Now one of the longest waymarked walking trails in Britain, the Severn Way traces a route along the entire Severn Valley from source to sea, a walking distance of around 210 miles (338kms).

Linking two countries with diverse cultures, the path is an ideal way to explore the towns and villages, history and heritage of Wales and England, whilst at the same time passing through some superb countryside.

From the source

The Severn rises on the wild Plynlimon plateau in mid-Wales, plunging through Hafren Forest past picnic areas to Llanidloes, the first town on the river with its fine half-timbered Market Hall.

Flowing onwards through an increasingly wide valley it reaches Newtown,the largest town on the upper Severn which developed in medieval times as the centre of the Welsh Flannel industry, vying for trade with nearby Welshpool, whose prosperity developed on the back of a thriving livestock market and agricultural produce trade.

The Severn Way follows the Montgomeryshire Canal, along which goods from the Severn were transported from the head of navigation on the river at Pool Quay, near Welshpool. The Severn flows into England along a tightly meandering course, passing in the shadow of some of the oldest hills in Britain - the rocks of Breidden Hill and The Wrekin are about 800 million years old.

Shrewsbury and Ironbridge

Between these ancient landmarks lies Shrewsbury, its wealth of narrow medieval streets, courtyards and alleyways overhung by halftimbered houses and pubs crowded between the massive edifices of castle and abbey. Just downstream the riverside pastures conceal the site of Viroconium,one of the foremost Roman sites in the country.

In its middle reaches the Severn carves its way through ridges of limestone and sandstones to form a long,sinuous gorge. Sheltering beneath its cliffs is the World Heritage Site of Ironbridge, birthplace of the Industrial Revolution.

This industrial heritage is displayed in countless museums and interpreted sites. Less obvious but an equal joy to discover is the remarkable variety of flora and fauna in the river, along the banks and within the cool, broadleaf woodlands which cloak the gorge for much of the next 25 miles.

The Middle Severn

Where tributary streams join the Severn, and at lower points in the gorge side, towns such as Bridgnorth and Bewdley have grown up. The two are linked today by the famous Severn Valley Railway, where the sounds of its steam trains echo throughout the valley. In former times these towns were thriving inland ports,and the old wharves, fine merchants houses and warehousing reflect those times.

An unusual man-powered foot-ferry links country parks, village and heritage trails within the valley.

Passing through the edge of the Wyre Forest, the Severn Way reaches Stourport-on-Severn, Britain's first purpose built canal port which lies at the point where the Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal discharged the industrial produce of the Black Country into warehouses and onto Severn Trows.

Built in the 1760s and 70s, it retains a period feel and remarkable architecture. Peaceful countryside dotted with villages rich in half-timbered houses set amongst fruit orchards are a prelude to Worcester with its massive cathedral towering beside the Severn.

The Cotswolds and Malverns

Known as 'The Faithful City' for its unwavering support for the monarchy over the past millennium, the city marks a change in the character of the Severn Valley.

Downstream, the river plain widens, rising gently to meet the slopes of the Malverns and the Cotswolds. The riverside path threads past the old river port of Upton-upon-Severn and the ancient abbey town of Tewkesbury, through rich pastures and croplands to reach Gloucester. The old Roman fortress town of Glevum is probably the oldest settlement along the Severn, renowned today for its ornate Cotswold stone cathedral and National Waterways Museum at the Victorian docks. Weirs here mark the highest level to which tides flow.

The Severn Estuary

The Severn Estuary has the world's second highest tides, the incoming tide sufficient on certain days to produce the Severn Bore, a miniature tidal wave best viewed at tiny estuaryside villages such as Elmore, some miles south of the city.

As the estuary widens,vast sand and mudbanks appear at low water,attracting thousands of water birds to the world famous Slimbridge Wildfowl and Wetlands Reserve. Looked over by medieval Berkeley Castle, the Severn passes below the two modern-day road bridges to merge with the Bristol Channel and the sea. The Bristol link now extends the Severn Way into the heart of Bristol.