That was all I needed to motivate me to set off for an – earlier than usual – morning walk. With home-schooling and my own work taking all our time, walks had been relegated to an evening pursuit. Fine in Summer with light evenings – but in the middle of winter the cold dark evenings were starting to take their toll.
Today’s walk was going to take me to the nearby village of Kilmersdon – home of the Jack & Jill nursery rhyme. Using a Footpath finder website I managed to identify a couple of potential routes, however diving onto the AllTrails app – the reviews suggested the paths were very muddy and that was in the height of Summer. I don’t mind a bit of mud, it’s part of the experience, but stomping through endless mud is not only not fun but it ruins the paths and fields and they can take a long time to recover.
I decided to take the cycle track.
The Cycle Track Expressway
We’re quite luckily as we have a very well connected mixed-use cycle path which literally goes behind our house. It connects to the nearby town of Radstock and onto outlying villages and even to the city of Bath (although there is some road to content with on that route)
The cycle path goes right past Kilmersdon and would be ideal. Admittedly it’s more pavement pounding, but at least there is no traffic to contend with.
The path follows the old railway and the tracks follow almost the entire length of the route from Radstock towards Frome.
It was a cold morning and the path was frosty, but not slippery. As the sun came up over the trees the frost and dew started to evaporate and there was a light mist along the path.
The path itself was very quiet. I didn’t see a single cyclist and only two runners passed me on my walk. The silence was lovely.
I could see the Kilmersdon church appearing in the distance.
The Jack & Jill hill
The cycle track doesn’t go through Kilmersdon but a path leads directly form the cycle path down into the village. It’s a lovely little path with a wonderful picnic area perfect for families out on a bike ride.
I wasn’t 100% sure where I was going (there’s nothing like proper preparation!) but a quick scan of Google Maps indicated the path led directly onto the Jack and Jill hill. Sure enough it did.
The bottom of the Jack and Jill hill is marked with a decorative sign and as you go up the hill there are markers with verses from the famous nursery rhyme on.
The hill itself was quite steep, but knowing that there is a school at the top and all the primary school children walk up here every day without fail put a spring in my step.
The wishing well
Thankfully the frost and ice had all but melted, the hill was steep as the smooth(ish) concrete must be quite treacherous on icy mornings.
As I mentioned there is a well at the top, presumably where jack went to get his “pail of water”. the well sits in the grounds of Kilmersdon Primary School, which itself overlooks the valley and back down the steep hill.
I was worried that I might not be able to get very close to the well as the school as shut but as I approached it was clear the well was right next to the fence and easily accessible.
Walk up the hill to see the markers. Wishing well at top.
If you are looking for a little walk, or something interesting to show your children this is a nice little spot and on a summers day would make a delightful detour if you are nearby.
If you’d like to visit have a look on the map to see it’s location, and leave a comment to let me know what you think.
Hi Alan.
Very interested in your pictures of Jack & Jill hill. I’m putting together a brochure for a developer building some new houses in Midsomer Norton and we need a few local area images. Would you be OK if we use the image of the decorative sign?
Many thanks
Tim
Thanks for asking – yes as long as you give credit to walkrestrepeat.co.uk