Length: 25.1 km (15.7 mi) [longer and shorter walks
possible, see below]
Ascent/Descent: 504m
Net Walking Time: 6 hours
Toughness: 7 out of 10
Take the 08.32 Bristol Temple Meads train
from Paddington (08.57 Reading), change at Bath Spa (arr. 09.51, dep.
10.03) onto the Weymouth train (Westbury 10.33, Frome 10.43), to
arrive Bruton 10.54.
From Castle Cary take the 10.06 Gloucester train, arrives 10.11, leaving some time to explore Bruton.
Return trains to
Frome/Westbury: 18.49, 19.45, 21.22, 22.25.
Return trains to
Castle Cary: 17.55, 18.55, 19.45, 22.01.
Return trains to
London: 16.12, 17.55, 18.49, 18.55, 19.45.
This excursion is centred on the remote Somerset
town of Bruton, with its honey-coloured stone-built cottages, a large dovecote
on a mound overlooking the townscape and a fine selection of lunch and tea
options. It leads through a scenic South Somerset landscape of narrow
steep-sided valleys and coombes with some fast-flowing streams and rivers, with
the route dipping in and out of the Brue, Alham and Pitt valleys. From the
rolling hilltops you get some far views across to the range forming the
boundary with Wiltshire and Dorset, with the local landmark Alfred’s Tower, a
folly, on top of it. The route leads close to the renowned art gallery Hauser & Wirth Somerset, and a short version of the walk leaves enough time for an extended
visit to it and/or its fascinating bar and restaurant.
Walk Options:
As a Figure-of-Eight walk, you can walk the
two loops in reverse order.
A shortcut in the morning, with lunch in Bruton, enables a longer visit to the Hauser & Wirth art gallery (exhibition at time of walk: Henry Moore) and/or for lunch or tea. This cuts 8.8 km/5.5 mi and 175m ascent, the resulting 16.2 km/10.1 mi walk is rated 4/10.
A shortcut in the morning, with lunch in Bruton, enables a longer visit to the Hauser & Wirth art gallery (exhibition at time of walk: Henry Moore) and/or for lunch or tea. This cuts 8.8 km/5.5 mi and 175m ascent, the resulting 16.2 km/10.1 mi walk is rated 4/10.
A shortcut towards the end, avoiding the final ascent up to Ridge Lane,
cuts 1 km and 42m ascent.
An extension just before lunch, further up the narrow Alham Valley, adds
3.1 km/1.9 mi and 150m ascent.
An extension in the afternoon adds 2.9 km/1.8 mi with 95m ascent. Bus
line 667 from Shepton Montague to Castle Cary enables a finish at The Montague
Inn.
A start from Castle Cary (with faster and more frequent trains) adds about 50 minutes of
walking.
Lunch: The Three Horseshoes Inn (8.9
km/5.5 mi, closed until November) and several choices in Bruton
(about 16 km, see pdf for details) as well as the Roth Bar & Grill at Hauser & Wirth (pre-booking recommended at the Roth).
Tea: The Godminster Farm Shop near the
station plus more than a handful of choices in Bruton (see pdf for
details).
For summary, route map, height
profile, photos, walk directions and gpx/kml files click here. T=swc.284
3 comments:
Henry Moore: Sharing Form at Hauser & Wirth has received a 5 star-review in yesterday's i (print edition)
With the nominal lunch pub in Batcombe closed for refurbishment under new owners, and combined with the late-ish start, it makes sense to walk the afternoon loop first for lunch back in Bruton, or even - if walking the extended afternoon loop - to have lunch at the much lauded Montague Inn in Shepton Montague.
7 met at the station, all having arrived in the area the day before. As per the previous comment, we walked the afternoon loop first to arrive in good time for lunch back in Bruton and to then embark on the longer northern loop, with the option of breaking off from the group after lunch or later along the official shortcut route to be back in Bruton for a visit to the Henry Moore exhibition. We bumped into 1 other on the High Street in B, who had started a bit earlier and walked the route in the normal sequence. 1 of us went straight to H&W for the exhibition, 1 other strayed off to do his own thing half an hour after lunch, 3 took the shortcut to see the exhibition or do some food shopping. 2 finished the full route. Those arrived back in B at 6.
Some paths were overgrown (there are not many walking groups out here in the sticks to keep the grass and nettles down), the most annoying one being an 800m long rising hollooway. We did survive... Views were smashing, what with the dry clear air an sunny sky.
5 others had driven in from their abode in Castle Cary and did various combinations of a bit of walking, the Bruton Museum and Hauser & Wirth gallery plus then the official afternoon loop. Some of those then apparently walked back to CC along the optional ending rather than sharing in the car ride back.
Temperatures topped out at 23 degrees late afternoon, always with a breeze, making for a very pleasant summer walking weather.
n=13 on a w=warm-day-with-a-breeze
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