Coracle Travelogue
The Great Coracle Challenge - The Source of the River Severn to Shrewsbury
by Wendy Gee

When the Coracle Magazine arrived at the beginning of 2005 there was a little insert about a Great Coracle Challenge, Source of the Severn to Shrewsbury. I rang the number & was told that there had been a couple of other enquiries, I asked if one was from Suffolk & found out that my brother was interested as well. First job was to get my husband on side, although thinking I was madder than usual he happily agreed. Next a call to Dave & he was up to it if I did the planning. I could soon see why he wanted to just come along.

Michael Connor, the Shrewsbury Tourist Association chairman, who was co-ordinating the trip dubbed me as expedition leader!! I did explain that I was happy to pass on any info I collected but was not prepared to take responsibility for any one else as Dave & I would be able to sort out our transport & were used to paddling together & of similar standard.

Next step was to reccy the river & a trip to the source. I had a vague idea that if we got to the Source we could float & carry the Coracles to Llanidloes. So on a damp April day my husband, Ken, & I set off walking to the source from the forest car park. The track was winding and steep & the river too narrow to get a coracle on with lots of little waterfalls. So it was quite nice to come across a forest road just before the last ¾ of a mile of open country to the actual source, which is basically a peaty puddle high up on the windswept Plynlimon Fell. Just after leaving the car park we'd come across some forestry workers & I checked if we could get permission to use the forestry road to get the coracles as close to the source as possible & was given the name of the person to contact. On the way down they said that they'd seen the chap concerned & that he'd seemed quite interested in our trip. Next it was off to Llanidloes checking the river at any points we could get at in between, which were few & far between. The river was still very narrow & with a large waterfall & shallow water I didn't think it was feasable to put the Coracles on till Llanidloes, even there it looked like we'd have to get out a few yards after the slipway as it was so shallow before the bridge. The rest of the day was spent studying the OS maps & trying to find points of access, most of these were at bridges & I was beginning to realise that we didn't have a clue as to what the river was like between the few access points so it was going to be a rather more challenging trip than I first thought. By the end of this day we'd only covered about a third of the distance and I was exhausted. What I would have given for a rest in one of the cheap hotels in the area! Back home being a member of the British Canoe Union (it's well worth while joining as its membership includes licensing to paddle EA & BW waters much more cheaply than any other source) I rang their access officers for the areas up to & after Pool Quay & was told of useful books which would help on the river and I also found a copy of the latest. There followed 4 more trips to check access, from the point we'd ended at the first time to the end & a complete recheck of all of the route car-wise. Chatting to canoeists I learned a more about the river & various things I should take. The river always seemed very shallow & so Dave & I both put an extra bit of thick calico on the bottom or our craft.

In June at the end of the Montgomery dinghy dawdle (a 5 to 6 mile paddle on the canal) I took Dave to see what he was in for & as we hung over Llandrinio bridge looking down at the rocky rapids below he began to realise it wasn't like anything we'd done before.

We'd decided to hire a van, which Ken would drive, so we always had back up should we need it. On the 3rd of September we met with Michael & Jenny, from the Tourist Assoc. & Danny a photographer outside Llanidloes, & waited for Daniel Kawczynski the MP for Shrewsbury ( he's 6'8" tall, fit, good looking & only 33). We then set off for the forestry road & the big carry. Daniel wanted to actually be hands on with the carrying of the Coracles to the source & when big brother needed a rest ½ way up (he's older than me) Daniel took over & carried Dave's Shrewsbury Coracle all the way up & most of the way down, me being stubborn carried my Ironbridge coracle both ways. I think I should add here that both coracles were made by Dave plus we had his Ironbridge one in the van as spare, just in case of a major catastrophe.

After photos at the source it was off to the start of our waterborne adventure. A quick lunch & we loaded up the coracles, with our dry bags, spare paddles, maps, cheap GPS, plenty of water! Waterproofs 7 trusty umbrellas & launched at Llanidloes slipway at 2.30 pm. A 20yds paddle out into mid stream & the water was too shallow, before the bridge to continue. We dragged or let coracles float for the next 100yds over the shallow rapids & got back in for the next 50yds. This was the pattern for the rest of the next 3 hours, as we checked depths & wondered if we could get through the channel. We finally arrived at our 1st check point at about 5:30pm just 5 miles done that first day. Only good thing was that the water under the bridge at the first check point which had looked so daunting that morning was a doddle to paddle apart from quite a few times scraping along the bottom. I must say here that as we're both pensioners I had decided that the call of my own bed far outweighed the extra travelling involved & we went home each night. Which proved a useful move later as you will see.

The third day the river was still low so going round Newtown was a bit hazardous and the large weir after it was quite a difficult portage. I fell out this time on a rapid, kept my hat dry, but Lizzie Moonlight filled up, we also had to walk down or round a some rapids as there wasn't enough water to get down them. Later that day was my turn to rescue a sheep at the waters edge that couldn't get up a 5' bank. Luckily I managed not to fall in clambering over the trees lying on the water to get at it. Some local knowledge helped us after lunch, when we were told about an old fish weir that was decayed & didn't show above water, we probably would have chosen that side of the stream, if we hadn't been told, & come to grief. Only 12.5 miles & 6.5 hours paddling/walking.

We left home in thick fog on day four, which miraculously cleared as we entered Wales & the day stayed sunny & hot, we contemplated falling in to cool off but decided against it. We were still more tired & stiff, but unbowed & stayed in the coracles today without falling out, although Dave sank his in a concrete fish weir, but he wasn't in it at the time! Today was harder as the water levels had dropped about 8" overnight so instead of being able to get over most of the shallows we grounded & had to get out and drag the coracles through them. You should've see the bruises I got on my trailing leg, got by dragging it over the side as I got back in, I tried a different technique, a more precarious way as I wobbled a lot. (When my husband reads the last bit he'll say that's nothing unusual.) Also less water means less current so we have to paddle harder, did manage a little sail with our umbrellas but only 100 yds or so, but a nice break from paddling.

Between the last 2 check points, after a small weir & rapid, we did just manage to slide rather bumpily over some of the shallows/rapids which cheered us up somewhat. Our good deed for the day was remembering some one calling for a dog, which obviously was not responding, and seeing a collie running along the bank later. A mile or so later we saw it again & went close to the shore to check her collar. Jess was a lovely little thing so we rang the no. on the collar & said we were heading for the next bridge, her owner said he'd go there. In case you're wondering what you do with a dog, as this one had been running along the bank in front of us for quite a while we just encouraged her to keep with us on the shore, hoping none of the fields had sheep in. Luckily Ken had come down to a shore before the bridge & put her on a lead, as the bridge was a busy road. No owner so Ken rang again he said that he'd left after waiting for 15 mins, he obviously didn't know that coracles only go slowly. He arrived a few minutes later to collect her. Only 10.5 miles in 7 hours.

On day five we finished at Llandrinio bridge. It all went quite well really it didn't rain & though it was windy mostly it was with us which meant we could get the umbrellas out if we had a straight bit (that wasn't very often though). The main excitement was ITV Wales (HTV) coming to film us for their news program for that night. It was quite interesting to see how they did it, just cameraman & reporter, it took an hour and the shown clip was a couple of minutes, we're now officially mad pensioners it said so on the HTV news. The river was perhaps even lower than yesterday, I did try to get in a request on the Telly by saying that if there were any E.A. people were watching we'd like just a little bit more water, but they cut that bit out!!! In fact the whole trip went quite smoothly apart from at the remains of Abbey weir. Dave decided to have a go at it and bounced & bumped down it & suggested, as Lizzie Moonlight is wider & deeper, that way was not a good one, try going left. Too late I realised he meant walk her down, as I grounded & got out I slipped & ended up sitting in the water. I'm happy to say Lizzie Moonlight stayed safe & dry. Dave is convinced he saw a salmon jump, he was in front, I just saw the splash as it fell back in so can't comment. What made it more interesting to day was the trees growing out from each side, of the narrowing river, seemed to meet in the middle quite often and getting through was at times a little problematical.

We were disappointed to find that we couldn't run the Llandrinio bridge we looked long & hard but couldn't see a way through as it just wasn't deep enough, because of the low water levels. I had taken Dave to see the bridge after the Montgomery Dinghy Dawdle and we had decided then that there was a nice steep, long and safe way through, but there was more water then. 12.7 miles, paddling time 4.75 hours not including the stop waiting for & during the filming. We did get home to see ourselves on Telly though.

Day six, we had a send off today as Jenny & Michael of the Shrewsbury tourist association and photographer Danny were there for the start of the day & braved the weather to be at the next major check points. We were glad that they stayed to the end as they helped carry all the gear we have in our coracles & paddles up to the van (200 yards uphill) while we carried the coracles in the pouring rain. We were the wise ones as the coracles kept us dry. It was an overcast day when we started off, had a little play in the white water below the bridge for Dannys benefit, and to get warmed up.

The river had narrowed so we went a little faster, then the river Vyrnwy joined us. We had hoped things would start flowing faster but although it was fairly wide it didn't seem to have much water in it. On to the bridge & our reception committee. Danny thought a good photo might be with our umbrellas up trying to sail, so we were delayed a bit in a flat calm.

We must admit we were glad there was no wind as the next stretch was very wide with almost no noticeable current. Before long we were using the umbrellas for their original purpose as it started to drizzle. As we arrived for our lunch break 3 swans took off & flew over us, it was quite spectacular (hope Danny's photo turns out OK). There we rested our weary rear ends. (Dave suffered with OAP's boney bottom; mine is far better covered so I don't have quite so much of a problem.) Dave even tried paddling in kneeling position & paddling over the stern to rest it!!!

On the last section of the day we encountered only 1 problem, rain again. It's quite difficult to hold an umbrella between your knees & paddle well so we eventually found that if you put the handle down inside the life-jacket (in front for Dave, down back for me) it stays in place, visibility is a bit restricted but it works quite well. You're never too old to learn something new are you? 11.7 miles & 5 hours paddling.

On day seven we were joined at the start by Nick & Jim Coppin (father & elder son) with their coracles. I think they had a bit of a shock as although they are competent coraclers they had never travelled very far, more used to rowing, & we were doing 4.5 miles to the first check point, where we had an appointment with Val from the Severn Hospice & a photographer from the Shropshire Star at about 11.0 am so couldn't go too slowly.

On the way down we had a few little riffles which helped us along a bit, which N & J found interesting. We then saw a fisherman in the distance acting slightly strangely, realised that he'd either hooked the trees on the other side or was playing a fish. It turned out to be the latter, we kept well over to the other bank out of his way & watched him eventually successfully land it. He was so pleased to have witnesses as he'd been fishing for 3 days with no bites. This was the biggest fish he'd ever caught & as he'd not bothered to bring his keep net or camera today he thought his family wouldn't believe his fisherman tale. Nick kindly took some photos of a 24" approx Barbel & said he'd send them to him. As he was on holiday from Suffolk we gave him Dave's sponsor form for his St Nicholas Hospice & asked him to make a donation to them. The trouble with enjoying moments like that, which we wouldn't have missed for the world, is we were now a bit behind on time & had to paddle on, (you can't keep press photographers waiting too long as they have other commitments). We made it on time. N & J got left further & further behind eventually coming in 20 minutes after us. Ken took Nick back to get his car as they'd paddled enough. Then it was off to the last check point for today. An uneventful trip just 2 or 3 rather longer riffles to help us along. The weather was kind to us, just a couple of spells of very light drizzle & very little wind. 9.5 miles Only 3.75 hours of paddling today.

On day eight we had a lie in as it didn't take quite so long to get to yesterday's end and we 'only' had 8 miles to do today. We put in on a slightly drizzly morning but the river was a little higher today, a few riffles to go down also speeded us up, & a light head wind which slowed us down a bit. About half way through our journey we stopped off at River House to meet Pru & John, John Davies the Shrewsbury coracle maker, Jenny & Danny & spent an hour chatting with them. Thanks again Pru for your delicious ginger biscuits, & showing us your Dwyryd coracle. Quite a few riffles including a nice long one helped us on our way, later while drifting down stream eating a snack we were surprised to see 2 canoes coming down behind us, these were the first boats we had seen moving on the water all week apart from Nick & Jim. The two lads stopped for a chat while the girls kept paddling, perhaps glad of a chance to get ahead. They were most interested in our trip & kindly gave us some sponsorship before setting off again. It was getting like Henley/Blackpool as a few minutes later as we neared the Show ground 2 rowing eights with their support boat came round the bend in front of us closely followed by 4 more. Rather sadly we came to the end of our penultimate day at the Show Ground after 8.3 miles.

We set off from the Show Ground on day 9, at about 10.45 was going to be 11.00 but we were told by a fisherman that a coracle had gone by 15 mins earlier, we knew that John Davies & Richard Green were supposed to be coming down to the finish with us so thought we'd better find them. They were round the bend on a gravel bank at the other end of the Show Ground wondering where we were. We all set off at a very slow drift & still had to wait at a slip way out of sight for a while, when we thought the time was right we set off again only to be called over to the bank by Ken who said could we wait a little longer for the VIPs to arrive. We waited till we were told we could go & set off again still slowly I thought that people should at least see the sort of speed we paddled most of the time, so Dave & I speeded up to normal pace. We paddled past the reception committee as our last check point was Porthill Foot Bridge just beyond, we got loud applause from the crowd on the bridge & reception committee & paddled back upstream to moor our trusty coracles to the railings & climb out, and be welcomed ashore. After some hugs we were interviewed by Andy from Radio Shropshire for a broadcast the following morning. Then came the official welcoming & we were kindly presented with an engraved cup each & bouquet of flowers, both most unexpected & very much appreciated, as were the cocktails & biscuits. Finally we were presented with a Certificates, made & presented by my 7 month old Grandson Matthew (with I think quite a lot of help from his parents, Chris & Simon), stating that we had successfully completed part 1 of the River Severn, Source to Shrewsbury. It also has a lovely little picture of Matt next to a Matt sized coracle at Ironbridge museum. I wonder how long it will be before Chris & Simon, let him come out with me in mine.

After much chatting with interested people we paddled, not quite into the sunset, but down to the weir, another 2.1 miles, just for us!!! We had a very memorable trip, been scared and elated, and been amazed & delighted with how our coracles have performed. We saw lots of wild life, lovely unspoiled countryside & enjoyed the challenges of the beautiful untamed Upper River Severn. Finally we'd raised £1733 + tax back on some for 3 Hospices, and the coracles had travelled 98.7 miles in the water & portages, the back up van did well over 1000 miles. Our average speed was about 2.3 mph but the GPS gave us a maximum speed of over 10 mph one day on a rapid.

Wendy Gee