Widcombe Walk

This is a walk I took on July 16th 2012. You leave the train station and travel under the tracks behind the station to find a foot bridge over the Avon river. Here turn left along Rossiter street until you encounter little Churchill bridge over the Avon and Somerset canal. Walking along the river pass the Travelodge on the left and continue to Spring Crescent or Spring Garden road and turn right. Our destination is the area above Widcombe but by a less direct route.  

 Here is the map

On Ferry Lane continue up the road and cross the railway under the arch the further up cross the main road to Pulteney Gardens. At this point the road crosses the canal again and a short excursion to the left reveals the location for the old pump house and the related chimney. This is where a steam engine pumped water to keep the canal full.  

Past the canal turn right on Abbey View Gardens for a nice view of the city and you guessed it the Abbey in the foreground are allotment gardens. Turn back to Abbeyview and continue up the steep hill where the road becomes The Tynning. Along here are terraced Victorian houses. Eventually the road crosses Widcombe road and shortly there after makes an excursion to the left to Church Street. Here the road is narrow, cut into the hillside and lined with Georgian houses and cottages. Further along you find Thomas a Becket Church.

 Across the street is grand Georgian house. I think it is Somerset House but I am not sure. 

From here I double-back on Church Street though one can certainly continue around to Ralph Allen Drive. Doubling-back however one passes the narrow row of cottages and then just short of Widombe Crescent on your left there is a steep stairwell down. Here travel down the stairs and continue farther down the steep road with Widcombe Crescent on the right. 

Here is another surprise, an old Quaker burial ground.

This is the gateway to the Quaker Burial ground. The sign indicates one can obtain the door code by phoning. The garden is kept public as a place of peaceful contemplation. 

Continuing down the hill  around Clarendon Road and on to Prior Park Road (Ralph Allen Drive) and to the final surprise. Heading back into town looking carefully on the left there is a row of Georgian terraced houses set back from the main road. I discovered this place while walking down from Prior Park. Out of the park up the hill a small stream flows under the road and along side it after that through a garden center. I wondered where it went. A stream enters an urban area and it usually disappears under the road to emerge ignonimously out of some pipe into a river. I thought what a shame. Apparently so did others. For here between the houses and the main road there were imaculate front gardens, a generous section of paving and a stream. Pictured here looking upstream and downstream from about halfway along the sidewalk. Wonderful. (Apologies these photos were taken with a camera phone. )