17th July Batcombe
Batcombe to Spargrove
We were reduced to just two walkers plus Scrumpy on Saturday 17th July, but real hard men Phil and Richard took on the Batcombe to Spargrove challenge following the course of the River Alham. Description : “The walk from Batcombe to Spargrove is delightful, well-signed, and very easy to follow with a clear path the whole way. It is very popular with Batcombe dog-walkers.”
To be fair, the route is mostly straightforward and the scenery is lovely. We parked at the church and set off west along the road until just after Church Farm when we took a turn left down Mill Lane. All the local properties are immaculately maintained and mostly of beautiful old stone which feels like piles of money which has settled comfortably into retirement.
At the bottom of the lane we got ourselves a little confused before consulting a friendly local who advised us to turn right along the bank of the river, through the woods, across a bridge and into a field. In the woods we found the curious monument to “Kick” who sounds like he was either a donkey or someone keen on taekwondo. We continued along the field, over a stile, a further field and stile and out across the Bruton-Westcombe Road.
Across the road and over another stile we found ourselves in a field full of Shetland Ponies – the photo maybe doesn’t do justice to these beautiful little beasts who serve no apparent useful purpose other than to look attractive in group photos. We crossed the field diagonally to reach a gate and a wide wooden bridge. Once over the bridge we turned right to follow the riverbank. The owner of Mill Farm has helpfully mown a wide path here but added some very clear advice to stock to it and stay off private land. We went through a gate and crossed the river by an old bridge, continued to a wooden gate and on across the next field and over a pair of small footbridges to another wide field. Here we encountered some young calves who parted obediently before us.
We had met several friendly dog-walkers but nobody especially distinguished until this point when we spoke briefly with a well-known Radio 4 person instantly recognizable by her beautiful speaking voice. Is it rude to say to somebody famous “I am sure I recognize your dogs!” Anyway, she was charming and warned us to avoid bullocks which for our group is probably impossible.
Sticking by the right-hand edge of the field, we then turned right over a bridge (which crosses the mill leat for Spargrove Mill several hundred metres further downstream) and continued between the mill leat to our left and the river. On the right a bridge leads to the gardens of Batcombe Bottom Farm – beautifully maintained and offlimits. We continued to a further bridge into the next meadow, noticing a very small aqueduct to our left where the mill leat passes over a field-ditch. At the end of the next big meadow, over another bridge, Spargrove came into view. The right of way heads just to the right of the Mill House at the end of the meadow, through a gate and onto the road. At the Mill House there is a lovely refreshing torrent of water falling alongside the old mill buildings. There has clearly been in past times a lot of clever engineering with the river to generate power…perhaps it could be harnessed again to help save the planet.
Spargrove is a beautiful, peaceful hamlet which was our turning point to retrace our steps to Batcombe. Alternatively you could extend the walk by turning left to return to Bruton via Greenscombe, or right for a route via Lamyatt. On our return journey, Scrumpy finally fell into a river with a suitable “splosh” – pity her pal Sully wasn’t there to join in.
We retreated for refreshments to Cole as no suitable café facilities presented themselves – lamentably the Three Horseshoes at Batcombe was closed !
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