Street to Wells Back to Somerset Way index Cheddar to Temple Cloud

The Walk

Today's route follows a named route, the West Mendip Way, from Wells to Cheddar along the scarp of the Mendip Hills. Despite it being a recognized route the West Mendip Way is not as well waymarked, and not as well maintained, as one would really expect. I had some access and route finding problems when I came this way in 1994 and it will really need a return visit to establish whether these problems still exist.

Most of the highlights of this section occur within the first four miles, during which we visit the hill of Arthur's Point, the nationally famous showcaves and museum at Wookey Hole, and the superb limestone scenery of Ebor Gorge. After that the West Mendip Way progresses through standard farming country, wandering down to the foot of the scarp at Draycott before tackling a second uphill section around Batcombe Farm and Bradley Cross. We come ultimately to Cheddar (yes, from where Cheddar cheese is named), and if you've got here in good time you might like to wander along the gorge - one of Britain's finest - and / or visit the Cheddar caves. Buses can whisk you from Cheddar to Wells or Bristol.

Map: OS 1:25000 Explorer 141 (Cheddar Gorge & Mendip Hills West)

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Note: The images in this gallery are poor, having been taken under bad weather conditions, and will be replaced by better photographs at some future date.

Wells

Wells, a pleasant cathedral town in the north-eastern corner of Somerset, sits at the foot of the Mendip scarp. The town was described on the previous page, Street to Wells.

    First Badgerline service 376/377, Somerton - Street - Glastonbury - Wells - Bristol
    First Badgerline service 163, Bridgwater - Street - Glastonbury - Wells
    First Badgerline service 161, Wells - Shepton Mallet - Frome
    First Badgerline service 173, Bath - Wells
    First Badgerline service 126, Wells - Cheddar

Our first task is to find the commencement of the West Mendip Way from the town centre. It isn't easy. The WMW is obvious on the map, running across the middle of a recreation ground immediately to the north of the town centre. Any approach via one of the lanes off the High Street, however, is doomed to failure - you will find yourself looking at the path from across a fence or a hedge, or from a car park, with no obvious means of access. In fact you need to start from the front of the cathedral close and walk for some 250m along the A39 Bath road, before turning left into a narrow walled lane that is signposted as a public footpath. This lane runs into the recreation ground at its southwest corner. Walk along the southern edge of the grounds for 300m and then turn right along the obvious track that crosses the park. The path runs between school buildings at the far side of the park and then runs uphill, between residential houses, to head for the prominent knoll of Arthur's Point.

Leaving Wells

At the top end of the residential area the path hops around a brief right-left dogleg and then continues uphill, on a track above a quarry, then runs behind the trees on the slope of Milton Hill. The path suddenly turns hard to the left to ascend a steep conical knoll, coming out into a clearing between the trees (the Americans would call this a "bald"). You're on Arthur's Point, elevation unknown. The views are a bit restricted due to the nearby trees, but much of Wells should be in view and you will not fail to spot Tor Hill at Glastonbury, five miles to the south. The Somerset Levels are in fact dotted with strange, isolated conical hills - the nearby Hay Hill, southwest of Wells and prominent to the right in the image above, is a fine example.

Cross the clearing and follow the path down the far side of Arthur's Point to reach Lime Kiln Lane at the foot. From here a path runs north, down a grassy slope, to the village of Wookey Hole.

Wookey Hole

Wookey Hole village

Wookey Hole village is pleasant, though tiny. It's dominated, of course, by the major tourist attraction on its doorstep - Wookey Hole cave, which is well worth a visit and for which you should set aside a couple of hours.

Wookey Hole was originally a natural limestone cave, and there is evidence of early habitation as well as legends of witchcraft and paganism. Explorers began tackling the caves in the 1930s and the system is now known to be one of the most extensive in Britain. Some passages within the section open to the public have been artificially made or enlarged, but a tour of the caves is a fascinating interlude. Remember to buy a ticket at the visitor centre at the car park, before walking up the short wooded valley to the cave entrance. The cave exit routes you into a building complex containing a museum of gaming machines, a mirror maze and the Wookey paper mill. Whether or not you visit the caves, you can make use of the cafeteria and toilet block adjacent to the car park.

  Wookey Hole website

Ebor

Ebor Gorge, lower and higher reaches

From Wookey Hole walk along the main road out of the village to the west. Some 300m further on you come to the entrance to Ebor Gorge off to the right. There's a campsite opposite. Ebor Gorge is a small but very picturesque incursion into the line of the Mendip scarp. It is wooded, and the lower reaches of lush meadow grass lead fairly quickly to the gorge proper, a steep walled limestone ravine. The map is a little vague as to the line of the footpath, showing the West Mendip Way climbing the slopes to the right of the gorge. The best advice here is to ignore the route shown on the map and follow your nose. Eventually the path emerges from the tree cover near the head of the gorge. Follow it past Higher Pitts Farm and then join the straight green lane of Dursdon Drove, heading west-northwest.

Priddy

The West Mendip Way south of Priddy

After running along Dursdon Drove for a while the West Mendip Way leaves it to the right (north) to follow a series of field boundaries out to an unclassified motor road just short of the village of Priddy. You could choose instead to stay on Dursdon Drove, which emerges onto the same road around 500m further south, an alternative that is no longer and rather more straightforward. Follow this road, which is named Pelting Drove, into Priddy.

Priddy is a small, scattered village sitting atop the Mendip scarp at a general elevation of 240m or about 800ft. It's centred on a large triangular green and hosts an annual folk festival each July. There's an inn but no other facilities. Take the road to the west-northwest. About 500m out of the village, where the road bends to the right, hold your direction along a footpath running diagonally across a couple of pastures. You emerge onto another unclassified road, running just south of west. Follow this road to a junction and then, as before, follow a footpath continuing in the same direction.

The footpath hugs the enclosure boundary to the first corner, then tends away slightly to the right. You cross a series of fairly featureless pastures; keep your eye on the map and navigate by field boundaries. The terrain slopes very gently downhill. You come alongside another field boundary and then reach the scarp slope once more. Continue to navigate by field boundaries and follow the line of the path down a ridge, alongside a field, and into a lane that drops you smartly into the village of Draycott.

Draycott

Draycott sits astride the main A371 Wells - Cheddar road at the foot of the Mendip scarp. The Wells - Cheddar bus service passes through the village, should you wish to end the walk here. I originally thought that Draycott had no facilities but a local resident has put me right - she says, "there is a local shop/post office in "The Street" which is just off the main A371 just opposite the lane which comes down off the Mendips.  It stocks all the usual food and drink plus newspapers.  Further along the main road to Cheddar on the left there is a farm shop called "Strawberry Farm" which is open between late spring and late Autumn."

Walk northwest through the village centre. The road forks. the main road going to the left. The lane to the right is known as Top Road and provides a pleasant low level alternative into Cheddar if the weather is poor, but the West Mendip Way proper goes off right just past the edge of the village, to Batcombe Farm. A word of warning - it's easy to get lost here, the line of the path being poorly marked both on the map and the ground. The most confusing point is a small tree-fringed pond just beyond the farm. It appears from the map that the path skirts the pond immediately to the right (east), though I recall floundering around here for some forty five minutes back in Easter '94 before I found my way. A further visit is required to confirm the line of the path, or perhaps someone with local knowledge would like to contact me.

Once you're clear of the farm and its pond, the WMW runs up a shallow grassy coombe, marked as Batcombe Hollow on the map. The WMW doglegs right and left to run up the spur of land to the right, though you may find a track keeping to the hollow. The route runs up out of the hollow onto the shallower slopes towards the top of the Mendip scarp, turning half left to approach the northwest corner of the pasture, then turning left again to run along the north side of a series of walls and fences.

The West mendip Way northwest of Batcombe Hollow

The last section of this path runs into a little hollow fringed by a ribbon of trees. If it's been raining recently then it could well be sloppy here. Once you come out into the open again the path turns half left and begins to run downhill towards Bradley Cross.

Bradley Cross

The approach from the top of the scarp to Bradley Cross first runs down to where a spot height of 107 metres is marked on the map, then curves to the right, tending to hug the contour around a spur of pasture. Hop over into the next pasture at its western end and then follow the path around to the left, running down a little track into the locality of Bradley Cross.

Scenery at Bradley Cross

Bradley Cross is just a scattering of cottages strung along a minor road, the continuation of Top Lane from Draycott. From Bradley Cross another footpath climbs the slopes to the north and joins and east-west track from where there are three alternative routes down into Cheddar, but it's far more straightforward to follow the lane down into the village direct.

Cheddar

Cheddar is of course where the world famous Cheddar cheese comes from, and it is possible to visit the creamery to see cheese being made. Scenery fans will be sure to make straight for Cheddar Gorge, one of the finest limestone ravines in Britain; it's rather a pity that the B3135 road runs through the gorge, but the heights either side of the ravine give splendid views. Tomorrow's route hugs the southeast side of the gorge. At the foot of the gorge are two showcaves; Gough's Cave and the smaller Cox's Cave. The Cheddar Caves & Gorge company looks after both caves and also charges a toll for the path up to the lookout point, called Jacob's Ladder. If you merely want to ascend to the top of the gorge then don't buy a ticket; walk round back into the Wells road and find the public footpath up to the same point. There's a good cafeteria at the foot of the gorge where you can get that welcome walk's end pot of tea. The buses leave from an adjacent road called Tweentown, otherwise there's some accommodation in the village.

  Cheddar website
  Cheddar Caves and Gorge

    First Badgerline service 126, Cheddar - Wells
    First Badgerline service 672/673 Cheddar - Bristol

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This page last updated 25th January 2005


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