I visited the Ironbridge Gorge on a day trip from Llangollen, just over the border in Wales. My rental Ford Focus got me there via narrow, winding roads just before 10 a.m. I was early enough to get a parking spot in the center of Ironbridge town. I had printed out a hiking map beforehand (the South Telford Heritage Trail) and set out on foot to at least walk part of it.

The main focus at first is the Iron Bridge itself. It’s an imposing structure for its age, and pretty photogenic too. I crossed it and walked on the other side of the river Severn to Jackfield and Coalport. The walking trail here lies between the river and the main road, but the shrubs are too thick to see anything worthwhile. It is actually just the sort of path you see at BBC Crimewatch when someone is suddenly attacked by a stranger. Fortunately, nothing happened to me, I only encountered some fellow hikers.

The path ends near the former tile factories of Jackfield, and then I crossed the river again via the footbridge. This is where the Tar Tunnel lies, and also the Hay Inclined Plane (a lift or funicular for ships). Only the tracks remain. I walked back along the main road to Ironbridge.

After my walk, I tried two of the Ironbridge Gorge Museums. You can visit all 10 of them for a rather steep 22.5 pounds (they’re not exactly the Uffizi or the Hermitage so I think that is a lot of money). The Ironbridge Museum’s main feature is a 10-minute video that shows the basic history of the area. The Iron Museum in Coalbrookdale is a larger complex, with an indoor exhibition and outdoor structures like the Old Furnace. Both museums failed to inspire me, they are pretty much a collection of display boards and paraphernalia. The Ironbridge museums won the European Museum of the Year award in 1977, but are not up to what a museum can be in 2011. Earlier this summer I visited the Gallo-Roman Museum in Tongres (Belgium) and the Laténium in Neuchatel (Switzerland), where much better presentations are made out of much less history.

As will be clear by now, I was quite disappointed with Ironbridge though I like industrial heritage in general. It's more the age of things that is remarkable here, than the physical remains. The little towns hold some very pretty cottages, and the river Severn now flows peacefully through this green landscape where nature has taken over again from heavy industry.