The Brendon Hills was a busy mining landscape in the 19th century. Between 1857 and 1864 a railway was built to transport iron ore from the mines to our coast at Watchet.
The mines were active until 1883 before the railway was fully dismantled in 1917. Traces of the incline trackbed remain to this day and can be experienced by following this walking route guidance.
The West Somerset Mineral Railway is a fascinating historical railway line in the Exmoor National Park and although it no longer has rails or rolling stock you can still marvel at this grand feat of Victorian engineering which once saw iron ore bring transported from Somerset to South Wales for smelting, as Somerset Life discovered.
You can’t beat turning a corner to find a beautiful waterfall in your path with a ready made picnic area for a lunch stop. To reach it, this walk takes you along the Old Mineral Line from Roadwater before delivering stunning views across the Bristol Channel and woodland wanderings. After taking in the waterfall it continues to the Incline. Descending the Incline, the walk then continues up to the upper sections of the Old Mineral Line, before returning to the start on a section of the Coleridge Way.
1. Begin in the village of Roadwater where you follow the Old Mineral Line for just under a mile, turning right where you see a bridleway sign to Leighland. As you come to the village of Leighland, a footpath to the left takes you along the back of the church yard to a gate on your right where you can enter. Pass through the church yard stopping to look inside St Gile’s Church where decorations by Rachel Reckitt can be seen behind the altar and on the pulpit. Born in St Albans, Reckitt’s family moved to Golsoncott in 1922, and her work can be seen in several churches in Old Cleeve parish.
Leaving the church yard, turn right on Pit Lane and then left onto a footpath that takes you into a series of fields. As you cross the fields look back for stunning views of the surrounding countryside and across the Bristol Channel to Wales. At the end of the fields you pass a pond on the right and come out on an access road where you turn left. Immediately after passing the farm buildings look to your left for a bridleway sign.
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2. You may need to pass through a farm gate to get to it. Take this path and follow it down the hill and through the woods. At the bottom of the hill you reach Leigh Falls
3. Nestling in the woods the waterfall is a great spot to stop for a picnic.
Continue on the bridleway for just under a mile after the waterfall until it brings you out on the Incline.
5. Completed in 1861 the Winding House, and the railway it served, are feat of Victorian engineering. Full wagons of iron ore left the top and their weight and the thick steel cables they were attached to, ensured empty wagons were returned to the top to be filled. Over 200 workers and their families were housed in Brendon Village at the top of the Incline – but very little remains today.
6. At the bottom you reach a spiral metal staircase that brings you out at Comberow. Leaving the steps turn right past the houses looking for a sign on the right that says Permitted Path to Roadwater. Turn right and follow this path along the Old Mineral Line which once carried the iron ore all the way to Watchet, where it was shipped over the Channel to Wales and transported to the steel works in Ebbw Vale.
Stay on the path for just under a mile until you see a footpath sign to the left. Take this and cross the stream at the bridge and walk up the slope.
7. The footpath then becomes another permitted path that takes you through an orchard and out onto Pit Lane (a sign on the gate here welcomes you to help yourself to apples).
Turn right and after a short distance there is a fingerpost where you follow the Restricted Byway to Sticklepath on the lane. After about 100 yards there is a footpath on the left to Pit Mill. Take this path to the Old Mineral Line where you cross and take the forestry track to the right.
8. The path loops back after a short distance and then joins a bridleway, which is part of the Coleridge Way and waymarked with a writer’s quill feather.
Stay on the Coleridge Way until it brings you out on Harper’s Lane in Roadwater. Turn left here and after a short distance you will be back at the start of the Old Mineral Line.
COMPASS POINTS
Start point: The Old Mineral Line in Roadwater, TA23 0QZ
Parking: There are a few parking spaces at the start of the Old Mineral Lone, roadside parking near the recreation ground.
Map: OS Explorer OL9: Exmoor
Refreshments and facilities: There is a community shop and café with toilet in the village and The Valiant Soldier pub up the road a little way serves food.
Practicalities: The route is 7 miles (11.3km) and takes about five leisurely hours with breaks.
The route is mostly flat or gentle hills, but for the Incline section it is a very steep hill 25% (1 in 4) with uneven walking surfaces in places. There are gates and stiles and some short flights of steps along the route. Note that several sections of the route are on permitted paths that may not show on some maps.
FIND OUT MORE
If you’re interested in finding out more about the Incline and the West Somerset Mineral Line and the communities that developed around it, there is a wealth of information, including historic photos and engineering drawings, on the West Somerset Mineral Line Association’s website - .wsmla.org.uk. The Association also organises regular walks and trips that explore the history of mining, with a group walk planned for September 28 - details online. Enjoy stepping back into our past!
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