WALKING WITH ANDREW SWIFT

Entry Hill Open Space Moorlands

Odd Down’s open spaces

For November’s walk, Andrew Swift stays in Bath for a far from unchallenging urban ramble, taking in some of the many open spaces in Odd Down and the south-eastern part of Bath

Although most of Odd Down and the south east of the city has only been built up in the last hundred years, quarrying has gone on here for centuries, and, as well as scores of abandoned quarries, many old houses – once the homes of quarrymen and quarry masters – survive among later developments. En route, we also pass the site of the lost village of Berewyke, walk through the ruinous ramparts of an Iron Age hillfort and along a section of the Somerset & Dorset Railway – now converted to the Two Tunnels Greenway – as well as enjoying a succession of views over the city.

Start by crossing the footbridge over the river at the back of Bath Spa station, continue over two sets of pedestrian lights, turn right and then left up Lyncombe Hill.

After 500m, at the crossroads, carry straight on along Lyncombe Vale Road. At the bottom, turn right to continue along Lyncombe Vale Road. At the end, turn left under a railway bridge and bear right to follow a path through an overgrown meadow.

At the end, carry on between fences, with the Lyn Brook on your right. Ignoring a path branching off to the right, carry on in the same direction and, when you come to a lane, turn left.

Take the footpath beside the gate to Combe House and after 75m, by the entrance to Beechlands, bear right. At the end, turn right past Granville House, one of whose carvings came from the Granville Monument on Lansdown when it was restored in 1829. Turn left at the road and after 125m, just before a bench, turn left up steps.

At the top, turn left and follow the road as it curves right. Turn left up more steps, right at the top and after 200m look along the second turning on the left to see the entrance to Springfield Quarry. Once the largest open quarry on the down, but abandoned for well over a century, it is well worth exploring.

Carrying on along the road, turn left up Entry Hill. Opposite is a gate leading into Entry Hill Open Space – also well worth a diversion. This was once a farm, but in 1969 the council began using the land as a municipal tip, and culverted the Lyn Brook which ran through it. Topsoil was later laid on top of the rubble to turn it into a golf course. This has now closed and it has been transformed into a much-loved green space, a smaller and more intimate version of Prior Park. After a bid by Avon Wildlife Trust to create a wildlife-rich Nature Park here was turned down, it is now proposed to convert much of this green space into a network of mountain bike trails.

Carry on up Entry Hill and turn left along Hawthorn Grove. After 115m go through a gate on the right into an open space. At the road turn left, cross at the zebra crossing and turn down Pioneer Avenue. Turn right at the end along Shepherds Walk and at the road turn left.

At the end is the Cross Keys, one of Bath’s oldest pubs, being described as ‘new erected’ in 1718. Cross the main road, turn right, go up steps by the bus stop and through a squeeze stile to follow a path between fences along the course of the ancient earthwork known as the Wansdyke.

After 700m, when the fence ends, carry on into an open space. After another 125m, turn right down steps to follow a path between houses. When you come to a road, cross and carry on along another path. At the next road, follow the path to the right of the house ahead and turn left along a road. At the end, bear right to follow a path which curves left through a kissing gate into an open space. Here, between 1858 and 1899, over 3,000 people who ended their days in the nearby workhouse were laid to rest in unmarked graves.

At the road, cross the zebra crossing, turn left and then right along Oolite Road. At the end, turn right and after 150m you come to the remains of one of Bath’s lost coaching inns, the Red Lion, which now forms the back part of the pharmacy on the corner.

Cross the road ahead and continue along Bloomfield Road. After 125m, turn right into Chelwood Drive and left through a gate into Odd Down Sports Ground. Bear right across the grass and at the hedge bear left to walk the length of the playing field. Once there, turn left alongside the fence, and, after passing a litter bin, follow a track which curves through the fence and, a little further on, heads down through undergrowth to emerge on the hillside. Across the valley is Entry Hill Open Space, while the site of the lost village of Berewyke lies somewhere below you.

The track is well walked, but rough and slippery as it meanders across the hillside. As you near the end of the field, follow it as it curves left through the hedgerow, where it turns even rougher. Bear right and you will soon find yourself walking alongside a green fence. On the other side – far below – is a bungalow in an old quarry. After passing a gate in the fence, follow a path bearing off to the left.

Carry on in the same direction and, when you come to steps leading down to a hoggin path, carry on along it. These shelving woods, known as the Tumps, are said to have been ramparts protecting an encampment on the plateau above, but they have been so scoured by quarrying it is impossible to be sure.

Follow the path as it heads down steps and at the end carry on down to squeeze past a gate onto the road. Cross and turn left uphill. Carry on past the beehive-topped gateposts of Bloomfield Crescent and turn right along Bloomfield Drive. After 40m, bear right to follow a rough track alongside the wall.

At the end, a kissing gate leads into Corston View Open Space. Carry on in the same direction, go past a 7-bar gate at the end, cross a drive and head down a steep, slippery track curving past a quarry face.

When you emerge in Rush Hill Open Space, head across to a gap in the fence, go down steps and turn right along the road. Take the second right along Ambleside, and at the end turn left along Kingsway. When you reach Englishcombe Lane, turn right. The Orangery, which you pass on the right, is the old Englishcombe Inn – opened 1934, closed 2008.

After another 350m, turn left through a gateway into Englishcombe Lane Open Space. Follow a path diagonally downhill and after passing a play area, look to the left to see the Moorlands, with its six-storey tower, once home to Anna Sewell, author of Black Beauty.

After crossing a drive, turn left down a footpath. Follow it as it curves left beside a fence, and turn right when the fence ends. Turn right along the road, and then left through Willow Green. At the end, cross and head along Hillside Road opposite.

Go under the railway bridge ahead, bear right, head right up steps and turn left along the Two Tunnels Greenway. Carry on under a bridge, but before you come to the tunnel turn left into Bloomfield Green. Head diagonally uphill and at the road turn left.

Cross at the pedestrian lights by the Bear Inn, turn left across the bottom of Bruton Avenue and follow the pavement as it curves into Beechen Cliff Road.

After 175m, just past Stanley House, turn left along a footpath and right at the end. After another 75m, turn left down a flight of steps. When you come to a signpost, turn right through woods. At the end, head down steps and bear left past a play area. Cross the road, go down steps to Calton Walk, and at the bottom turn right along St Mark’s Place to return to the starting point. n

Fact file

n Distance: 8 miles

n Level of challenge: Several flights of steps and rough and slippery paths

n Refreshment stops: Cross Keys Inn, Midford Road

BA2 5RZ (www.crosskeysbath.co.uk)

n Map: The OS map includes few of the footpaths mentioned; a better option for checking out the route can be found at www.openstreetmap.org.

More on the details of this and many more walks can be found in Andrew Swift’s Country Walks from Bath, published by Akeman Press; akemanpress.com.

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