Upton on Severn

We normally like to mix up town and countryside moorings but limited opportunities to tie up on the Severn meant we travelled straight from Worcester to Upton on Severn. Will did a fancy maneuver, using the current to back Rainboat between the floating pontoon and the tree covered bank. A lot of driftwood and some rubbish had accumulated here and we needed to haul a massive branch out before we could fit in.

Upton is smaller and more upmarket than Stourport, but has the same holiday town feel. It was a sunny Sunday, Fathers Day and England were playing that evening. Music blasted from pub frontages looking over the water and a live band played medleys to an enthusiastic crowd on the corner. The atmosphere was buzzing and we needed to head away from the river, up the High Street, where we lunched in a little café - there was no room elsewhere!

The ramp from our pontoon led to to a grassy area, separated from the road by planted beds. This was handy for the dogs, but for proper walks we needed to cross the road bridge, where there was either a stoney track or a further walk to a pathway of short grass. The third alternative was to follow the waterfront through town to a meadow, but the long grass and horseflies meant we didn't do this more than once.

Upton is obviously a very desirable place to live. Unfortunately it's spaces are guarded with fences, railings and lots of 'Private. Keep off the grass' signs.

On our cruise we'd noticed the Willows were covered in webs and we got a closer look at them on these walks. After a bit of research we found they belonged to Willow Ermine Moth caterpillars. Apparently the area was experiencing a population explosion.Read more