Gloucester and Sharpness Canal and the Purton Hulks

After sister Sue left to return home to Somerset on Friday we went out to enjoy the fresh air and sunshine in Gloucestershire. David took us to Purton to walk along part of the Gloucester and Sharpness canal and to see the Purton Hulks.

This was our route.

Here are a few of my photos. We parked at the small carpark opposite St. John The Evangelist Church and started by visiting the church., which is quite charming.

We loved the recent Good Shepherd stained glass windows.

But then it was on to the canal, once the broadest and deepest in the world.

"The canal connects Gloucester to Sharpness, allowing boats to bypass a treacherous stretch of the River Severn. From the canal, there are spectacular views of the Severn Estuary, the Forest of Dean and the Cotswolds."

And alongside the canal was what we had come to see... the Purton Hulks, a site of historical importance and special scientific interest.  "The Purton Hulks or Purton Ships' Graveyard is a number of abandoned boats and ships, deliberately beached beside the River Severn near Purton in Gloucestershire, England, to reinforce the river banks. Most were beached in the 1950s and are now in a state of considerable decay. The site forms the largest ship graveyard in mainland Britain."

Each of the boats, even those that are almost completed buried or destroyed, has a nameplate next to them provided by the Friends Of Purton, who have researched and documented as much as they can about each of them.

It seemed appropriate to turn some of my photos into black and white images like this...

Across the Severn we could see the trains.

Another black and white image.

The path led through reeds at times.

We had to backtrack from here where the path ran out at the remains of the Severn Railway bridge.

Back on the canal....

..we passed the tower for the railway swing bridge over the canal. "A number of accidents took place at the bridge over the years, with vessels colliding with the piers due to the strong tides. In 1960 two river barges hit one of the piers on the bridge, causing two spans to collapse into the river. Repair work was under consideration when a similar collision occurred the following year, after which it was decided that it would be uneconomical to repair the bridge. It was demolished between 1967 and 1970, with few traces remaining." 

We carried on to the canal end at Shaprness, where lots of boats are moored.

Looking down the river, we could see the Severn road bridges.

Returning along the canal, we saw these swans flying low....

...and peaceful scenes in the afternoon sun.

That was a lovely walk. Thank-you Kirsty and David. You can read more about the ships' graveyard on the Friends of Purton site. You can also see more details of our route here on MapMyWalk and lots more of my photos here on Flickr.