the mendip hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty OS Explorer Map OS Explorer Map OS Explorer Map OS Explorer Map 141 141 154 153 grid reference grid reference grid reference grid reference A wild land A wild land ST 476587 ST466539 ST578609 ST386557 postcode postcode postcode postcode ready for ready for BS40 7AU car park at the bottom of BS27 3QF car park at the bottom BS40 8TF picnic and visitor facilities, BS25 1DH KINGS WOOD CAR PARK Burrington Combe of the gorge North East side of lake adventure adventure Black Down & Burrington Ham Cheddar Gorge Chew Valley Lake Crook Peak Courtesy of Cheddar Gorge & Caves
This area is a very special part of Mendip.Open The internationally famous gorge boasts the highest Slow down and relax around this reservoir that sits in The distinctive peak that most of us see from the heathland covers Black Down, with Beacon Batch at inland limestone cliffs in the country. Incredible cave the sheltered Chew Valley. Internationally important M5 as we drive by. This is iconic Mendip limestone its highest point. Most of Black Down is a Scheduled systems take you back through human history and are for the birds that use the lake and locally loved by the countryside, with gorgeous grasslands in the summer Monument because of the archaeology from the late all part of the visitor experience. fishing community. and rugged outcrops of stone to play on when you get Stone Age to the Second World War. to the top. Travel on up the gorge and you’ll be faced with Over 4000 ducks of 12 different varieties stay on Burrington Combe and Ham are to the north and adventure at every angle. Look up and you’ll see wild the lake from late July to February and many other Crook Peak has been important as a landmark and Take a step onto the Mendip Hills designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest for the sheep, goats and climbers perching on the cliffs. rare species come and go. The fishing is also of an boundary from very early times, and the origins of the wildlife habitats. Today goats are on the steep slopes, international standard, check the website below for name are unclear although it is believed that ‘Crook’ Remember, the area gets more rain than normal Visitor Guide with ponies and cattle roaming across the grasslands open dates and how to get permits. comes from the Old English ‘Cruc’ meaning ‘peak’, and the higher you go the colder and windier it controlling the scrub. making it Peak Peak. will be. Dress accordingly and pack the right kit for your adventure.
Take your knowledge to a deeper level and additional information additional information additional information additional information find out more about the area at discoveringblackdown.org.uk cheddargorge.co.uk bristolwaterfisheries.co.uk/chew-valley-lake nationaltrust.org.uk/mendip-hills mendiphillsaonb.org.uk
Your guide to a good day out Naturally beautiful, OS Explorer Map OS Explorer Map OS Explorer Map OS Explorer Map 141 141 141 141 nationally protected We want you to have a great adventure and leave with grid reference grid reference grid reference grid reference happy memories. By following the Countryside Code you The Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty designation ST526509 ST421560 ST518492 ST558541 can help look after yourself and this special area: recognizes just how special the area is and that the experience you have here needs conserving and postcode postcode postcode postcode The Countryside Code – enhancing. BA5 3BB CAR PARK BY VILLAGE GREEN BS25 1DH BA5 1EL Car park on Pelting BS40 6DA Respect, Protect, Enjoy Drove, south of Priddy The AONB Unit and the • Be safe – plan ahead and follow the many signs AONB Partnership • Leave gates and property as you find them Priddy Kings Wood Deer Leap East Harptree Woods • For the protection of plants and animals (and the views) take your litter home Due to the special nature of the Mendip Hills AONB a • Keep dogs under close control and always clean Partnership of local, regional and national organisations Explore this ancient oak woodland that is the gateway An evergreen forest with a surprise at its heart. up after your dog looks after the landscape. The AONB Unit works to make to different routes. Hike up to Wavering Down and then Follow the ‘easy-going’ trails and you’ll discover the • Consider other people people aware of the AONB and coordinate effort to make it onto Crook Peak, or drop down onto the Strawberry Line last remaining lead smelting chimney on Mendip with better for everyone. and walk or ride through the long tunnel where the trains superb views across the Chew Valley. used to take strawberries from Mendip to markets and Please also park in designated car parks not in field gateways or on the verges. Don’t leave valuables on For further information about this: hotels in London. The 48m Mendip Way cuts through additional information display in your car. here if you’re up for the challenge? forestry.gov.uk/EastHarptreeWoods MendipHillsAONB.org.uk additional information If you experience access difficulties on Public Rights of MendipHills@somerset.gov.uk Way, visit the Frequently Asked Questions page on our nationaltrust.org.uk/mendip-hills website for the contact details of local authority Rights of 01761 462338 Way teams. @MendipHillsAONB Facebook: Mendip Hills AONB OS Explorer Map Planning your experience on the Youtube: Mendip Hills AONB 141 Mendip Hills grid reference ST548513
postcode BA5 3AS
The Mendip Hills Fund
Help the fund that helps the hills! The Mendip Hills Fund Priddy Mineries & Stockhill gives grants to local projects that look after the place and The limestone of Mendip gives Priddy its special Forest Jaw-dropping views out (on a clear day) across the Other sites for you to discover: the community. character. The muted colours and sense of space Somerset Levels, with Glastonbury Tor and Nyland Hill in created by the cottages and buildings around the Nature has reclaimed this lead mining site to form a front of you, along with many of the small ‘islands’ that sit Bleadon Hill You can help the fund by leaving a donation for the wildlife Green, with its unique hurdle stack, are the essence flowing landscape of tall grasses hiding ponds.T he within the marshes of the Somerset Levels. Shute Shelve Hill badges available in pubs and shops in the area. Or local of the Mendip plateau. This historic village and lead mining finished in 1908 but the habitats that have Velvet Bottom tourism businesses ask their guests to add a little to the bill surrounding landscape reveal evidence of humans formed here are amazing for watching wildlife. Walks Walk into the middle of the field to find the abandoned Blackmoor Reserve which goes to the fund. dating back to the last ice-age 10,000 years ago. up to North Hill, Mendip’s second highest hill and medieval farmstead nestled on the fertile slopes, a barn Wookey Hole Caves Priddy Nine Barrows can all start here. Sitting next and collapsed ash tree mark this spot. From this field Cheddar Gorge & Caves For downloadable walk routes, guides, leaflets, You could also just text AONB72 £3 (or any amount up to to the Mineries is Stockhill Forest, a large modern you can travel along the distinctive southern slopes of Blagdon Lake links to tourist information centres and more go to £10) to 70070 plantation that has lots of paths and ‘easy-going’ trails. the Mendip Hills and link to places like Ebbor Gorge and Rowberrow Forest Wookey Hole. Dolebury Warren mendiphillsaonb.org.uk/Visiting-the-Mendip-Hills To find out more somersetcf.org.uk/special-projects/mendip-hills-fund additional information additional information additional information The Mendip Hills AONB is on OS Explorer maps 141, Postcodes in the countryside cover large areas. 153 and 155 priddyparish.org forestry.gov.uk/StockHillForest swheritage.org.uk/deer-leap Please also use a map. The evidence of humans dating back A sparsely populated plateau The Caves for their wildlife, geological, The Chew Valley is the sheltered, Ancient woodland combes on 1 500,000 years. Henge monuments, barrows 4 with settlements of Mendip stone along archaeological importance. Avelines Hole is 6 farmed landscape with fields divided with the north and south slopes offer rich and hillforts through to World War 2 sites are the spring line where the water emerges the oldest burial site in Britain and Goughs 8 11 hedges, that contrasts the windswept plateau. habitats of national and international prominent features on the plateau. Romans from underground. Dark skies give you an Cave in Cheddar Gorge is one of the most importance for a wide diversity of wildlife and Victorians left a mining landscape that incredible view of the stars at night. important Palaeolithic sites in Europe. nature is reclaiming. like dormouse and bats. Priddy is the only village on the Burrington Combe is the safest Drystone walls criss-cross the Step into Kings Wood to get a taste of Stockhill Forest and East Harptree plateau and sums up the tough place to see cave entrances without character of Mendip. 9 plateau dividing the farmland grazed by these wooded combes. Woods are places where you can still getting muddy. If you want to see the old mining landscape. sheep, beef and dairy cattle. The walls are go further contact an outdoor vital lifelines for wildlife like adders, they are adventure company. perfect for basking on and make a safe way The diverse geology that is of moving from one place to another. Views towards the Mendip Hills from A tough landscape famous for 5 easily seen ranges from Devonian to 12 Exmoor, Quantocks, the Somerset Levels 2 adventure and getting in touch Jurassic in a small area making it one of the The limestone aquifer feeding the and Moors and Chew Valley. A Landscape best places in the country to appreciate the with nature. The geology has created 7 reservoirs of Cheddar, Chew Valley and Steep south-facing slopes relationships between geology, landscape Blagdon lakes provides habitats of local and The views out including across the incredible opportunities for caving, climbing and natural history. 10 of flower-rich limestone Ready for Life and cycling. But the tranquility allows quieter international importance for birds. Severn Estuary to Wales and the Somerset grasslands come to life in the summer. Levels to Glastonbury Tor and the activities like bird watching and simply Ebbor Gorge will get you up close Chew Valley Lake is designated a Somerset coast. walking. and personal to the rocks. Special Protection Area for bird Crook Peak and Wavering Down are Burrington Combe is a great place to species. spectacular places where you can start your adventure. The Mendip Hills is a surprising and distinctive move along these slopes and look out landscape south of Bristol and rising above across Somerset. the Somerset Levels. It’s full of adventure and atmosphere for you to experience. distinctive limestone ridge There are 12 ‘special qualities’ you need to 3 with windswept plateau, punctuated by experience on the Mendip Hills. These experiences spectacular dry valleys and gorges, ancient are what makes the Mendip Hills special. sinkholes and depressions, and impressive rocky outcrops. Cheddar Gorge probably the single best known limestone karst feature in Britain.
crook Winscombe shipham cheddar cheddar ebbor wookey city of peak village village reservoir gorge gorge hole wells
how the ground beneath our feet was formed
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