My 59th parkrun course was one I've wanted to do ever since I first heard about it. Starting in South Wales on the north side of the old Severn Crossing, and running along the bridge across the English boarder before turning around and heading back to South Wales. You get great views out across the Severn and of the new Severn Crossing. Unfortunately on the morning I had set aside to do this parkrun we woke to find heavy wind and rain... oh well couldn't come all this way without actually doing it, so onwards and upwards! Despite the weather there was still a good turnout of utter nutters (or parkrun enthusiasts as they are sometimes called). It's all about the bridge and there is not much here besides the parkrun, but don't let that put you off it's still a cracker of a parkrun.
[I first visited this parkrun on 5th August 2023]
Bit of History
Only a very brief summary here, there are extensive histories on the Severn Crossings online if you wish to read them. The Severn Bridge is the older of two crossings across the Severn Estuary separating the countries of England and Wales, it first opened in 1966 after taking 3.5 years to build at a cost of 8 Million (I shudder to think how much it would cost if it was built today). It enables both cars and pedestrians to cross between the two countries and until 1996 (when the Second Severn Crossing opened) was the only way of getting from the South West of England to Wales without taking a boat or the much longer land route via Gloucester. It is still the only way to cross the Severn on foot, as the Second Severn Crossing is for cars only and does not have a footpath open to the general public. The Seven Bridge was a replacement for the Aust Ferry which had been running for 137 years prior to the opening of the bridge. The Severn Bridge is technically comprised of four different structures, these are named as follows (from the Welsh side in order): The Wye Bridge, Beachley Viaduct, Severn Bridge and Aust Viaduct. From the opening in 1966 until 2018 there was a toll for all vehicles crossings but only applied in one direction so it was often reffered to as a tax on entering Wales. Since these tolls were lifted it is now free to use either crossing in both directions.
Briefings
The briefing is a combined briefing covering all the usual notices, milestones, course description, first timer instructions, etc and was carried out near to the finish area in a pedestrian subway underneath the M48 Motorway. Guidance was given to runners to order themselves at the start roughly in order of speed, faster runners towards the front, and walkers towards the rear. Course description was basically, "we start you off in Wales" lots of cheers, "and we head out across the bridge into England" lots of boos, "before turning around and heading back to "Wales" a few more cheers. All in good humour though! After the brief it was a combined walk up to the start, which is actually up on the bridge itself.
The Course
Probably the easiest course description I'm going to give. So you start up on the The Wye Bridge, a short walk uphill from the Finish and Briefing area, and you head out towards England crossing over the Beachley Viaduct, and then onto the Severn Bridge proper. Make sure you admire the views while you are out on course, you can see right across to the new Severn Crossing, and there are great views of England and Wales on a nice day (which it wasn't on the morning of my visit), also to note it is not as flat as you might expect and it is an uphill climb pretty much until the turn point, which is close to the second Superstructure of the main bridge. After the turn it is back the way you came (keeping right to pass all the runners behind you), and you will now head back down the bridge, passing over Beachley Island again, back onto Wye Bridge before being directed off the bridge by a marshal, and then downhill along the footpath leading to the Underpass and the finish. . I have included my Garmin draw of the route below but you won't get lost...
Difficulty
Certainly on the morning I did this parkrun, I would rate it as at least a 3 out of 5. The very high wind was blowing into us on the way out which is uphill, and behind us on the way back downhill, and the climb is fairly substantial. Maybe on a nicer day it might be a 2.5 out of 5. The surface is very good though, being entirely tarmac.
Elevation
Yeah, so basically not nearly as flat as I was anticipating, with 50m of Elevation, plus a head wind I found this a very tough climb up to the peak of the bridge. The run back down again was fun though!
Parking, Facilities and Coffee
The car park is both ample and free and can be found at the Thornwell Football ground car park off of Tenby road NP16 5GH. Currently the Toilets at the Thornwell Football Club are not available for parkrun use - local facilities are in Chepstow Town or the M48 Services at Junction 1, I recommend stopping here which is what I did. There doesn't seem to be a dedicated coffee shop for this event, but ask the core team where they are going if you wish to join them.
Other Points of Interest
If you want somewhere to stay over the night before there are hotels close to the bridge on both sides of the crossing, but we stayed at the Ty Magor on the Welsh side, which was both clean and comfortable, and grabbed a quick breakfast at the service station. Oh and don't forget to check out the amazing murals in the subway before/after the run!
Summary
Very popular with tourists, this parkrun is on many people's to do list. It's well worth the trip with amazing views even on a blustery day, but I wish the weather had been slightly more amenable on the day I did the parkrun, it was brutal running up to the top of the bridge. Hopefully if you go you will have better weather than me. The core team are very friendly and welcoming and used to having a large number of tourists. The service station nearby is good for facilities if needed as well. From here you can reach both South Wales or the South West so you can combine it with other activities for the weekend. I definitely recommend checking out this parkrun.
Links
Link to official parkrun site for this course: https://www.parkrun.org.uk/severnbridge
My YouTube Video Review of this parkrun:
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