Lanstr three

Slow Way not verified yet. Verify Lanstr here.

I walked this route northwards and it was mostly very pleasant. Some of the fields and paths were a bit overgrown, but the earlier detailed review has pointed out most of the pitfalls (read that before setting out!). The main drove lane across the levels was very straight and rather dull, but not muddy, just rough in places as a result of the tractors working the neighbouring fields. The climb of Walton Hill was a pleasant change, and the first view of Glastonbury Tor from the top was wonderful! So much that I missed the stile and walked on to the NT car park (if you do this, you've gone too far). An excellent walk.

A mostly very enjoyable Slow Way marred by some wet, heavily rutted ground on the central section of the bridleway drove across Somerton Moor. I’d give it a good 4 stars if it wasn’t for that.

The route heads out of Langport to the neighbouring village of Hiush Episcopi along an interesting road through an old part of town. Once past the church, it briefly joins a main road (pavement along the north side) before turning up a track just beyond a pub which leads to a pleasant enclosed wooded path, often frothing with cow parsley today, which goes all the way up to the B3153, crossing the mainline railway over the track on the way. It arrives at the road via the entrance to a garden centre, which has a cafe.

The ongoing route on the other side of the B-road is a little to the left down some steps with a wooden rail. It isn’t visible from the south side but clear enough when you get there. This leads to a quiet track past houses with big gardens and meets the lane along a paved access road through Pound Farm.

The next mile or so to Pitney is on-road and surrounded by tall hedges, so there is not much to see until you get towards the village. Pay attention and take care on reaching the first junction left and for the next couple of hundred yards until you turn right again. This little piece of road is on a rather busier local through-route and cars come round the bends from both directions without much sight of you. It is quiet again after that.

At Pitney, after a short uphill pull, turn in left at the corner and you will see the ongoing path across a field and then along an alley to rejoin the lane north of the village. Pitney Farm shop, which has a really nice cafe, is just to the west of the next junction. Recommended if you are looking for lunch, and this is the last opportunity to lay your hands on food or drink until Street.

The Slow Way then heads on up a farm track, which turns into a green lane/footpath along the edge of some woods. This path was well walked but looks as if it is likely to get a bit overgrown with vegetation in summer on one narrower section. There currently also seems to be a planning row over making it a restricted byway instead of a footpath, with complicated notices announcing a public enquiry plastered on gate posts at either end. My walking experience a mile or two further on made me understand why this might be a contentious local issue.

The track that follows downhill from here looks as though it has a stream running down it at wet times of year and is quite rough, and the footpath across the field towards Park is unmarked. You just go through a gap in the hedge (no sign that I could see) and the way out onto the lane at the end of it is somewhat to the right of the right of way shown on the OS map (the Slow Way plot is correct). There is a metal footpath gate towards the north-east corner of the field that goes through a little enclosure with an electric horse-walking barn in it. And if this all sounds annoyingly complicated, you could also just continue down the track to reach the road. It is only a little less direct.

From Park, the long central section of the Slow Way across Somerton Moor begins. This is a lovely quiet area of ditches, damp, buttercuppy pastures and views up to the hills around. It should be a pleasurable walk, but while the northern and southern thirds of the long drove were fine today, the central section was harder work. The track here looks as though it naturally tends to hold water at wet times, which is normal for this floody area, but it has, unfortunately, been messed up by what looks to be illegal off-road driving and motorbike scrambling, so has big puddles and deep ruts too.

Although it was perfectly passable today after a very wet spring but with a good couple of weeks of dry warm weather following on, I felt I spent far too much time looking down and placing my feet carefully to make sure I kept them dry, and not nearly enough time enjoying the country I was walking through, which was a shame. It is quite possible that this track becomes completely impassable at some times of year but I am guessing that it might also be better than it was today in the height of a normal summer.

Once through all that and across the moor, the route meets a t-junction and goes pretty much straight across the lane into the vegetation ahead (sign hidden) to climb the short slope of the Polden ridge up a path through woodland (which also looked as if it gets a bit of light bike scrambling). Navigation is a bit confusing here. Basically, as soon as the path starts dividing, take the most right hand option possible and this leads up to a stile onto the open grassland of Walton Hill. If you miss this, there is another stile at the top of the hill just before the road, again on a little path heading right. But whichever you do, don’t go head out on the road. It is busy and dangerous at this point.

Once on the open access ground of Walton Hill, follow the steep path up and then around the old windmill building and on along the ridge (lovely big views from up here) until you are about opposite the lane on the far side of the busy adjacent road which will take the Slow Way northwards down towards Street. There is a little path through the grass down to a stile and the visibility for the road crossing is good.

A few cars use this little lane as a short cut to Walton, so keep an ear out, but it is fine for walking along and soon reaches a path across some cow and sheep pastures. It was along here that I met the most endearing hazard I have ever encountered on any walk, being stymied by a cow that had stashed her tiny newborn calf right in the nook of one of the kissing gates, blocking my way! The sleeping calf was entirely unperturbed by my presence but I knew the mother, eyeing me from twenty yards away, might be, especially as I could appear to be menacing it as I climbed over it. As it is a bad idea to come between a cow and her young calf (they can get very protective!), I backtracked and took another nearby path instead and nipped back to check the route from the other direction - all fine. Wished I’d taken a photo now, but it didn’t occur to me at the time.

Anyhow.... the path eventually winds up in a new housing estate via a little piece of woodland, and from there it is a reasonably quiet, easy walk into the centre of Street through suburban housing.

Access is via the usual rural selection of stiles, gates and kissing gates. Navigation is easy enough along the roads and tracks but a little tricky in the places described above. Signage is often absent.

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