Far off in the distance, there’s a piercing whistling sound. Moments later, a cloud of white steam rises up above the treeline. Standing in a hillside clearing, we watch as a classic black steam train came into view, pulling behind it a long line of carriages. It draws into a station and rests, hissing and huffing white and grey steam. Once any passengers have disembarked or boarded, it sets off again, slowly at first, gathering momentum and speed as it chugs through the landscape of green hills, forest and farmland, the train and it’s billowing steam gradually disappearing into the distance.
Getting to watch a vintage steam train travel through the English countryside has a step-back-in-time feel. The pace of life does seem to pleasantly slow down in the Severn Valley, just like the steady flow of the River Severn itself. The longest river in the UK, the River Severn flows for 220 miles from the Cambrian Mountains in Wales to the Severn Estuary in the Bristol Channel. Over time, it’s carved a beautiful river valley in western England that stretches from Shropshire down through Worcestershire (famous as the home of the tangy Worcestershire Sauce) and into Gloucestershire. The area’s famous for gently rolling hills, woodland, and lovely historic towns and villages, as well as the Severn Valley Railway, one of Britain’s most famous heritage railways, which sees steam trains and diesels rumbling back and forth along 16 miles of track.
We stayed at The Elms Hotel & Spa, near the village of Abberley - a fine base to explore the Severn Valley area. The country manor house was originally constructed around 1710 by architect Thomas White, a pupil of Sir Christopher Wren. It has a grand, chunky white-grey and red exterior, with vines covering the walls in one corner of the house, and neat landscaped gardens surrounding it. But the Grade II-listed building has lots of modern touches too, including a cluster of mirrorballs suspended in front of the main entrance. Inside, the hotel has an instantly homely, contemporary feel, including bold green walls in the lobby and lavish lounges with plush sofas and warming orange lighting - places to sink into and relax. “I love everything about the Severn Valley area: its true beauty, remarkable natural landscapes and it’s fascinating history, from railways and bridges to gorgeous old buildings,” the hotel’s manager Bruce Melling tells me. “That’s finished off with the real sense of community that you find here.”
We stay in a two-level, dog-friendly room in the Coach House, to the side of the main building. The downstairs is smartly decorated with greys and an aquamarine wall and comfy armchairs, as well as a dog bed for our travelling companion in the corner, with a private sheltered outside area with two big white bathtubs and heaters on-hand. Upstairs, there’s an even more spacious bedroom, with two single beds, a towering vase, a wall-mounted London map, and a bathroom with a roomy rainshower.
At night, the main Badgers restaurant has a very cool vibe, with lots of potted plants, ferns draped over shelves, more leafy greenery suspended from the ceiling among orangey lampshades, and a large fireplace piled with chopped wood. Framed illustrations of an elegant anthropomorphic badger wearing an evening jacket are hung on the Royal blue walls. Staff are incredibly welcoming, friendly and thoughtful. The good times start to roll immediately with freshly baked, still-warm bread rolls with Marmite butter. Our young son enjoys his green salad, hearty English fish and chips with peas, and ice cream, while we make selections from the appealing menu, a Salmon Mille Feuille starter for me that has little chunks of cured salmon on top of creamy salmon mousse, leek, mascarpone and delicate crisp wafers, and mushroom broth with dumplings for my wife.
For mains, my wife goes for the pork belly with cabbage pancakes and tenderstem broccoli, while I enjoy monkfish tail with a salty prawn cake tucked away beneath a bed of egg noodles, served with Sum Tam salad, peanuts and a Thai coconut sauce with a background kick of chilli heat. We share a few sides, including battered pickled onion rings with smoked black garlic and spring onion mayonnaise, and confit hispi cabbage with miso butter, all of it hearty and satisfying. For dessert, my wife tucks into banana diplomat, walnut and coffee cake with maraschino cherry gel and maple bacon, though I think I win out with the Entremet, a neat, deliciously rich dessert of chocolate and mushroom genoise, with sherry vinegar ice cream. We share a fantastic bottle of Privada, a bold fruity Malbec from the Norton estate in Mendoza, Argentina. For the atmosphere, surroundings and staff, as well as the food and wine, it’s one of the most enjoyable meals I’ve had in a long time.
At night, we fall asleep to the sound of owls hooting in the darkness, waking next morning to a gentle soundtrack of birdsong and thick mist that’s enveloped the house and trees.
Breakfast, back in Badgers, is an inviting buffet, with hot dishes, including Eggs Benedict and avocado on sourdough toast on the menu. Afterwards, we go for a quick swim in the Greenhouse Spa, a long, peaceful pool that’s also decorated, on the walls and ceiling, with ferns and other plantlife.
We spend the morning wandering around the attractive riverside town of Bewdley, through peaceful gardens and winding streets of shops, and along the quayside, where locals and tourists fill tables next to the water, enjoying a few drinks in the Saturday sun.
Later, we make our way to the Arley Arboretum, a National Trust site. Established in the early 19th century by the Chandos family, the arboretum’s a showcase of over 300 species of native and exotic trees. After a very British lunch at the Garden Tearoom (toasted sandwiches with cheese and caramelized onion chutney, and a slice of chocolate and Guinness cake), we follow quiet trails around the 65-acre arboretum, checking out towering Douglas firs and giant sequoias, as well as cedar, oak, and beech trees. It’s here, from a clearing on the high hillside, that we get our first glimpse of the steam train on Severn Valley Railway passing by. Later, as the sky turns purple and pink, we stop in Bewdley again for a bite to eat at the riverside pub The Mug House before settling back into our hotel for the night.
Next morning, I try Badgers’ smoked haddock and ginger cake with poached eggs and chilli hollandaise, my wife ordering a a blocky Croque Madame, before we set off for a day on the Severn Valley Railway. The original railway was constructed between 1858 and 1862 by the Severn Valley Railway Company with the primary purpose of transporting coal, iron and other goods, as well as carrying passengers. In the 1960s, after decades of decline, the railway closed, only to be brought back to life in 1965 by a group of railway enthusiasts who gradually restore the full route. Today, the railway is popular with tourists, especially for its renowned steam locomotives, including meticulously restored examples of Great Western and British Railways engines, and the chance to ride in carriages from the Golden Age of rail, including characterful historic interiors.
The whole route, if done in one go, would take around an hour and a half, but there are plenty of reasons to stop along the way. We begin at Kidderminster, where there’s an authentically recreated 1890s station, the guards dressed in smart jackets and hats from yesteryear. The steam train for our journey is the 7714, a small, powerful, black Pannier Tank engine. A plaque on the side says it was built in 1930, making it’s just under 100 years old, with some of the trains going as far back as 1900.
We take our seats in one of the carriages, with a frisson of excitement as the train starts to move out of the station. Pass through the town, we reach open countryside, following and occasionally crossing the wide, languid river through Bewdley and Arley. At Highley, we get off to look around the Engine House Visitor Centre, where there’s a museum housing massive old locomotives, including Gordon, a big blue engine.
Later, we board a DMU (Diesel Multiple Unit) from the late 1950s/early 1960s, to continue north, sitting with our train obsessed-son at the front of the train, just behind the driver, who occasionally sounds the horn as we rumble through the rural expanse. A church tower eventually appears in the distance, marking the end of the line: the historic market town of Bridgenorth, founded around the time of the Norman Conquest, in the 11th century, when a Norman castle was built on the hilltop.
As we make our way along the road in the Low Town, a convoy of around 50 vintage tractors roars through the town, a charity fundraiser, the drivers waving at everyone on the street. To get up to the High Town, we board the Bridgnorth Funicular Railway, one of the oldest in the country, first installed in 1892, and ride in a compact carriage up the steep hill. The High Town has a lot of character, with steep winding streets, and market stalls beneath the Old Town Hall, a striking, black and white Elizabethan/Tudor Revival building from the 1600s, complete with clock and bell tower. Walking on, we pass the 21-metre tower of the Gothic St. Mary’s Church, then sit for a drink closed to the arched entrance of the historic town centre, wondering what it was like to live and work here in the olden days.
As the light starts to fade, we make our way back to Bridgnorth station to catch the same black steam train from the morning and make the return journey along the length of Severn Valley Railway, spotting pheasants and scampering rabbits on the hillside. It’s an incredibly calming feeling to have little else to do but enjoy the timeless rhythm of the train and watch the world pass by the window, accompanied occasionally by little puffs of drifting steam.
Double rooms at The Elms Hotel and Spa start from £179 bed and breakfast: theelmshotel.co.uk
For more on the Severn Valley: www.visitsevernvalley.uk. For the Severn Valley Railway: svr.co.uk. For the Arley Arboretum: www.arleyestate.co.uk/arboretum/.
