Managed to break away from the mince pies and take advantage of the superb weather yesterday. It was 2C so a bit cool - but no issue with a decent float suit on and hiding behind the windscreen!
I recently bought a 1940s book on the Severn, eBay special for a couple of quid, which describes the fishing communities of the time. It described thriving fishing villages where now there is almost nothing, so I decided to go looking for them.
Leaving Minsterworth in ideal conditions
On the way
First stop was the Milkmaid Rocks just upstream of Gatcombe. Back then, every turn, twist and rock of this river had names. I'm researching this as far as I can, but I'm pretty sure that most of the names died with the men who worked here. As I find out more, I'm adding them to
www.openstreetmap.org - you can look up the Severn and see what I've got so far. Gatcombe supported a community who made a living in the fish wiers and stop net boats of the time.
A fish weir
A mile further down river is Purton, not where the Hulks are but the 'other' Purton on the west bank. Theres still a huge well built slipway here, remarkable to see given the lack of activity in the area now
A stopnet boat in action - the last one, restored by an enthusiast
Next stop was the railway bridge (west end). The photo is a bit blurry, I had an near miss with some quicksand! Should have been more careful, it just shows you need to be on your toes. Of not, in the case of quicksand, if you get caught, flop down onto your knees (or even spreadeagle) as fast as you can, then you don't sink and can waddle out. Muddier, but out!
And finally, the view from Wellhouse Rocks. Nice.
I finished the trip in Wellhouse Bay, looking for Jacobs Ladder, which runs up the cliff to a fish house. I think I found it, but not enought time to investigate properly, so thats for another time.
Al in all a great run in perfect conditions. We definitiely get better hovering conditions in the winter than the summer.