Walking The Old Severn Bridge‏

It's incredible how quickly you forget things. For the past six years we haven't spent Autumn or Winter in the UK but have travelled to, generally, hotter and sunnier climes, often on or near the equator. So the increasingly short Winter days came as quite a surprise. Not getting daylight until 8am and with the sun setting at just past 4pm, days seem to be over before they'd hardly started. One great advantage has been the superb sun rises and sunsets we have had the pleasure of seeing - on the few days when the rain stopped and the clouds lifted.

One bright, sunny Sunday afternoon in November, we decided to go for a walk. Knowing that it would be getting dark early, it had to be close by and not too long or we'd need a torch. Jan suggested walking the Old Severn Bridge, something we'd never done together.

From our home we get superb views across the River Severn and can just about make out the two bridges that span it, just before it opens up into the Bristol Channel. The bridge closest to us is the original and the one we aimed for. It crosses two rivers, the Severn and the Wye which also explains why what looks like one bridge is actually four; the Aust Viaduct, Severn Bridge, Beachley Viaduct and Wye Bridge. It's hard to see the joints and you don't really notice the difference. Someone must have spotted it though because the different bits have different levels of protection, The Severn Bridge and Aust Viaduct was granted Grade I while the Wye Bridge and Beachley Viaduct was granted Grade II.

The total distance from the start of the crossing, by the Chepstow M48 roundabout, to the gate below the Severn View Services, perched on the cliff on the east bank, is 2.5 miles, making the five mile return trip a reasonable workout. 

The crossing over was reasonably uneventful, except for the cyclist who whizzed by rather too close, clearly wanting to send us a message that it was his cycle path. On the far side was a small information sign with some interesting facts about the bridge and some more about the river, which is the longest in the UK and, at around 50ft, has the second biggest tidal range in the world.

For a local, the most contentious part of the bridge is the toll fees you pay on the English side to enter Wales. In 2014, the price for a car is going to be £6.20. The original toll, when it was opened in 1966, was two shillings and sixpence (12.5p) each way, so 25p in total. That's £4 at today's rates so why the above inflationary increases? And, in any case, with around 17,000 vehicles crossing a day, and thousands more than that prior to the second Severn bridge opening in 1996, surely the £8million construction cost has been recovered. 

On foot, our crossing was free and with the sun setting, we made the return journey. A cold wind we hadn't noticed on the walk over, bit into us, encouraging us not to dally. The river below us was grey but serene, matching the now cloud-filled sky. It wasn't going to be a colourful sunset, but at least we made it back before nightfall or any need for torches.