The wrong trousers

Sat 9 Aug ‘25. DH, RW, TO, CH, JB Scrumpy & Maisie

There were only five available today so I opted for a return walk to the west of East Pennard, as of those walking only Trevor and myself have done this one previously. Parking was tight as we met at the triangle by the church and as the Wincanton car of three was parked up we exited to hear Trevor ‘’dishing’ Richards new car, a nice blue Skoda Karoq. Once the banter had died down a bit we headed off on the narrow road across the front of All Saints church. The present building dates from around 1420 and the church has quite a history, more information can be read here. It is also said that it has the heaviest set of five bells anywhere in the world, more information here. The churchyard cross, which now doubles as the village war memorial has a base and shaft also dates back to medieval times although the top section is a more recent replacement.

It was another lovely bright summers morning as we passed by the cottages and gardens that looked like they still belong in the 19th Century and out into one of the adjoining fields, with a lovely specimen oak tree very prominent in the middle. We followed a boundary wall and came to another oak, although in front of it were a few fruit laden branches belonging to a much smaller tree. There was plenty of dropped fruit on the ground but curiosity got the better of some of us who picked off a couple of the small red fruit to try and confirm what it was. The majority of guesses was that it was a type of plum, and taste tests confirmed it was indeed a fairly sweet variety. Meanwhile a non taster identified it on line as a cherry plum, which Wikipedia tells us is Prunus cerasifera, a species of plum known by the common names cherry plum and myrobalan plum. Native to Eurasia and naturalized elsewhere, P. cerasifera is believed to be one of the parents of the cultivated plum.

We carried on through the field, across a track and then around the edge of a large orchard in which all the the trees were well laden with apples. It was only when I stood back from them a bit that I noticed how high the trees were. I don’t know how they harvest them all, do they shake the trees or wait for the apples to drop, but I certainly wouldn’t like to be the one at the top of a ladder picking the highest ones! At the far side of the orchard we found the gate way through the hedge and it was good to see that a previously dodgy stile has been replaced by a nice metal gate, courtesy of the Mendip Ramblers. In the next field there was a great view to a ridge line some 3 to 5 miles away but it wasn’t initial clear where exactly we were looking. By shifting a bit we could see the infamous 20th century landmark on the edge of Castle Cary, in the form of the dog food factory silver tower. So from that it was easier to work out that the ridge was the one running south through the edge of Galhampton, which we had seen from a different angle at the end of May on our walk from North Barrow and around the Cary Nature Reserve.

We pushed on westwards and came through the very dilapidated Avalon Winery before meeting a minor road along which we turned right. Our intended route then ok us diagonally through a large field but as it was sa round chest height with maize we decided to push on a bit further along the road before turning down Thumb Lane to pick up our path some 200 down it. It was pretty evident that the Mendip Ramblers hadn’t been this way with their upgraded stiles as some of the next few crossing points left a bit to be desired. It was whilst we were crossing stiles, beating back brambles for those in shorts getting their legs scratched that attention was drawn to Johns grey and black utility trousers. There were many questions asked about their function and suitability for use by elderly and incontinent residents of nursing homes, as well as many other derogatory uses that John was delighted when we reached the end of the field and had to find a way over a metal five bar gate and he was no longer the butt of the wise cracks! As we were at the halfway point already I shared around the small supply of sweet lollies I had just remembered to pack before leaving home.

Setting off again we walked along the road for a couple of hundred metres and then turned left onto Hembridge Lane, a green lane which would take us into the small hamlet of the same name. From there it was a short stretch onto a road before heading into a large field, the bottom half of which had a herd of cows in it. For a change they showed no interest in us and we passed over an electric fence then out onto a farm track. At the end of that we climbed another stile and into a field which had not been cut or had any cattle in, so it was hard work walking through the long grass with no evidence of a pathway at all. On the far side we headed into a wooded area and a steep drop down to a small stream, which last time Sully was very happy to get wet and muddy in.

A small wooden bridge took us over the stream which this time was low and we then climbed up the far side through a pathway which looked liked up doubled up as a rain gully from the village during heavy downpours. At the top we passed close to a small cottage and then in the gap before the next one, stopped for our groupie with the church tower in the background. It was the just a short walk past the quant cottages and church again back to the cars. 3.6 miles completed in a fraction over two hours and now just a quick drive up the A37 for breakfast at The Den.

The sun was shining so we grabbed a table out the front and having made our choices popped inside to order. It was predominantly a young male team on today and with Trevor knowing one of them from Ansford school there was hope for a good service today. Unfortunately the pressure obviously told on the young man as there was some confusion with the drinks and ironically (or was it deliberate) it was Trevor who ended up taking a drink he didn’t order. Thankfully there was no issues with our meals which came out fairly quickly and generally it was another successful visit.

Cyclemeter