Burrington Combe and Burrington Ham on the Mendip Hills in Somerset.

Burrington Combe on the Mendip Hills in Somerset where, according to legend, Augustus Montague Toplady (1740-1778) the curate of nearby Blagdon was inspired to write the hymn Rock of Ages while sheltering in a cleft in the rock face during a storm. A plaque opposite the car park at the bottom of the Combe marks the very rock. 


Feral Goats on patrol in Burrington Combe.

Feral goats were introduced to the Combe some years ago to keep the scrub under control in order to promote the growth of wild flowers and plants.  They are doing a similar job in Cheddar Gorge and on Brean Down.

At the top of the Combe there is another car park from which you can walk up a track to Burrington Ham. Follow the path to the west and enjoy the views north east towards the Chew Valley and north west across Wrington Vale to Clevedon, the Severn Estuary and South Wales. To the south you look up towards Blackdown and Beacon Batch, the highest point on the Mendips.

View from Burrington Ham across Wrington Vale to the Severn Estuary and South Wales. 



Wrington Vale and fields of oilseed rape, a crop barely known in England until the 1970s. It seems a bit un-English to me but the crop's yellow flowers certainly brightened up this scene on what was a dull April day.