Lydney seems to have been getting some bad publicity recently, but I don’t recognise some of the descriptions of the town. The town has the only bank and railway station in the forest, it’s close to the A48 for journeys to Gloucester and Chepstow, and features Taurus Crafts, which is situated on a Roman settlement from two millennia ago and is a great visitors centre with arts and crafts, and introduces people with learning disabilities into community life.

We do our weekly shopping in Lydney, and we visit the town quite frequently for other services. It’s a busy town, but with a couple of places for quiet contemplation and enjoyment of Lydney’s watery heritage. There’s the peaceful lake with ducks at Tutnalls, behind the Lydney rugby and cricket grounds. And there’s the ancient Severn harbour.

The Severn harbour at Lydney has been an important regional harbour since Roman times. There was a harbour at Lydbrook, being on the River Wye and thus providing opportunities for river transport to Ross-on-Wye and Hereford. It was in use for a time for Wye river transport and especially for carrying passengers, but the harbour at Lydney offers wider and deeper river transport facilities.

The Romans exploited and exported mainly iron ore, but coal became the principal product of the forest to be exported, and in the middle ages canals were made and rail tracks were laid to get black gold (coal) to Lydney harbour. The original tracks were not for steam trains, but for use by horses, who could bear heavier loads if they could drag them along on a rail line rather than carrying the loads on their backs.

The development of steam trains and the 19th century network of commercial rail lines and tramroads brought much trade to the forest, but the gradual closures of Forest collieries caused a decline of harbour activity, and the riverside coal trade ended in 1960. Rail and road have taken over from canals as the principal means of transporting commercial cargo, but the harbour survives as the home of the Lydney Yacht club and as a favourite venue for visitors. And the great Hips café there provides home made cakes and real coffee.

The harbour also features the occasional visit from a passenger ship, to take day trippers to Ilfracombe or Weston Super Mare. But with the unforgiving tides, the ship will not be able to get you back the same day, so the ship will drop you off at Penarth, South Wales, and a coach will bring you back to Lydney.