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Newport and the Gwent LevelsSudbrook and the Severn Tunnel
The sea wall at the narrowest crossing of the Severn, with the pumping station that keeps the railway tunnel dry and both bridges in view.
- Distance
- 3.7 mi / 6 km
- Time
- 1 hr 55
- Ascent
- 40 m
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Shape
- There and back
Where it is
The circle shows the general area, not the exact start. Use the directions link below to get to the car park itself. Contours and paths shown are OpenTopoMap, drawn from OpenStreetMap data.
The route
Follow the sea wall from the village towards the bridges and return by lanes. Flat throughout.
Worth knowing
- The Severn Tunnel runs under your feet here, four and a half miles long and opened in 1886.
- The pumping station still lifts millions of gallons a day out of the tunnel.
- Sudbrook camp on the shore is an Iron Age promontory fort half lost to the sea.
What you’ll see
Both Severn crossings, the pumping station, the Iron Age fort, and enormous tides.
Background
The Severn Tunnel took thirteen years to build and repeatedly flooded from a spring called the Great Spring, which is still pumped today.