Attractions

Church Cottage stands beside the village church in Shapwick and is apparently on the cycle route from Land's End to John O'Groats.

Wells, Cathedral, Bishop’s Palace,Vicars Close.

Wells, the smallest cathedral city of England, is an ideal base for a romantic, family, walking or sight-seeing holiday or as a welcome escape from the pressures of hectic modern day living. Wells is home to the famous Cathedral of St Andrew, the Bishop’s Palace, gardens & moat and is a charming little city full of character and history. See websites: http://www.wellscathedral.org.uk and http://www.bishopspalacewells.co.uk and http://www.wells-uk.com

The open air markets in Wells take place every Wednesday and Saturday and there are often antique and collectors fairs in the adjacent Town Hall. Excellent local farmers' markets and French markets are also held and there is a special Christmas market leading up to the festive season. See website: http://www.somersetfarmersmarkets.co.uk

Glastonbury Abbey  http://www.glastonburyabbey.com
Glastonbury Festival takes place at Worthy Farm, Pilton in June.
Cheddar Gorge  http://www.cheddarcaves.co.uk
Wookey Hole Caves and Paper Mill  http://www.wookey.co.uk
Glastonbury, The Tor and Chalice Well  http://www.glastonbury.co.uk
East Somerset Steam Railways  http://www.eastsomersetrailway.com
Longleat House and Safari Park  http://www.longleat.co.uk
Stourhead House and magnificent gardens  http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk
The City of Bath, The Roman Baths, The Royal Crescent  http://www.cityofbath.co.uk
Clarks Discount Shopping Village, Street  http://www.clarksvillage.co.uk
Helicopter Museum, Weston-super-Mare  http://www.helicoptermuseum.co.uk
Fleet Air Arm Museum, Yeovilton  http://www.fleetairarm.com
Brean Leisure Park, Brean Sands  http://www.brean.com
Royal Bath & West Showground  http://www.bathandwest.com

Some history of Shapwick

Shapwick Heath used to be covered by the sea, the water retreating around 4,500 years ago. Reedbeds arose from the drying marshes and were then replaced by sedge and fen woodland. As the old vegetation decayed, it became peat.

Neolithic settlers colonised the surrounding areas of dry land and created raised wooden track ways across the wetlands. Part of one of these tracks, the Neolithic Sweet Track, can be seen in the reserve. The track was built in 3,806 BC and is the oldest man-made route way in Britain. Apart from the track many other Neolithic artefacts have been found in the area.

In the 13th century the area started to be drained to create grazing land. Apart from its agricultural value the reserve was exploited as a source of fish, timber and fuel. The extraction of peat for use as fuel was thought to have started with the Romans who cut peat into turves during the dry summer months. The hand-cutting of peat continued into the 1950s after which the area saw the large-scale extraction of peat for horticulture. In Shapwick this mechanical extraction ended in the 1990s.

For more on the history on Shapwick. Click here