Full Description
Bristol is one of the best cities in the world for exploring on foot and the Severn Beach Line - once hailed as one of Britain's most scenic railways - is the gateway to some of its finest sights. The walks in this guide range from short strolls exploring Georgian crescents and city parks to all-day excursions through ancient woodlands, eighteenth-century estates and spectacular river gorges. Among the places visited are St Anne's Woods, Arno's Vale, the Floating Harbour, Royate Hill, the Frome Valley, St Paul's, Kingsdown, Montpelier, Redland and Cotham, St Werburgh's, Purdown, Stoke Park, Frenchay, Oldbury Court, Westbury on Trym, Clifton and Hotwells, Leigh Woods, Coombe Dingle, Blaise Castle, Kingsweston, Bishop's Knoll, Pill and Paradise Bottom, Patchway and the Three Brooks, and Ashton Court, while the final walk heads from Severn Beach over the Severn Bridge to the Wales Coast Path. With a brief history of the Severn Beach Line and a description of a journey along it, this book is an indispensable companion not only for anyone lucky enough to live near the line, but also for anyone who can catch a train to Bristol and explore it from there.
Contents
Foreword by George Ferguson Introduction 1 Barton Hill, St Anne's Valley, Arno's Vale & Windmill Hill Lawrence Hill - Bedminster (7 miles) or Temple Meads (81/2 miles) 2 Bristol's Lost Railways Lawrence Hill - Temple Meads (71/2 miles) 3 Trooper's Hill, Royate Hill & St George Circular walk from Lawrence Hill (6 miles) 4 The Frome Valley Stapleton Road - Parkway (11 miles) 5 Montpelier, Stoke's Croft, St Paul's & Kingsdown Circular walk from Montpelier (4 miles) 6 St Andrew's, St Werburgh's & Montpelier Circular walk from Montpelier (41/2 miles) 7 Purdown, Stoke Park, Frenchay, Oldbury Court & Stapleton Circular walk from Montpelier (10 miles) 8 Redland, Henleaze, Westbury and the Trym Valley Redland - Sea Mills (9 miles) 9 Cotham, Clifton Wood, Hotwells & Clifton Redland - Clifton Down (6 miles) 10 Clifton, Brandon Hill, Christmas Steps & the Walled City Clifton Down - Temple Meads (5 miles) 11 Leigh Woods, Abbot's Pool & Ashton Court Circular walk from Clifton Down (13 miles) 12 Coombe Dingle, Henbury, Blaise Castle & Kingsweston Circular walk from Sea Mills (9 miles) 13 Lost Gardens, Spas & Railways of the Avon Gorge Sea Mills - Temple Meads (7 miles) 14 Pill, Paradise Bottom & the Avon Walkway Shirehampton - Temple Meads (11 miles) 15 Pilning, Patchway & Bradley Stoke Severn Beach - Parkway (11 miles) 16 Severn Shore & Severn Bridge Severn Beach - Chepstow (9 miles) or Severn Tunnel Jn (13 miles) The Severn Beach Line: A Brief History A Trip along the Line References Bibliography & Online Resources Acknowledgements & Picture Credits General Index Pub Index
