North Perrott to Winyard's Gap

14/5/17 Winter and a kidney transplant later means we have one leg to finish the Parrett Trail. Three hours on buses or a 45 minute drive didn't leave us with much choice about getting to North Perrott. We parked in the village and headed south. The signs led us onto a hillside with views across the valley to our destination. However the trail down the hill was less conspicuous and when we found ourselves following the railway line rather than crossing it, I realised we had gone wrong. Heading back we scanned the railway line for a crossing point. When we found the gates it was a straight walk to the road and down into South Perrott.

 The Coach and Horses Inn was open, but unfortunately we were its only clients at 4 on a Saturday afternoon. We managed to quaff two nice pints of Tribute (4.2%) for £6.60 though. We hadn't seen an official Trail sign in the village, but I thought it went through the churchyard. As we headed that way, there was a sign pointing in the opposite direction which was not the way we had come into the village. Ignoring this, we went into the churchyard and there were signs showing us the way out. More signs show us the way out of the village. Soon after we were re-tracing our steps when it looked like the Parrett Trail had lost its suffix.

But we were in the right place. Amongst the greenery to the right is a narrow track. It would not be suitable for anyone with restricted mobility. It carries on for about 100 yards before coming out on a more normal track. Then we are back into fields. Another couple of unusual water features are also here.

Obviously we take water trough routes. The trail then starts its ascent towards the finish.

It's a short walk along the road at the top to the Winyard's Gap Inn.

We have pints of Branscombe Vale's Best (4.6%) and Branoc (3.8%) for £7.20. They are both nice, but when we leave, we think we are the only people here. There are several others outside though, taking in the view and sunshine.

Then we retrace our steps, avoiding the mistakes, to North Perrott in an unsurprisingly shorter time. Another footpath completed.

Watergore to North Perrott

It was a last minute decision to do this leg of the walk, so it was back on the bus to Watergore. We retraced our steps to Wigborough before turning off to follow the Parrett south. The trail keeps going through fields to Merriott.

The Kings Head was quiet, but open. It was a warm day, so the pints went down easy. We continued through the village towards Haselbury Mill. The path appears to be diverted around the site and it looked like the path was going through a tunnel under the A30. Unfortunately it was blocked at the far end and we had to return and cross the road. But once on the other side, it felt like we were in a river valley for the first time.

It was probably the best bit of the walk so far. The trail follows and crosses the Parrett before climbing out of the valley towards North Perrott. We pass the cricket ground and church before coming out in the centre of the village.

The Manor Arms is an old pub on the main road. My bad planning meant I wasn't sure where the bus stop was and what time the next bus was. So what better place to find out than in the pub. They weren't sure of the times, but they thought that the buses were being diverted because of roadworks in the next village. So we took our time with the pints and walked along the road to eventually get a bus. We were later home than I'd hoped.

Bower Hinton to Watergore

There are two branches to the Parrett Trail in South Somerset that form their own circular walk. To get all the pubs 'done' and fit into the public transport, we get a free (because the ticket machine wasn't working) bus to Bower Hinton. The path comes through this long village of Hamstone houses before heading off across some fields towards the noisy A303. It then takes a track parallel to that main road before reaching a minor road that bridges over it into Stoke-sub-Hamdon.

The Half Moon Inn looks fairly scruffy on the outside, and just as scruffy on the inside. We have a chat to the landlord who explains that he struggles to keep real ale in the summer and so we have to settle for a couple of pints of cider. The pub is on Ham Hill Road and unsurprisingly the path takes us up this hill soon after leaving the pub.

Hills have been a rarity on this trail so far. So we pause for the view at the top. There is a country park here and in that is

the Prince of Wales. It was quite busy for food, unsurprisingly for a summer Saturday lunchtime. We had a couple of real ales and sat inside. The trail winds around the park before descending towards Norton-sub-Hamdon.

We are back on a road now and pass some posh houses and their gardens that Sid wants to peer into.

The Lord Nelson is in the middle of the village. It is quite spacious inside, relatively busy and had nice ales. The trail heads out from here back into the flat countryside as we seek the elusive, shrinking Parrett.

We do cross it eventually and then pass a polo match near Wigborough. Back on tarmac, we also come across quite a large grass snake. The next village is Over Stratton.

The Royal Oak was about to close for the afternoon, but just time for a couple of Badger pints. Then it was back to Watergore again for the bus home.

Langport to Watergore

11/6/16 Bus back to Langport. Apparently there was a walking festival on there that weekend. We didn't spot them. We started along the Parrett in the town, before crossing it and heading south back across the levels. This man-made landscape needs maintenance.

It's not the most exciting countryside to walk, but there is plenty of wildlife.

The path keeps close to the river until Kingsbury Episcopi. The Wyndhams Arms is the middle of the village.

It was a pleasant atmosphere in the pub with the landlord making the effort to talk with his customers. All the real ales were £3. I had a Black as yer At (4.3%), but I can't remember what Sid had, although we did sample the Googly.

We did go slightly wrong coming out of the pub, but I was confident that we were heading in the right direction and we soon spotted what looked like the Parrett across a field. The trail follows the river to Gawbridge. There it splits in two again and we follow it towards East Lambrook. We lose the river and follow the brook towards South Petherton.

The Brewers Arms is in the middle of this large village. The pub was reasonably busy for a Saturday afternoon with three different sports events on three televisions in their own areas of the bar. The beer was nice as well, but more incompetence by me means that I forgotten what we drank even if I can remember it was £6.60.

After leaving there it was a relatively short walk, not near any waterway but crossing the A303, to Watergore. From there we caught a bus to Ilminster for another pint before the trip home.

Burrowbridge to Langport

4/6/16 After catching the bus to Burrowbridge, the first decision is which route to take. The signs point us along the Parrett, but some of the maps show a diversion through Stoke St Gregory where there happen to be a couple of pubs. So we divert to the Tone, initially on its bank and then crossing onto a straight road through Athelney to Curload. Once there we head up Windmill Hill.

Then it is along the ridge to the Wetlands And Willow Centre. There we cross the road, go through a few more fields and head along the road into Stoke St Gregory.

The Royal Oak seemed like a nice village pub. We had pints of Rare Breeds (3.8%) and Box o Frogs (4.5%) for £7. From here, we followed the road around the village to the Rose & Crown.

We have pints of Otter Amber (4%) and Butcombe (4%) for £7.20. The pub is setup for food. We continue on the local roads to Stathe. There we rejoin the Parrett and the marked trail.

There is an obvious contrast with the village roads we started on. The Levels are open and watery with plenty of birdlife.

The trail goes along between the Parrett and the Sowy, which is a man-made river that shows how low the land is.

Bridgwater to Burrowbridge

14/5/16 Seeing as how we ran out of coast path, we decided to pick another watery waymarked route. We'd done part of the Parrett Trail last year, so picked on that.

We started where we crossed the Parrett on the coast path, now signposted as part of the English Coast Path, and followed the muddy banks inland. Soon we come across where Bridgwater docks used to join the river.

Just beyond the gates above are the docks themselves. Still full of water and some vessels, but not the commercial ones that it was built for.

The Admirals Landing is there with the tables outside and quite pub-like and busy on the inside. Pints of Seahawk (4.2%) and Tribute for £5.80 were had. Then we left the Parrett and headed along the Bridgwater and Taunton Canal, which avoids the streets of Bridgwater.

Once the other side of the town, the canal runs alongside the river as they pass under the M5. From that motorway and the railway line, many people will have passed the Boat & Anchor.

We had two pints of Moles Best (4%) for £7.20 which didn't live up to their name. The path then follows the canal for a while before veering back to the river at Moorland.

Once on the banks of the river again, we found the Thatchers Arms. We had pints of Butcombe (4%) and Rare Breed (3.8%) for £6. It was a small, quiet, rural pub and we felt at home. So we had the same again. Then we set off in the sunshine upstream. Sometimes we were behind the flood defences, sometimes on top. Westonzoyland pumping station was busy, there was a do on in Burrowbridge Village Hall and the pub was busy when we arrived.

Combwich to Bridgwater

13/6/15 Bused via Bridgwater where the pubs were busy for 10:30 in the morning. We arrived in Combwich, skirted around the EDF wharf before coming out on the river bank. There had been some rain the previous day and the grass was still wet. The grass along the man-made river bank had been cut in places, but not along the footpath itself. So we spent most of the time deciding whether to walk the flat, overgrown, wet bit in the middle or the drier bits along the side. There are not many River Parrett Trail signs and even fewer walkers.

Above is an old bench to sit on and look at the mud. We walk in most directions at some time and resist the temptation to cut corners as the river winds its way from the levels towards the sea. We cross several clyces (sluices) and can't fail to notice that the tide is still out.

Eventually we do meet some other people and come across signs of civilisation, like the sewage works. The path starts to dry out. We clamber up onto the first road bridge over the Parrett in Bridgwater and then down the other side to return seaward. The path is now behind some light industrial units. It is overgrown and still wet on this side. After a while, it continues behind some houses and the grass had been cut. Next we arrive at a modern business park. There is a Harvester that we seek for refreshment. We have to settle for expensive, fizzy cider. The path has a gravel surface now as we wind our way out of Bridgwater towards Dunball wharf.

The path comes out alongside a busy dual carriageway. Opposite the entrance to the wharf is Marston's Admirals Table.

We have two pints of Pedigree (4.5%) for £6.60. Followed by two more as waited for the bus back to Bridgwater.