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
