{"id":326,"date":"2011-02-12T05:25:33","date_gmt":"2011-02-12T05:25:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/?p=326"},"modified":"2011-02-05T07:39:05","modified_gmt":"2011-02-05T07:39:05","slug":"great-wood-quantock-hills-somerset","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/?p=326","title":{"rendered":"Great Wood, Quantock Hills, Somerset"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Mist on the Quantock Hills, the gentle clop of hooves on a bridleway, and a trickle of birdsong among the big old oaks and the cathedral-high firs of Great Wood.<br \/>\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">window.onload = setupZoom; function popwalk(walk) {var url = \"\/Walks\/amap.php?f=\"+walk;\nvar walkwindow=window.open(url,\"walkwin\",\"height=700,width=800,resizable=yes,scrollbars=yes\"); if (window.focus) {walkwindow.focus()}}<\/script>First published in: The Times <a href=\"javascript:popwalk('GreatWoodQuantocks.gpx');\" rel=\"nozoom\" title=\"Click here to view a map for this walk in a new window\">Click here to view a map for this walk in a new window<\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/farm6.static.flickr.com\/5053\/5413084257_ff8d2ceccf.jpg\" title='winter tree on The Drove'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm6.static.flickr.com\/5053\/5413084257_ff8d2ceccf_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4148\/5413084049_3155d6bf34.jpg\" title='looking out of Great Wood onto the moor copy'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4148\/5413084049_3155d6bf34_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4118\/5413693964_f7987c35b5.jpg\" title='ice puddle'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4118\/5413693964_f7987c35b5_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4081\/5413083161_4c7722876a.jpg\" title='Quantock Farm'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4081\/5413083161_4c7722876a_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4095\/5413693340_1ffe724053.jpg\" title='The Drove'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4095\/5413693340_1ffe724053_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4118\/5413693002_7717fc4d05.jpg\" title='Exmoor pony'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4118\/5413693002_7717fc4d05_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm6.static.flickr.com\/5054\/5413082313_bcb7f0cbcf.jpg\" title='In Great Wood'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm6.static.flickr.com\/5054\/5413082313_bcb7f0cbcf_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4146\/5413081745_137b9aaac8.jpg\" title='riders'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm5.static.flickr.com\/4146\/5413081745_137b9aaac8_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a><br \/>\nFacebook Link: <script src=\"http:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/all.js#xfbml=1\"><\/script><fb:like href=\"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/wordpress\/?p=326\" layout=\"button_count\" show_faces=\"true\" width=\"200\" colorscheme=\"dark\"><\/fb:like><br \/>\nIn Ramscombe car park, deep in the heart of the wood, I got my bearings and a bit of background information from the pictorial notice-board. I didn\u2019t need a pee, as it happened, but if I had done so there was a public convenience not too far away; also a picnic table, and a place for a football kickabout. Nothing out of the ordinary for a wood managed by the Forestry Commission; just an excellent example of it. <\/p>\n<p>The broad, hard-surfaced track, waymarked and well-drained, led away up Rams Combe and out onto the moor where sheep were grazing and a pair of Exmoor ponies with winter-shaggy manes and tails cropped the icy grass. Along the ridge I followed the broad old packhorse way called The Drove, looking out on heavy cloud billowing like smoke over far sunlit pastures. At pink-faced Quantock Farm horses with steaming nostrils trotted excitedly after a little quad bike, from whose tray the farmer shovelled out bundles of hay.<\/p>\n<p>Down into Great Wood again with one eye on the map, following signposted bridleways and waymarked footpaths, dipping into the forest along unmarked permissive paths here and there. Out at Adscombe into open country; back among the trees at Friarn Cottage on a mossy bridleway fragrant with pine resin that brought me curling down the slope to Ramscombe once more.<\/p>\n<p>Nothing about the atmosphere of Great Wood scowls, \u2018You\u2019re here on sufferance, so watch your step.\u2019 Nowhere growls, \u2018Keep out!\u2019 On the contrary &#8211; the public facilities tell you you\u2019re welcome, and the rest of the forest says it\u2019s fine if you\u2019re there, no-one\u2019s going to bother you, walk or bike or ride at your pleasure.  That\u2019s what we expect from our Forestry Commission woodland, and that \u2013 by and large \u2013 is what we get. Public loos, car parks, picnic tables, cleared paths and bridleways, waymarks, good information on site and online; can their continuation really be guaranteed to the same high standard under private management? One thing\u2019s for sure: any new lessee neglecting that tradition of maintenance for the public good, or curtailing the public access we all enjoy, is likely to reap a pretty impressive whirlwind.<\/p>\n<p><U>Start &amp; finish<\/U>: Ramscombe car park, Great Wood, Nether Stowey (OS<br \/>\nref ST 166378)<br \/>\n<U>Getting there<\/U>: M5 Jct 24, A39 towards Minehead. Ramscombe signposted 1\u00bd<br \/>\nmiles before Nether Stowey. Forest road starts at Adscombe Farm. In \u2153<br \/>\nmile pass Great Wood Camp (178375); in another mile, sharp right<br \/>\nbend; Ramscombe car park in 100m on right.<br \/>\n<U>Walk<\/U><br \/>\n(5 miles, easy grade, OS Explorer 22): Walk back to bend; ahead (\u2018No<br \/>\nVehicles\u2019) on track for \u2154 miles to gate; ahead to road at<br \/>\nCrowcombe Combe Gate (150375). Left for 200m; left (\u2018Triscombe<br \/>\nStone\u2019) along The Drove. In \u00bd mile, in dip, left through gate<br \/>\n(166369; bridleway). 100m before Quantock Farm, right through gate<br \/>\n(blue arrow\/BA). Up field hedge; through gate (BA); down to drive<br \/>\n(160369); right for \u2153 mile to re-enter woods. In another \u00bc mile,<br \/>\nahead off drive on right bend (166365, BA) on grass ride to<br \/>\nT-junction (168365). Descend left; in 200m, ahead across track, down<br \/>\nto bottom (169370). Right (Red Trail marker post) to valley road by<br \/>\nhouse (173373); right for \u2153 mile. Opposite Great Wood Camp Activity<br \/>\nCentre, left off road up slope (BA; \u2018Quantock Greenway\u2019\/QG). In<br \/>\n50m take lower footpath for 250m to cross track (179378, QG). Follow<br \/>\nwood edge; through gate (QG); left up field edge to road (180381).<br \/>\nLeft for 400m; by Friarn Cottage, left up track (178383; bridleway).<br \/>\nIn 100m fork left at gate. Follow this track for \u2154 mile. At top of<br \/>\nlong rise, right through gate (168380); immediately left on track<br \/>\nwith hedgebank on left. Descend for 200m to go through gate (166380);<br \/>\nfollow track down to car park.<br \/>\nNB \u2013<br \/>\nOnline map, more walks: <FONT COLOR=\"#0000ff\"><U><A CLASS=\"western\" HREF=\"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/\">www.christophersomerville.co.uk<\/A><\/U><\/FONT><br \/>\n<U>Lunch<\/U>:<br \/>\nRose &amp; Crown Inn, Nether Stowey (01278-732265);<br \/>\n<FONT COLOR=\"#0000ff\"><U><A CLASS=\"western\" HREF=\"http:\/\/www.roseandcrown-netherstowey.co.uk\/\">www.roseandcrown-netherstowey.co.uk<\/A><\/U><\/FONT><br \/>\n<U>More<br \/>\ninfo<\/U>: <FONT COLOR=\"#0000ff\"><U><A CLASS=\"western\" HREF=\"http:\/\/www.forestry.gov.uk\/\">www.forestry.gov.uk<\/A><\/U><\/FONT>;<br \/>\ntel 01278-732319<br \/>\n<FONT COLOR=\"#0000ff\"><U><A CLASS=\"western\" HREF=\"http:\/\/www.ramblers.org.uk\/\">www.ramblers.org.uk<\/A><\/U><\/FONT>;<br \/>\n<FONT COLOR=\"#0000ff\"><U><A CLASS=\"western\" HREF=\"http:\/\/www.satmap.com\/\">www.satmap.com<\/A><\/U><\/FONT><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mist on the Quantock Hills, the gentle clop of hooves on a bridleway, and a trickle of birdsong among the big old oaks and the cathedral-high firs of Great Wood.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-326","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-walks","category-3-id","post-seq-1","post-parity-odd","meta-position-corners","fix"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/326","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=326"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/326\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=326"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=326"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=326"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}