Walk Leader: Julie Constable
Seven walkers met at Stoke St Michael recreation ground car park for today’s walk. The walk began through fields towards Home Wood.
The path descending into Home Wood was surrounded with mosses and ferns and led to a footbridge. After crossing the foot bridge, we joined the upper path through Harridge Wood. The lower path along Mells stream was closed due to ash dieback.
After navigating the slippery muddy paths through Harridge Wood, we found a clearing to stop for our coffee break.
We then descended to Mells stream, once used to provide power for mills and machinery.
Passing Keeper’s Cottage, a former gamekeeper’s cottage, now a prime habitat for bats, we entered the water meadows of Harridge Wood Nature Reserve. Continuing along the wet muddy tracks we reached St Dunstan’s Well, once thought to be a holy well. The now caged spring of water rushes out under a large rock from an underground river. The cage, referred to as a ‘lion cage’ protects the fragile caving system connected to St Dunstan’s Well. The area is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) recognised for its rare geological features, rare plants and cave systems. From here, we followed the stream towards Stoke Bottom Farm, through the lost village of Fernhill. There was very little to see of the previous hamlet and paper mill of Fernhill.
Crossing paths alongside woods filled with daffodils, we followed the old packhorse route to the main road of the hamlet of Edford, part of Holcombe. The packhorse trail once linked the coal pits on Stratton Common to Edford.
After passing Holcombe Farm Shop, we made our way back through a wooded valley to Stoke St Michael recreation ground car park.
A beautiful walk in the Spring sunshine.
