PADDLING TRAIL & Canal- Purton to Parkend Bridge Return

Key Information A gentle out and back trail with views of the Forest of Dean in the distance and the mighty close by, the longest of the trails on this canal is a great way to spend a day. Start and Finish: Portages: 0 For more Purton Village Car Time: 4-7 hours information Distance: 15.6 Miles scan the QR Park, Purton, code or visit , OS Map: Explorer 14 Wye Valley https://bit.ly/2H GL13 9HU & Forest of Dean Gt7Wf

1. Get on the water from the landing stage and turn right towards Gloucester.

2. From Purton northwards there are fields on both sides. In the distance the Forest of Dean can be glimpsed on the left, with the Cotswolds to your other side.

3. It should take about an hour up to , which has a café and toilets next to the canal. The Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust Reserve is half a mile up the road towards the Severn, and this area is the busiest on your route, with much traffic going up the road to see the birds, and many boats moored.

4. Travel along flat horizons for the next couple of miles, until you reach Splatt Bridge, with a small car park.

5. Pass Frampton on Severn before reaching Saul Junction at just over 6 miles. Again, there is car parking and a cafe here. The Stroudwater navigation leaves to the right here. It is long closed but you are able to paddle it for around 500yds.

6. Continue for another 2 miles before reaching your turning point at Parkend Bridge.

Find out more information at: gopaddling.info Discover More

The Sharpness to Gloucester canal is a new experience for most English paddlers – much more like a continental European Canal, or like the Caledonian Canal in Scotland, easily wide enough to avoid anglers’ lines, and with large ships going up to Gloucester docks at times. This trail is the last of four possible trails on this wide and quiet canal.

The Gloucester & Sharpness Canal was built and opened in 1827, after a period of stops and starts on the project due to ongoing financial difficulties. The purpose was to by-pass a long and dangerous bend on the at .

The paddle steamer ‘Oliver Cromwell’ used to plie up and down the canal, but she unfortunately sank off the coast of Anglessey in 2018 whilst on the way to her new home in Ireland.

The Slimbridge Wildfowl and Wetlands Reserve is home to a large number of Nene (Hawaiian geese) which were saved from extinction by researchers there, and then successfully reintroduced to their homeland. If you go visit you can feed them!

Purton is a quiet area and is mainly known for having the largest ship graveyard in maritime Britain. It is an important locality for studies of vertebrate paleontology and is also a SSSI.

Further information can be found on the following websites: britishcanoeing.org.uk wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/slimbridge

Licence

We want you to enjoy a safe trip, so here are a few tips for staying safe and paddling responsibly.

Paddle Safe. Be prepared and take the right kit: Paddle Responsibly.Respect the natural environment and other users: • Wear a correctly sized buoyancy aid • Mobile phone – in a waterproof case • Respect other waterway users #sharethespace • Whistle – to attract attention in case of emergency • Be environmentally aware, minimise your impact • Map and / or route description • Ensure you have the correct licence if required • Appropriate clothing for the weather conditions + • Observe navigational rules – keep right and give other spares in a dry bag users space • Food, drink & suncream! • Check, Clean, Dry after every trip!

Licences: The waterways in this trail are managed by the Canal & Rivers Trust and require paddlers to hold a license. British Canoeing membership includes a full annual license for this waterway - please take your membership card with you as this acts as your license. Non- members can either purchase a British Canoeing membership from www.britishcanoeing.org.uk or buy licenses direct from www.canalrivertrust.org.uk