Saturday 17th February ‘24. DH, RW, BFS, DL, CH, CM, Scrumpy & Albus
It had been yet another wet week and everywhere was guaranteed to be soaking again, so in the hope of a bit of a dryish walk I opted for another visit to Mere, although this time on a new route out to the east of the town with a good portion being on tracks and roads. In the Domesday Book Mere is known as ‘Mera’, most probably because it is near the point where Dorset, Somerset and Wiltshire meet and Mea derives from the Old English word ‘maere’ meaning ‘boundary’. It could also refer to the plentiful water supply or more simply a large expanse of water. In 1243 the Manor of Mere was granted to the Earls, later Dukes, of Cornwall. The Duchy still owns land and many properties in Mere.
We met at 9.00 in our usual car park under Castle Hill and were pleased to see that Chris2 had opted to join us again for the first time this year. It was an anti clockwise loop today which took us to the dead centre of town, having passed by the cafe where we would hopefully be sat warm and dry within the next two hours. At the corner of the cemetery we took a narrow tarmac track off to the left and it was good to see bushes and trees on the edge bursting into spring flower. A bit further along a large tree in the front garden of Lordsmead House was in full bloom and already heading a few white petals onto the ground beneath it. The track took a slight bend to the right alongside what looked like a very run down and derelict old mill, with a front facade full of old wooden sash windows. A faded dilapidated sign just about legible identified the property as Lordsmead Mill, which subsequent online research reveals is an early C19 or late C18 flax mill then later a silk mill, and which at some later point has been converted to a house. The town’s prosperity was based on the wool trade, with the nearby chalk downs being particularly well-suited to keeping sheep.
When this industry was no longer viable owing to French competition in the 1890s, there was no manufacturing in Mere until the Hill Brush Company was established in 1922 in a small shed in Castle Street. Later it moved to the old Lordsmead Mill until in 1935 it moved to a site on the corner of Woodlands Road. Needing to expand, in 2017 it moved to new premises on the edge of Mere and now contains a museum, a (pricey) restaurant and a shop alongside the factory.
As we passed the mill the clear waters of the chalk stream running off of the Mere downs came into view and we stopped to read the sign about the former overshoot water wheel and the Kaplan turbine, generating a few Kw of power, in the pump house on the far side. A bit further along both the weir and the footbridge over the sluice came into view, a very pleasant surprise indeed. Above a photo I pinched off the www (no doubt copyrighted) but included to show the old wheel.
We continued along the path until we came out onto Shaftesbury Road, just about opposite the Walnut Tree pub (where some of us previously met for a summer with wife’s meal) and very close to where the aforementioned brush factory used to be located. Having taken a winding route through the small housing estate we were soon heading off ‘terra firma’ and onto the ‘soaking soil’ of our first field. The path took us across the bag of a large area of allotments, some of them with areas totally underwater and others housing small chicken runs ( that’s small in size, not just for small chickens if anyone is feeling pedantic)! A couple of stiles later we encountered we started to climb over one which not only had a very downward sloping bottom tread but it was also one of the greenest and slippiest I’ve every come across. Thankfully although a couple did their best to show us their Bambi like balancing skills, we all made it over safely, but straight onto a large pool of water which had submerged the next gateway. It was actually that wet that a couple of ducks were swimming and waddling in the many puddles in grass just a short distance in front of us. It should also be noted for future reference that holding onto a barbed wire fence for support can lead to serious injury, and is never recommended by the management!
As we headed eastwards the view north had changed from the chalk ridge of White Sheet hill to an area of hillside with steep fe-entrants to the east of the B3095 - the Deverill road. There is some dispute over whether strip lynchets occurred over time as a result of ploughing or were manmade to aid with farming. The traditional theory was that strip lynchets occurred naturally due to ploughing practices, as the shape of the plough meant that soil was shifted from left to right, resulting in build-up over time.
These are particularly common in south and south-eastern England and been found in areas close to Iron Age forts and Roman earthworks. Some are even associated with barrows from the Neolithic and Bronze Age periods. Many strip lynchets date back to the medieval period. In the early fourteenth century, the huge increase in population and the lack of good quality arable land meant peasants had to think creatively. Although it would take a good deal of hard work, the creation of terraces on steep hillsides would make this land suitable for the cultivation of corn and other crops. As the population decreased following the Black Death, the need for land decreased also and these terraces would have fallen into disuse.
Our route then took us to the side of Chaddenwick wood and up a gently climb towards Charnahe Farm. When we reached the road we noticed that we had been on another section of our local long distance path - The Monarchs Way’.
Turning left on the road we passed by a large bank of snowdrops as we headed for the quiet rumble of traffic running along the A303. I had expected our next track to be a bit further along the road but we followed a way marker into a field and started the return leg to Mere. Normally on a Saturday morning at the half way point we would all stop for some of Dereyks confectionery but today we just kept going. Soon there were muttering amongst the back markers and not showing any patience at all Dereyk was soon challenged outright about this weeks issue. He fumbled in his pockets for a bit but quickly realised that although he had picked the bag up from the kitchen this morning, he must have put it down again before leaving the house and come out without them. We all accepted his apologies but couldn’t help thinking that it all Sounds a little bit familiar to last week!
We slid out way through a short muddy section of the inevitable descent and continued along between a field of last years unpicked sunflowers which were drooping their black heads and the hedgelines as we progressed towards the church tower and Castle Hill which were coming back into view the closer we got to Mere. Unfortunately what should have been a pathway in a corner was blocked by a fallen tree and with no way across it a prominent gap in the hedge provided an access route through to the next field. As always Dereyk lead the way and bent low passed through the gap easily, but for the taller ones amongst us it was certainly a lot harder folding our bodies in half to avoid the thorns snagging coats or heads. Thankfully Dereyk has spotted a low run of barbed wire at the exit and kindly used his trusty stick to hold it down as we all made our way through. We reassembled on the far side and were quickly back into our stride as we approached the small hamlet of Burton.
There was initially some confusion as it looked on the map that the next path should be straight over the road, but with nothing evident we turned left in the hope of finding an enterance at the next corner. Unfortunately there were no breaks on the hedge so we continued along the road for another 100 metres before turning right onto a narrow path between two fields of resident horses.The path was narrow with barbed wire fences along both sides and was probably initially the same height as the surrounding fields, however with constant walking the level had dropped slightly and with all the recent rain had became the low point into which a lot of water had accumulated. As such not only was it wet, but it was very muddy and slippery with the odd bits of grass suitable to plant feet on being very close to the fences. As such we grabbed along being careful not to repeat the barbed wire holding episode until at the corner the ground rose a bit and the water receded. By this time we were all caked in mud and the two dogs certainly had filthy bellies and feet. After a bit of debate we then dropped down and over the clear waters of another chalk stream and joined the path that we should have taken from Burton. Turning left we walked parallel to the stream until we veered away from it and started along a long straight section which took us past the local skate park, and along by the school and towns playing fields.
On reaching the main road we turned left, past Yapps wine merchants and past many old cottages as we made out way back to the square, where we posed for todays groupie with the monument and Castle Hill as our backdrop. A walk of 3.66 miles completed in under 2 hours and perfect timing to take our seats at the back of the cafe on a pair of three person tables.
On the way in we passed a fresh supply of The Blackmore Vale magazine, with the front cover photo being one of Brian’s favourite shots and on the inside pages was a brief article by him about the recent Wincanton camera clubs successes. The young lad soon took our orders which ranged in diversity this week from a couple of full breakfasts, to sausage rolls, bacon and egg sandwiches and scrambled eggs on toast. The proprietor was in a good mood this weeks and at times almost jovial as we quickly polished off our breakfasts. Thankfully to copious amount of mud on the walk had not detracted from another new area being and some great sights being added to the list.
Next week I can promise Zero mud as I hope many people will join us on a charity walk around the roads and paths of Wincanton to celebrate Tilly’s 10 anniversary of her life saving liver transplant.
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