Westfield Bridge to Bridge End

A short walk from near the M5 to south of Stonehouse.

By Dave Palmer

I decided one day that it would be interesting to follow the canal from near the M5 to Bridgend. We parked the car in the small car park between Pike Bridge and Blunder Lock which is accessible from the road to Eastington from the roundabout on the A419.
First we walked westward along the south edge of the canal from Pike Bridge passing Dock Lock to the current end of the canal opposite Chipman's Platt and then took the footpath to Westfield Bridge. There is no sign of the canal from here to the M5. There is an interesting building here called "William Morris House".
Retracing our steps past Pike Lock we reached Blunder Lock. From here we continued eastwards passing Nastend to Newtown Lock and the Roving Bridge. We then carried on to the lifting bridge at Bond's Mill which is the first Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP) bridge suitable for carrying road vehicles. There is a cafe here which is open Monday to Friday 8am-3pm.

We continued on to the bridge which carries the main west coast railway line from Gloucester to Bristol. Although pedestrians can pass under the line, boats can no longer pass underneath. This is going to be a major project to reinstate the bridge here.

Having passed under the line we come to "The Ocean", a former turning point and boatyard. The Ocean swing Bridge has been recently renovated/replaced and once past we get a fine view of St Cyr's Church before reaching Nutshell Bridge and House. There is an exit into Bridgend here.