Day 11. Stourport on Severn to Worcester.

Thursday 1 September.

To the south of Stourport marine activity increased and the path actually passes through a boatyard with large cranes. A little further along we passed a large marina packed with small boats.

We then came to Lincomb lock, a Severn lock rather than a canal lock. A times there are barriers across the Severn. Steel hawsers threaded at intervals with large orange plastic floats.

The pathway was good but varied in character from natural to mowed. There were lots of campsites in the area, most very smart but some appeared derelict, possibly a result of flooding.

We passed by what appeared to be a riding school with a large event area. Some people looked to be under instruction.

There were quite a few barges and some interesting river views.

We crossed the river by the bridge near the Holt lock and called in for a shandy at the Hotel nearby.

At this point the path left the river to run over farmland. There were lots of signs set out for a 24hr endurance running race due to start to day.

We lost the trail once or twice with the surfeit of farm tracks and the fact that some markers had been removed/damaged. The race seemed to be following the route of the Severn Way.

We passed through a quarry on the way to Grimley, with its fine church and thatched pub. From Grimley the path headed back to the river where it remained all the way to Worcester.

For the first time we found the path almost blocked by a fallen tree and at times it came dangerously near to the river. We entered a wooded area with a sign indicating we were now in the city of Worcester. The were lots of 'no camping'  and 'no fires' signs.The path then left the wooded area to run in front of very expensive riverside housing into Worcester.

We were very tired by this time, having been walking over 9 hours but we found that two benches located beside the river had been vandalised. What a surprise in front of such  well kept gardens.

We crossed over the Severn by a small footbridge near the racecourse to eventually reach our hotel, the George, in the centre.

I check the gps and we had covered 19.5 miles! At least we now have a day off to go to the laundrette.