Ismore Coppice to Ironbridge
Gentle paddling with the occasional shallow river bed making progress exciting marks out the next section of the river. Sallow, alder and willows crowd the bankside, with clouds of Banded demoiselles in the air during the summer, alighting on floating debris or taking off from the prow of your craft. Cound Brook joins the Severn a few miles downstream of Wroxeter, this small settlement was once the home of a Roman legion and has extensive, fascinating ruins, well worth a return land-based visit.
The river along this section has very limited access and it is best to plan for a whole day paddle. Please avoid damaging the gravel shoals along here as they are used by birds such as Little ringed plover to nest, their eggs are well camouflaged and nestling in shallow depressions easy to miss and therefore damage.
The river begins to narrow and as you pass Buildwas with its evocative Abbey ruins the water quickens through and headlong towards the Ironbridge Gorge. On the right hand bank is the extensive site of the Ironbridge Power Station, its noted cooling towers demolished in spectacular style in 2019.
In 1779 Abraham Darby III and his highly skilled team of iron workers who had the Ironbridge cast and erected to span the river to link his business interests on both banks of the river. The belching, black smoke of the Industrial Revolution has passed and what remains is the most beautiful and varied wooded river valley in the region. Justly designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site a fine place to linger.
The Severn flows quick, gravel shoals and rocky projections pockmark the riverbed, take care and keep a good lookout. At Jackfield the gorge narrows due to geological instability, the resulting pinch creates about 100m of rapids, large rocky boulders and brick waste make this very challenging. It is wise to portage this section on the left hand bank and re-enter the river just downstream. Craft have been broken in two and the danger is not to be underestimated.
