Sue GearingWalking

the remains of an old stone stile. Head diagonally down to the bottom left corner, passing four oaks over right in the field. In the corner a KG leads to a stony track.

4. TRACK

Turn right and, not far along, go right over a stile and then bear diagonally left across the field (the same field you were in earlier with the oaks). Go through a kissing gate and go straight ahead across towards woodland. After another KG, drop steeply down into Harptree Combe.

5. HARPTREE COMBE

Turn left in the combe, with the stream right. It can be a bit muddy for a while. Notice the steep rocky sides of the combe on the other side, on the top of which are the almost invisible remains of a former castle, Richmont Castle. It was originally owned by the cruel Azeline de Perceval (“the wolf”) and his equally cruel son (“the wolf cub”). It became a useful fortress during the Norman conquest of Somersetshire. It was held by Sir William de Harptree for Empress Matilda against King Stephen and, although seemingly impregnable, it was captured by the King. Fortunately, the castle was left intact. In the time of Henry VIII it was pulled down by the then owner, Sir John Newton.

Continue down the combe coming alongside stone work channelling the stream into a leat. Bend round right, down steps and left along a path. Up right is where the water from Chewton Mendip comes in. Go along with huge stone buttresses on your right, holding the water. Finally come to the magnificent stone aqueduct with the water piped above. This is all part of the skilfully crafted line of works bringing water to Bristol from Mendip.

OS Explorer 141, Cheddar Gorge & Mendip Hills West, grid ref: 557541, post code for car park BS40 6DA. 5.9 miles, about 3 hours walking.

6. AQUEDUCT

Go under the aqueduct and on down the stream to the bottom of the combe, leaving through a KG. Note the magnificent oak tree ahead. Turn right uphill and along a broad hedged track. Cross a stile and head towards the church. Go up steps and through a significant stone squeeze stile, along a path at the side of the churchyard and out into East Harptree village. The beautiful 12th century church is well worth a visit.

7. EAST HARPTREE

Go ahead, passing the Waldegrave Arms on your right and on through the village. Go on past the community shop, avoiding side turns. Over left is the wall of Harptree Court. Go through the de-restriction signs and at the end of an orchard on the right, take the footpath stile right into a field. Go up the right side of three fields until you come out onto a lane.

8. MORGANS LANE

Almost opposite, turn up into Morgan’s Lane still climbing steadily. Reach Morgan’s Cottage ahead and go to the left. A few yards before the end, take a pedestrian gate right and go ahead and through a gate into very pleasant Walker’s Wood.

9. WALKERS WOOD

This is in memory of Mike and Carolyn Walker and has a welcoming seat. Go through the wood into a field then head up diagonally across, going through a gap in the hedge and across a streamlet. Up on the top is a Bristol Gate (BG). Once through head right, through another BG and now, on the level, follow the left hedge. Go left through a BG. Bear up across to the top right corner, near a large farm. (It can be a bit confusing with temporary fencing for horse paddocks). You may have to step over. Go up and then right across a footbridge. The path then heads across, bends up left to a KG onto a Tarmac drive. Turn right and soon reach Harptree Hill.

10. HARPTREE HILL

Turn left uphill and find the entrance to the woods where you parked.

West Countryman’s diary

HALF the year has gone already! The brighter side of this is we are moving closer to some sort of “normality”. Whatever that may hold for our future is yet to be seen. Are we now living in the new normal, with social distancing and changes to routines With LES DAVIES MBE born out of the pandemic? There are so many questions, but life must go on that’s for certain!

We have questioned our human behaviour of global travel and use of natural resources. Perhaps this has been for a reason, a reason that has made us look at what we have been doing and how we can improve things. I recall John Thatcher of Thatchers Cider summing up a job or project by asking “Could we have done it better?”

It seems like April showers all the time at the moment, but a large wolf-like creature, which I truly hope has not been seen this can be all to the good when it comes to growing crops. Last lurking around the nearby Rowberrow forest. It is however very year was far too dry, far too early. We can deal with a dry impressive, but regretfully may very soon disappear with the period after the end of May, but not before. rain.

That said, my potatoes finally went into the ground during a Mendip does not have the underlying chalk of Dorset and dry spell alongside the onions and shallots. Small stuff Wiltshire where other features have been carved since precompared to the first cut of silage or the early Cheddar historic times. I suspect this creature will have been created strawberries, but important to me as a statement of self-reliance. with a bio-degradable medium and will soon melt back into the

Looking closer to home has become very important and there landscape as quickly as it appeared. It is certainly a very can never have been a greater importance placed upon the impressive piece of contextual art on a large scale. community shop and farm shop to supply good quality local Not all that far back Yeo Valley created a cow on a north produce needed during our time of lockdown. I hope that this sloping field above Ubley. More like “How now brown cow” trend is here to stay! than the White Horse of Westbury, in Wiltshire, it was another

Local campsites, pubs and restaurants are no doubt looking feature of interest and conversation in the countryside. forward to opening up again. Can you remember having a pub All this stuff fascinated me and as I await the arrival of lunch? At one time it was all part of the day out and maybe we “Banksy” on Mendip, there are still plenty of things in the will be spending leisure time there again. A day out in the natural environment to fuel my limited artistic interest. countryside is more than just the miles walked, it’s about what We may not possess a Cerne Abbas giant, with all his natural you can see and experience. attributes, or a white horse, but we have twisted shapes in the

That’s the reasoning behind the walk books I write with Sue trees and cloud formations that appear as one thing only to Gearing. There are lots of things to see if you have the eyes to morph into another shape, disappearing as quickly as they were see them! created.

Have you seen the scary beastie that has been etched into a Time spent relaxing on a sunny Sunday afternoon looking at field on the slopes of Long Bottom near Shipham? It transpires clouds isn’t time wasted. It’s therapeutic and great family this is an advertisement for a new computer game. The figure is entertainment. When you grow tired of cloud gazing, which does have a name that escapes me at the moment, so I shall christen it “polygrotamy”, start looking for faces and shapes in the trees. Scary monsters or quiet benign looking creatures, all appear at one time or another when your eyes and mind become accustomed to searching them out. I have found one of the best places is amongst the ancient lime trees that mark the south east boundary of Kings Wood near Cross. Check out the Winscombe walk on page 10 of the Mendipity walk book to take you on the pathway through these guardians of the ancient woodland. I am going to leave room this time for an extra picture: Firstly the snarling beast of Shipham and secondly the almost Jurassiclike creature seen on Wrington Hill. No doubt you will find many more during your days out! The “blob” on the picture is a fly on the lens, who was so desperate to get in on the act. Thanks to Sue Gearing for providing me with these.