This is a transitional stage between the hills and almost flat throughout. The Trail follows stretches of the Montgomeryshire Canal and the River Severn before reaching the town of Llanymynech where the Wales – England border is the main street!

The main landmark viewed over the River Severn from the Trail is that of the Breidden Hills, with Rodney’s Pillar on its summit. The monument was built by the gentlemen of Montgomeryshire who supplied the oak wood from the area and shipped them down the River Severn to Bristol where Admiral Rodney’s naval fleet was built. Parts of this section are prone to flooding during very wet periods so checking for Environment Agency flood warnings is advisable.

The Trail joins the Montgomery Canal for a number of stretches. The canal was originally used to transport lime to improve the farmland of the Severn Valley. [© http://www.nationaltrail.co.uk/ ]

Due to bus availability/logistics we had to start this bit from Welshpool and slightly by-pass Buttington Bridge (where we ended up last time). Welshpool seems nice and we walked along the Montgomery canal for a while. Also, we didn’t quite get to Llanymynech this time, as we were camped by some fishing lakes at Three Crosses where we were met by Wendy and Graham and, later, Emma and Darren and their three dogs.