The first of an ad hoc, semi-regular roam around the villages of Somerset…

We’ll begin out journey in the village of Ashcott.

Situated on the side of the busy A39, three miles (5km) to the west of Street, Ashcott is a small village made up of a mix of old and modern buildings.

While the village seems to lack a real central focus, All Saints Church dominates the eastern heights.

The local amenities include a couple of pubs – the Ring O’ Bells and the Ashcott – and, while no longer served by the railway (Ashcott and Meare station and, indeed, the whole of the Burhnam branch line, were axed as part of the Beeching cuts in the 1960s), it is still a pleasant walk down to the Shapwick Heath and Ham Wall nature reserves, where the trains once passed.