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Stantonbury

Hillfort

Fieldnotes

Stantonbury - 30.12.2003

I like Rhiannon's example of walking from Bath to Stantonbury. In reality I visited it as an afterthought after visiting Stanton Drew.

You can park in a small layby on the west side of the hill (approx ST668639), just on the south side of the notoriously dangerous bend in the A39 between Corston and Marksbury. There doesn't seem to be any better places to park on this side of the hill, however I think the best (and less muddy!) approach to the hill is on the North East side from approx ST679640.

From this layby you could probably nip up the edge of the field and be in the wood in a jiffy but it isn't officially a footpath. The actual footpath is 300m around the corner of the road and is marked on the north side of the road by a small 'footpath' sign. Luckily there is a pavement (of various descriptions) along the road between the layby and the footpath.

The footpath goes straight across a field (very, very heavy clay mud in December!) and into the woods. The bottom of the footpath to the top then isn't that obvious and isn't the right-angled affair the OS map suggests - look for the uprooted tree. Then there are several 'footpath' signs on the way up, and Wansdyke can usually be seen on your right.

The top is relatively flat and scrubby, with abandoned farm equipment. The ramparts aren't obvious in most places but can be seen when looking down off the hill. Bits of the west side have a steep slope; otherwise it's relatively gentle. An entrance seems to partly survive on the north east corner. There are lots of pheasants around; the first of which I disturbed almost gave me a heart attack! Like Rhiannon, I found there wasn't much of a view on a misty day, but on a good day I imagine the view would be stunning and I'd love to come back one day.
pure joy Posted by pure joy
4th January 2004ce

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