SEVERN Bridge maintenance engineers are putting their feet up after finishing a 218-mile walk in eight days and raising £2,500 for St Anne’s Hospice.

The seven-strong Severn Bridge Stumblers completed more than a marathon a day for eight days walking from the source of the River Severn in mid Wales to where it meets the sea at Avonmouth.

Team leader Paul Lane, aged 53, from Undy, said: “The walk, The Severn Way along the banks of what is the longest river in Britain, was definitely one of our hardest challenges we have faced to date. I certainly took its toll on each and every one of our seven man team.

“It was a gruelling test, day after day trudging along the River Severn, through marvellous countryside, following the route of the river from its source in the mountains at Plynlimon to where it flows into the sea at Avonmouth.”

Paul, Severn River Crossings inspection and maintenance manager, has worked on the two bridges for 32 years.

He said the team were delighted to have completed the challenge and to have been able to raise so much money for St Anne’s Hospice.

“We have traditionally raised money for St Anne’s Hospice and now St David’s Hospice Care as it’s a local charity and family members have benefited from their care and support in the past.”

The men each took a week’s holiday from work to complete the walk and paid for their own overnight accommodation each night along the way.

Tania Ansell, of St Anne’s Hospice Care, said: “This was a fabulous effort from The Severn Bridge Stumblers. We’re absolutely thrilled with their continued support and with the significant amount of money that they have raised for the charity to help to enable us to continue with our vital work within community.”

The Stumblers, who live on either side of the English Welsh border, all work as part of the Severn bridges maintenance team based on the English side at Aust. They are employed by Laing O’Rourke who look after the bridges on behalf of owners Severn River Crossings Plc.

This was the fourth 'Stumblers' fund raising event. The men have previously walked the Offa’s Dyke from North to South Wales; The Coast to Coast Path from one side of England to the other and The Welsh 3000’s climbing all 14 mountains in Snowdonia more than 3,000 feet in 24 hours.

The Stumblers have walked a combined total of more than 3,000 charity fund raising miles for St Anne’s Hospice in the past 20 years raising some £10,000 along the way.