Length: 30.3 km (18.8 mi) [shorter walks possible, see below]
Ascent/Descent: 602m
Net Walking Time: 7 ¼ hours
Toughness: 8 out of 10
Take the Weymouth train from Westbury (09.29), Frome (09.38) or Bruton (09.50), arrives Castle Cary 09.54.
From London, take the 08.35 Paignton train from Paddington (09.02 Reading), arrives Castle Cary 10.16, and chase the group.
Return trains to Bruton: 17.14, 18.34, 19.32, 21.24.
Return trains to Frome/Westbury: 17.14, 18.34, 19.32, 20.05 (change Westbury for Frome), 20.52, 21.24.
Return trains to London: 17.14, 17.28, 18.46 (direct), 20.05 (direct), 20.52, 21.24.
This is a route along the fringes of the Somerset Levels over some fine viewpoints to three magnificent hills, one of which may well be the site of the mythical Camelot of King Arthur fame.
You rise from the station up a hillock and through quiet residential streets to the centre of the charming market town of Castle Cary with many of its buildings built in the honey-coloured Cary stone, including the stunning Market House. Climb out of the modern-day town past the site of the medieval castle (only earthworks remain) to the top of Lodge Hill with its panoramic views across the Somerset Levels to Glastonbury Tor and the Mendip Hills, and inland towards the wooded boundary ridge with Wiltshire.
Visible ahead already are the three hills at the far end of the walk route: Cadbury Hill, Parrock Hill and The Beacon/Corton Hill, each different in shape and appearance. You continue through a scenic dry green valley and along an ancient holloway, then through pastures in the shallow Cam River valley to lunch in North or South Cadbury, from where it’s only a short while to Cadbury Hill, the ‘likeliest contender’ for King Arthur's legendary court at Camelot. Apart from being a stunning Bronze and Iron Age hillfort site, it also offers some very fine views across bucolic valleys to the other hills of the route.
Steep ascents are needed for Parrock Hill and The Beacon/ Corton Hill, but the rewards are more fine views, back to Cadbury Hill and on to the Dorset coastal ranges. The return route passes some remains of a large WWII airfield and crosses the very large Sigwells plateau-with-views, before re-crossing the Cam River valley and approaching Castle Cary from a different angle.
Walk Options:
Bus Line 1 (Yeovil – Shepton Mallet) connects South and North Cadbury, as well as Castle Cary’s Town Centre to the Railway Station. The bus runs 14.35 and 18.20 from South Cadbury back to CC (3 mins later from North Cadbury), and at 18.32 from CC down to the Station.
Cut out the out-and-back up to and around the plateau of the Cadbury Castle hillfort site. Cut 1.8 km and 80m ascent.
Outbound and Return Route are never far from each other, so there are numerous ways to cut out some of the route, using footpaths or roads. An example would be Compton Road, between the lunch pub in South Cadbury and Compton Pauncefoot village:
Outbound and Return Route are never far from each other, so there are numerous ways to cut out some of the route, using footpaths or roads. An example would be Compton Road, between the lunch pub in South Cadbury and Compton Pauncefoot village:
· walk it after lunch, either without or with first going up to Cadbury Castle, to pick up the return route in Compton Pauncefoot at the double asterisk **);
· walk the route as described to Compton Pauncefoot (20.2 km/12.6 mi with 450m ascent), and turn left along Compton Road back to the pub in South Cadbury and wait for a bus (Line 1, as above).
A Shortcut in the afternoon leads through pastures along the valley between Sigwells Plateau and Parrock Hill, thus avoiding the steep ascent up onto and subsequent very steep descent down from Parrock Hill, as well as the steep ascent of The Beacon/Corton Hill, climbing up to Sigwells at a gentler gradient. Cut 2.5 km and 40m ascent.
A Shortcut in the afternoon leads through pastures along the valley between Sigwells Plateau and Parrock Hill, thus avoiding the steep ascent up onto and subsequent very steep descent down from Parrock Hill, as well as the steep ascent of The Beacon/Corton Hill, climbing up to Sigwells at a gentler gradient. Cut 2.5 km and 40m ascent.
Lunch: The Catash Inn in North Cadbury (8.4 km/5.2 m, open all day ); Chapel Cross Coffee Rooms in Chapel Cross (9.7 km/6.0 m); The Camelot Inn in South Cadbury (10.4 km/6.5 mi, food to 14.30, then bar snacks).
Tea: plenty of choice in Castle Cary (see webpage or pdf for details).
For summary, route map, height profile, photos, walk directions and gpx/kml files click here. T=swc.392