Cormorants, cliffs and Autumn colours - along the Severn way

It would cost more than £2000 to travel to New England to see the Fall colours.
However, this year's weather has meant wonderful colours here in actual England. Try this Severn Way walk near Bridgnorth to see some. (And save yourself £2000!)
Sandstone cliffs near the start, with netting to stop rockfalls onto the road below.

A great place to do some fishing.

Some buildings squeezed between river and road , with more towering sandstone cliffs behind.

Great colours all the way along this walk along a small part of the 223-mile Severn Way.

The route is easy to follow - just keep to the river

Bridgnorth Golf Club runs along side of the Severn.

The river moves away from the cliffs, but the woodland colours continue.

The sunshine added to the colours

The route ahead

Looking back to the golf course and its huge variety of trees - almost an arboretum!

You can do this walk as an out and back walk...

...turning round whenever you wish,

I carried on, even when the sunshine disappeared

I spotted the cave in the wooded cliffs opposite,

I wondered what some strange shaped birds were, flying overhead. When I got to this tree, I realised: they are cormorants

There were more than a dozen - making their strange call - sounded a bit like grunting!

On the other bank, Apley Hall - one inspiration for P G Wodehouse's Blandings

 Unusually, a rocky beach in the river

Many people had walked round this footbridge - not surprising really.

Apley Bridge ahead. 

The wooden surface rattled as an estate vehicle drove overhead

Interesting to walk over - but it's private, so I didn't.

The Severn Way stretched invitingly on, but it was time to turn back...

...only to find this, the former Linley station,

...now a private home, but very sensitively preserved

My route back wass along the former Great Western Railway branch from Bridgnorth to Ironbridge, part of a line which connected Shrewsbury and Worcester (some of which is now preserved as the Severn Valley Railway)

The walking was easy along the metalled track, with plenty of glimpses back to the river.

Every 800 metres or so, there are permissive paths back over to the river, mostly for fishing, but walkers could use them to make a circular route of whatever length suits.

Near the end, Severn Hall farm

This was a fantastic walk. 9.5 out of 10 (muddy sections near Apley Bridge). But just to do the first 2 miles and then return along the same route would have been great too, especially for the Autumn colours
Today's walk: 8.5 Miles Easy routefinding. Muddy in parts
Details: Park outside Bridgnorth Endowed School, and walk to the river, turn left and follow it for just over 4 miles to Apley Bridge (you can leave the path if it's too muddy and walk along the railway track, then return when you're out of the trees) At the bridge go past the houses for about 100 metres, then turn left onto the track. for the return. Before the end, the track finishes, but you just follow the Mercian Way signs along a very narrow, little used road back to your car. You pass the golf club, which offers refreshments to non-members. I haven't tried it though.
You could walk from Bridgnorth centre to Apley, but that would make the route something over 10 miles.
When you've finished the walk, drive to Low Town car park, walk over the Severn Bridge,and take the funicular cliff railway into Bridgnorth, where there are good pubs and tearooms - an often a good market.