Minehead, Somerset, Exmoor NP, England

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June 26,2008, Thursday
Minehead, Somerset, Exmoor NP, England
Exmoor Minehead Caravan Camping Park

The bus is our way to the access the South West Path today, we are going to do a loop trail out along the South West Trail to Burgundy Chapel and back to Minehead, we are hiking on our own today. The bus was a bit late, but we were prepared with lunches, hiking poles, GPS, trail description and lots of water. We walked to the Quay and found the trailhead and began our climb up and up along the coast of Bristol Channel. The view is lovely in the shade of trees, looking down and hearing the surf gently splash against the sand. Several trails intersect here so it was a bit tricky. We followed the trail to Burgundy Chapel until it began to go up a very steep incline toward the remains of the chapel, having come this far we climbed and I mean climbed, until we both realized it was going to be a very difficult hike down. There are no switch-backs, just straight uphill all the way. We decided to by-passed the ruins of the chapel and crawled back down the incline sideways very slowly. The trail back-tracked a bit and then uphill again. After a nice lunch, we continued uphill and then got quite lost. We passed several old stone walls that Lord knows how long-ago they were made. The wild flowers were spectacular. We had the feeling we were walking on a path that had been used for many, many years. The trails could have been marked better, but maybe the locals know the way? Of course, we found our way back after 8 miles or so and waited for the bus back to "home". Each day is a challenge!

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Photos

The Bristol Channel
Wales is at the top