An Englishman, an Irishman and a Scotsman (sounds like the start of an old joke) lived in the three cottages at the base of the Wellington Monument on the edge of the Blackdown Hills, or at least they should have done. According to my trusty source on all things Somerset, the late lamented Robin Bush, the original monument to mark the Duke’s victory at Waterloo was to have been a column topped by a cast-iron statue of the hero with cottages below, occupied by one retired army veteran from each of the three countries as well as 24 cannon from the battle. Alas, funds ran out before the project was completed but what we see today has its own claim to fame. It is the tallest three-sided obelisk in the world at 175 feet. It has been restored recently by its new owners the National Trust and has suitably ‘commanding’ views. One can see points on the Quantocks and Mendips, hills which along with the Blackdowns, hold the fertile Somerset lowlands in a warm embrace.
Blackdown Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) is one of the UK’s smallest, spanning just 15 miles in each direction, yet it is a place that holds many treasures and much fascination. Two thirds of it (and here I will have to whisper) is in Devon so, if you forgive me, I will concentrate on the parts in Somerset – well that is what it says on the magazine cover. The highest point, more than 1000 feet above sea level, is not where the monument stands but a little further east at Staple Hill, looked after by Forestry England. If you take the short all-ability trail from the car park you are rewarded with fantastic views as far as Exmoor on one side and across to Wales. Nearby Castle Neroche is one of my favourite walks with woodland tracks, stunning views and even the remains of an Iron Age Hill Fort. It is from here that the Devil is said to have thrown the large sandstone boulders found by the crossroads in the village of Staple Fitzpaine, its name being derived from the Old English stapol for pillar or post. The second part of the name comes from the Fitzpaine family who owned the manor in the 13th century. The church, Norman in origin, has one of the splendid Perpendicular towers for which Somerset is famous complete with grotesque carvings known hereabouts as Hunky Punks. If all this makes you feel in need of a drink there is an excellent pub across the road, The Greyhound Inn.
Refreshed, we can make our way into the depths of the Blackdowns where it is easy to become lost in one of the steep wooded slopes running down from the wide open, somewhat wild, plateau. Dotted among the verdant valleys are houses of local chert stone, cob and thatch and small fields enclosed by hedges that make up the delightful patchwork so characteristic of this AONB. It was a landscape that inspired several avant-garde painters of the Camden Town Group in the early 20th century to capture it in the style of Cezanne, Gauguin and Van Gogh. In a recent exhibition, a number of contemporary artists recaptured the same sites around Clayhidon and Ringdown, illustrating graphically how relatively unchanged and unspoiled the Blackdowns are. That makes it all the easier to picture oneself among the pages of Patricia Wendorf’s evocative novel Larksleve, centred on the village of Buckland St Mary a couple of centuries ago. She writes of the Blackdowns in early summer and “how the blackthorn leaned together to make a shade, how the dog-rose climbed and starred the hedges, how the steep lanes dipped and twisted between the rich fields”.
A short hop from the village is one of the area’s many nature reserves – Bishopswood Meadows - running down to the River Yarty which, along with the Otter and the Culm, makes up a trio of rivers rising in this lush corner. If it is wildlife you are after, you have come to the right place as the Blackdowns is home to a wide range of species including some real rarities such as dormice and white-clawed crayfish. Other nature hotspots are the tranquil Otterhead Lakes, a former Victorian Estate and the wonderful ancient Thurlbear Wood.
One might think the archetypal English Countryside of the Blackdowns was always totally given over to quiet rural pursuits but it has a surprising industrial past. Its geology meant that it was important for iron-working, lime quarrying and mining whetstones that were used for sharpening tools. With these materials less in demand and the war-time intensive farming in the past, the emphasis now is on conserving this rich cultural and natural heritage for future generations.