From Bay to Bay Blackberrying

A glorious day in late summer with the sky a brilliant blue and a coolish breeze in the air.  What better way to spend the morning than to head off to one of the bays.   The first bus to Sand Bay on a Sunday leaves Weston at 1005 which meant I had half an hour to waste.  I wandered along the front and was fortunate enough to spot a sailing boat.  

A little further along I was greeted by the sight of Birnbeck Pier deteriorating further with every passing day.

 

But now it is time to board Crosville's No. 100 open top bus service and speed along the foot of Weston Woods towards Sand Bay.  Trees line the road on either side providing a canopy.  Quick - duck down as a branch comes a little too close for comfort.

 

Time to "Spend a Penny" in the loos at the bus terminus before heading  off to find the public footpath which starts at the end of Sand Farm Lane.  Reviews for this walk advise wearing long trousers and good walking shoes and I am pleased I had taken this into consideration before leaving because the start of the footpath was very overgrown.   

As the path headed out over the levels I was very pleased to find that it has been well signed and that the small bridges over the rhynes have been renewed.  The sheep were a little perturbed at having a strange upright animal crossing their field !

After 45 minutes I came out on Collum Lane and made my way up to Woodspring Bay.

  

 What a heavenly place this is. 

 The hedgerows are still full of nature's harvest so it was blackberrying all the way home to Worle.

 

Woodspring Priory

 

Woodspring Priory – so near and yet so far.  The route from Worle is along Collum Lane – but how safe would that be for a lone walker?  Many country lanes are so bendy that walking becomes hazardous.  Thankfully the map shows that Collum Lane is virtually straight and as there is no large residential area at the end traffic should be light.  The goal looks more achievable as I set off on a cloudy summer’s day.

Collum Lane crosses agricultural land and newly shorn sheep glance curiously at the camera:

Fields of barley(?) look ripe for cutting.  Whilst others have already been harvested and bailed.  

As suspected traffic is light and it is not long before the road peters out.  A sign to the priory points the way through an ancient walled garden and the tower can be spotted rising behind the old Tithe Barn.  But nothing prepared me for the magnificent building which suddenly came into sight – it took my breath away.

Woodspring (Worspring) Priory was founded in the 13^th. century and dedicated to Thomas Becket.  It was home to a group of Victorine monks, a French Order, who had their Abbey in Bristol.  After the Dissolution of the Monasteries by Henry VIII in 1536 the priory fell into disrepair but was later converted into a farmhouse.  It is said to have two ghosts – a lady who roams the gardens when there is a full moon, and another who hovers in the tower clanking his chains.  In recent years the property has been restored and is now run as holiday accommodation by the Landmark Trust. Perhaps one day I may stay there and meet those spirits of the past but for the present it was interesting to step inside and look at the small museum which is open on Mondays and Fridays.

From the priory my route took me to Huckers Bow and on to the wonderfully secluded Woodspring Bay.

After a climb up Middle Hope the path follows the ridge and provides stunning views down to the priory on one side and small coves on the other.

On reaching the trig point I was able to descend to the beach and make my way along Sand Bay to the bus terminus. 

The one and only place for a comfort stop on this walk were the toilets at Sand Bay.   

These have recently been refurbished by Kewstoke Parish Council and I was delighted to see that instead of very expensive new fangled electric doors they had simply installed old fashioned “coin in the slot” boxes.   

Well done Kewstoke