This bank holiday Monday was going to be a scorcher, but that wasn’t going to stop us from having fun in the sun! We decided to spend the day in gorgeous Wells in Somerset.
As massive fans of Hot Fuzz, which is set in Wells, we visit it a lot.
Wells is a tiny place but because of its fabulous cathedral, it is a city and known as the smallest in England.
The Wells Moat Boat Race
We’ve visited many times but we’ve never started a big walk from the city so were excited to discover a seven-mile circular walk towards Beryl wood and Penn Hill.
Before heading out, we started the day supporting the brave moat racers at the Bishop’s Palace,
The Moat Race is a charity in its 18th year in 2019. We joined the crowds gathered in the gardens of the Bishop’s Palace to watch a joyful bunch of home assembled rafts race against each other (and the algae) in the green waters of the moat.
We couldn’t help but record some of the action on video!
We tucked into our sandwiches and after a pint at the Crown pub, we got on our way. The walk first took us up to Tor Hill Wood near the Bishop’s Palace.
Beryl Wood
We followed a path alongside houses and a golf course before reaching a gorgeous wooded valley with a little stream surrounded by moss covered rocks. We enjoyed cool temperatures in this haven of peace.
After walking through the beautiful woods we emerged into high fields where sheep were grazing and stopped to rest our legs a little.
Penn Hill
The sun was starting to go down and the light added to the magical atmosphere when we reached Penn Hill and its farm.
An incredible number of pheasants were roaming around and it was a lot of fun seeing them dashing in and out of the woodlands and fields.
At the end of our walk, we were rewarded with stunning views over the Vale of Avalon and Wells Cathedral. See if you can spot Glastonbury Tor in the pictures below.
As with every good circular route, this one took us back to the pub where we started for a well deserved pint!
This walk is one of the most varied we’ve ever done and it might just be my favourite one ever. I can’t wait to get back out there!
