A Trip to North Somerset

 A few weeks back we treated ourselves to a little trip down to North Somerset, in particular to the Bath area. We pushed the boat out (not literally) by choosing to fly from Edinburgh to Bristol airport, hire a car and have a six night stay in a holiday rental house not far from Bath.

The rental home was located at the end of a little lane in a little village called High Littleton, with views of the nearby countryside:

View of the back garden and old orchard

Old barn at rear of holiday home

View of the local countryside (bit misty)

View out the front window

It was very comfortable, and our first trip out was to a nearby supermarket to get some provisions in. So it was home cooking for our first night's meal.

Our next trip out was to the nearby Chew Valley Lake, which despite the cold misty weather was quite enjoyable, with plenty of wildlife on view:

Misty Chew Valley Lake

Greylag Goose

A pair of Mallard

Waterfowl on the Slipway

Greylag Close-up (or is it a White-fronted Goose?)

Although it is called Chew Valley Lake it is in fact a reservoir, supplying fresh water (after treatment) to the Bath and Bristol area. The most obvious indication of this is the dam, which we took a walk along:

The Dam at Chew Valley Reservoir

Tufted Ducks seen from the dam

Male and Female Tufted Ducks

Tufted Ducks on Chew Valley Lake

Here is a little video of these Tufted Duck on Chew Valley Lake:

There is actually a road that runs along the top of the dam and we were able to walk along the pavement to the far end of the dam. About two thirds of the way along the dam is an intake tower which feeds the fresh water to the treatment works:

Chew Valley Reservoir Intake Tower

Moira on the Chew Valley Dam

At the far end of the dam is the reservoir overspill weir, which is basically an overflow which eventually feeds into the River Chew:

The Spillway at Chew Valley Dam

Water flowing over Spillway Weir

Water flowing down the Spillway Channel

The spillway channel was on the other side of the road and hence on the 'dry' side of the dam. Watching the water spill over the weir was mesmerizing, here is a video to show you:

We headed back along the dam to the place where we had parked the car, which was in the car park for the Salt & Malt Restaurant; which as the name suggests serves fish and chips. We were getting a bit peckish and it seemed rude to use their car park without buying anything, so a box of chips and two teas to take-away were purchased. We sat at a picnic table and ate our chips, which were delicious, highly recommended and chips always taste better outdoors.

Fully refreshed we took a walk along the side of the lake to see what we could see. It was still a bit misty out on the lake but we did spot a couple of birds of interest:

Still misty over Chew Valley Lake

A pair of Goldeneye

Goldeneye on Chew Valley Lake

Not the best of photos but they were a bit far away, maybe the video is a bit better:

We were starting to feel a bit weary and there seemed to be more and more people and bikes on the pathway than when we started, so we headed back to the car park. Once in the car we took a leisurely drive over the dam, through the village of Chew Stoke and then back down the other side of the lake/reservoir. At West Harptree we turned left onto Bath Road which took us along the southern edge of the lake, stopping at Herriotts Mill pool to see what we could see:

Herriotts Mill Pool

Canada Geese

Tufted Duck Close-up

Geese, Ducks and Swans on Mill Pool

We headed back to the holiday rental for a restful afternoon before heading out in the evening for a lovely meal at the nearby Hunter's Rest Inn.

Next day we were up bright and early for a trip to the cathedral city of Wells, which less than an hour's drive away. Although it is a city it is really the size of a large town, with the centre being very historic and easily walkable.

Two of the main attractions in Wells are the Cathedral and The Bishop's Palace, both of which sit slap-bang in the middle of this historic city. After a cup of coffee in a quaint cafe we headed to the Bishop's Palace, which is surrounded by a picturesque  moat containing majestic swans:

The moat surrounding the Bishop's Palace in Wells

Moira at the gateway to the Bishop's Palace

Ducks on the moat, viewed from the drawbridge

We crossed the drawbridge and passed through the entrance gate into the palace grounds:

The Bishop's Palace, across the croquet lawn

The remains of the Great Hall at the Bishop's Palace

After a leisurely stroll around the grounds of the palace we headed back out across the drawbridge to be greeted by some of the palace's resident swans:

Juvenile Mute Swan

Adult Mute Swan 

The adult swan looked like a male (or cob) and was preventing the juvenile swan from entering the water by being aggressive and intimidating. This may be a territorial thing as the adult in the moat was very near to the 'feeding window' in the palace wall, which has a little bell that the swans ring to get food thrown out to them. Obviously this doesn't happen every time they ring the bell, otherwise they would be too fat to float.

We headed back to the city square, where just round the corner stood the magnificent Wells Cathedral:

Wells Cathedral

Eddie at Wells Cathedral

I am not really a religious person but I do respect the faith of others, I also think the architecture in these ancient buildings is fantastic. Considering construction of this cathedral was started over 800 years ago, without the use of modern tools or lifting equipment makes it even more impressive. 

We decided to go inside and take the tour, entrance was along the well trodden flagstones of the West Cloister:

West Cloister at Wells Cathedral

This lead us into the Knave, the main body of the cathedral, with its magnificent Central Tower comprising scissor arches:

Inside the Knave at Wells Cathedral

Central Tower with its Scissor Arches

Behind the Central Tower lies the Choir area, complete with the impressive Cathedral Organ:

Wells Cathedral Choir and Organ

Carved Wooden Lectern in Choir area

Beyond the Choir area lies the Lady Chapel, illuminated by hundreds of stained glass window panels:

Lady Chapel at Wells Cathedral

The fantastic ceiling of the Lady Chapel

We climbed the stairs leading up to the Chapter House (there are more than three steps to Heaven!)

Steps to the Chapter House

The Chapter house was more austere than the Lady Chapel, a place for quiet contemplation, but it did afford a good view of the east side of the cathedral:

The Chapter House at Wells Cathedral

View of Wells Catherdal from the Chapter House

Back down the steps we entered the Transept area, with its magnificent clock, featuring jousting knights and a bell ringer:

Clock in the Transept at Wells Cathedral

Windows in the Transept

Roof Structure in the Transept.

 We headed back along the Knave to the West Cloister and then visited the gift shop (as you do) on our way out.

As we were only about half an hour away from one of my favourite places in Somerset, namely Avalon Marshes, we decided to head down there to see what we could see. We stopped in the Avalon Marshes Visitor Centre to have a quick bite to eat before heading along Shapwick Road to the South Drain:

The South Drain East from Shapwick Road

The South Drain West from Shapwick Road

The South Drain is basically a large ditch which runs from the Somerset Levels all the way to the mouth of the River Parrett and was used to drain the Avalon Marshes when it was previously designated for peat extraction. Now it is a wildlife reserve and is full of reedbeds and marshland; we carried on down the lane that runs alongside the South Drain:

Path alongside the South Drain

Heading down the path towards Noah's Lake

The first bird of note that we saw was a Marsh Harrier, which was above the woodland on the other side of the drain before it flew overhead and disappeared into the reedbeds:

It was difficult to spot many of the birds that were in the reedbeds, even though we could hear them quite clearly. We heard a Bittern booming, but never saw it. We heard a Cetti's Warbler singing, but never saw it. despite our best efforts we were restricted to views of common birds like Mallard:

Listening to invisible Bittern

Scanning the Reedbeds looking for something

A pair of Mallard

We were enjoying the sunshine though, and the scenery was pretty good as well:

Near to Noah's Lake at Avalon Marshes

Lovely Reedbeds and Ponded Areas

Picturesque Views at Avalon Marshes

After a while we decided to head back to the Visitor Centre and were rewarded with good views of a singing Chiffchaff just before we reached Shapwick Road:

Chiffchaff at Avalon Marshes

Chiffchaff near Shapwick Road

On our way back to the holiday rental we stopped at the Old Station Inn in the village of Hallatrow. Here we had some lovely fish and chips for tea, served in an old railway carriage:

Fish and Chips

In a Railway Carriage (stationary that is)

A nice treat to end a lovely day out.

Next morning we drove into Bath, parked in the Park and Ride and jumped on the bus to the centre. We walked along passed the Roman Baths and the Abbey heading towards the River Avon:

Entrance to The Roman Baths

Bath Abbey

Outside Bath Abbey

When we reached the river we headed along to Pulteney Bridge and the impressive Pulteney Weir:

Pulteney Weir on the River Avon

Pulteney Bridge

This video show the water flowing over the weir and down the river:

We carried on up to the bridge and crossed over the river, stopping at a cafe on the bridge for a coffee and some cake:

Shops on Pulteney Bridge, from the cafe

After coffee break we carried on over the bridge, down the steps then headed along the east shore of the Avon:

Pulteney Weir from the east shore of the Avon

Pulteney Bridge from East Side

Some Mute Swans near the Weir

The original weir was built in the 1600s to prevent flooding of the lower areas of Bath, but the V shape weir we see today was built in the 1970s, giving more effective control of the river flow.

St John's Church across the weir

Barges and Boats moored downstream of Pulteney Weir

We carried along the path on the east side of the Avon until we reached the bridge at North Parade, where we crossed back over towards the city centre. We made our way back to the Roman Baths and this time we went in (not literally in the bath):

The Great Bath, viewed from above (current street level)

Where the Hot Springs flow into the Great Bath

You enter the baths at the current street level, which is a good 3 or 4 metres above the original ground floor level during Roman times. The architecture at this upper level is distinctly Victorian, a representation of what a Roman terrace should look like. When you go down to the original ground level you get a better picture of what the baths looked like during Roman times:

Moira at the Roman Baths

The Roman Baths at original ground level

Roaming around the baths

The Roman Baths, in Bath

You can follow the flow of the water from the hot springs (called the Sacred Spring) through to the various baths it feeds, including the Great Bath:

The Sacred Spring bubbling up through The Kings Bath

Hot Water from the Sacred Spring feeding The Great Bath

The water comes out of the Sacred Spring at 46 degC, making for a very hot bath, it is diluted somewhat by the volume of water in the Great Bath. 

This video shows the water from the hot springs flowing into the Great Bath:

Very interesting and one of the 'must see' visitor attractions in Bath. 

As well as the Roman Baths we also visited some of Bath's other 'must see' visitor attractions, namely the elegant rows of Georgian townhouses that make up the Circus and the Royal Crescent:

The Circus, Bath

Royal Crescent, Bath

More of Royal Crescent

We tried to visit the Bath at Work Museum, but after a tiring hike uphill we found out it was closed that day!!!!

We did however get into the Jane Austen Experience, which was quite interesting, but I didn't take any photos. Moira did get to meet Jane Austen though:

Jane Austen

Moira meets Jane Austen

That was an experience.

Next day we took a trip down through Cheddar Gorge. We parked in the car park in the picturesque village of Cheddar and after a bit of lunch we had a walk alongside the River Yeo which flows through the village.

The River Yeo in Cheddar

Moira in Cheddar Village

At this point we noticed a large white bird fishing on the banks of the river, it was a Little Egret, a member of the Heron family:

Little Egret in Cheddar

Little Egret Stretching

Little Egret Fishing in River Yeo

These use to be quite rare birds but have now become quite common, especially in the South of England, however I have never seen one this close, and in an a semi-urban setting. This video show the bird walking casually along the river's edge, stirring up the mud then catching a fish:

The Egret then came even closer to where we were standing, it didn't seem to bother how close we were, it just kept on looking for fish:

We then walked back up through the village, following the course of the River Yeo as it flowed from Cheddar Gorge down through the village:

The Cheddar Yeo

Sword in the Stone (and someone's boot?)

Willow Woven Wildlife

Weir on the Yeo

Upstream from this weir the river takes on a more industrial look; this is where the river was harnessed as a water supply for various mills in the region and also a public drinking water supply.

Ponded Area above the Weir

Cheddar Yeo Pond/Reservoir

Cheddar Yeo as it flows from the caves in the gorge

I have done a little video of the flow of the Cheddar Yea as it runs through the village:

Which leads us neatly up to Cheddar Gorge:

Looking towards Cheddar Gorge

So we jumped in the car and drove up through the gorge:

The Road through Cheddar Gorge

Heading up the Gorge

Impressive Cheddar Gorge

We drove on up through the gorge until we reached a turn off called Priddy Road, which heads towards Compton Martin. On this road near to Yoxter I spotted a Red Kite in the sky:

Red Kite near Yoxter

Red Kite Soaring

By the time I stopped the car and got my camera out the Kite was almost past us, best I could get was this short video:

Not too bad, at least you can make out what it was.

Passing through Compton Martin and West Harptree we made our way back to the holiday rental. That was basically it for our trip down to North Somerset as we flew back home the next morning.

Until next time, take care

Teddyedward