The limestone Mendip Hills with the lakes of the Chew Valley is a stunning landscape of steep slopes and undulating plateau punctuated by spectacular gorges and rocky outcrops. On the hilltops there are hundreds of ancient monuments, whilst on steeper slopes flower rich grasslands and wooded combes offer varied habitats for a wide variety of wildlife. There are many walks in the Mendip Hills and across the Somerset moors ranging from two miles around Axbridge Reservoir to the 50 mile Mendip Way. Whether you want to explore the ancient mining areas around Charterhouse, the woods at Cheddar and Winscombe or take in the views from Wavering Down and Crook Peak there is a walk to suit you.
Make a Booking EnquiryWalking in Somerset
Walks around the Cart House Holiday Cottage offer a range of routes, difficulties and sceneries; from the misty levels with their autumn starling murmurations to the Mendip Hills affording views over the Bristol Channel and ancient landscapes around Priddy and Wells. Details of walks in the Mendip Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty can be downloaded here – Walks – Mendip Hills AONB.
Mining the Mendips Walk
A 6-mile walk from Shipham. Discover why the area’s curious geology made this a centre of lead and zinc mining and find out how the lives of villagers changed during the ‘boom and bust’ stages in the Mendips’ mining past –Mining the Mendips
The Butcombe Trail
The 45-mile (72 km) long Mendip Pub Trail, connects six pubs. The trail runs from Hinton Blewett through Priddy, Axbridge, Bleadon, Rowberrow, and Compton Martin.
The Strawberry Line
This is a footpath and cycleway along a former railway line with no steep gradients and takes in a variety of landscapes from the flat marshes and apple orchards around Yatton, steep wooded valleys and a tunnel through the Mendips, to historic Axbridge and the spectacular Cheddar Gorge. The Strawberry Line Society website provides further details about each section of the route.