble when he reached the squeeze point opposite a cluster of parked cars.

            However it was probably not a good day to walk up the Wrekin as it began raining heavily. The rain did not last long but several heavy showers followed over the next two hours.

the canal and disused side arm

rooted in stone

We emerged in Wellington where Van Man was pleased to find a garage with diesel cheaper than any other he had passed. After filling up we trundled along to the Montford picnic area on the A5 which I had noticed (from yesterday’s journey) had a walk along the River Severn which passed under the A5. We arrived there just after 11.30 having driven through several showers and found ample parking beside a wide picnic area.

the side arm

site of an old liftbridge

Armed with waterproofs we followed a trail through the long grass which led to a wide grassy path running alongside the River Severn which had been kept mown for fishermen and walkers to enjoy.

Lottie on the Aqueduct

Lottie soon found a way down the steep bank and bathed in the water. We followed the river until the path came to an abrupt end at a local canoe centre. After Lottie had explored the slipway we strolled back to Sally Van for lunch.

As we arrived back we had another heavy shower but Lottie stayed outside on the damp grass while we ate our lunch.

going down under the aqueduct

come on you slow owners

After lunch the sky had brightened so we decided to try to find the Montgomery Canal at Pont as we were that side of Shrewsbury. We crossed the canal but there was nowhere to park a car let alone a large van so we drove on through Knocking and on to Queen’s Head having enjoyed the local views. Once there we headed to the car park we found yesterday to walk further up the canal towards Frankton Junction with Lottie whining to gain our attention when we passed the picnic area. Obviously she was happy to repeat yesterday’s walk. She was satisfied with our parking when she realised she could walk a new section of the canal.

This section took us away from the road through lovely countryside with sunny views of the Welsh hills. There were several canoes moving on this section but apart from meeting one couple we had the path to ourselves, not bad for walking in the high season.

at the end of our walk

We reached the aqueduct which crossed a small river. After looking at this we turned around and strolled back. The whole walk took us 1¾ hours, and was far easier than climbing up the Wrekin with hundreds of other people on the trail. Van Man then drove back to the camp site.



 As we passed Haughmond Abbey Van Man checked there was room to park Sally Van there.

We spent another quiet evening with a home cooked meal on site.