Evershot and Melbury Park

The Acorn Inn

We started this walk with our friends Steve and Carolyn from the Acorn Inn in Evershot, apparently the second highest village in Dorset (700ft or 214m above sea level). The church (perpendicular with Victorian additions) can be seen further up the road.

We walked downhill and turned left along a path leading up to the rather impressive gates to Melbury Park.

After a short while the view to the left was enlivened by a beautiful cedar and some early Rhododendrons.

We continued along the tarmac road, spotting a number of deer in sight over to the left. We then skirted the well-hidden Melbury House. The house dates from about 1540 and was built for Sir Giles Strangways. A church can be spotted further to the left and set back a bit. This dates from 1874-78.

It was possible to get a better view of it by leaving the path for a while and walking across the grassy area to the right. So far as I could make out, the original house is on the right but is rather dominated by a late 17th century remodelling on the left.

The main path lay invitingly ahead.

We headed on along the path to reach the edge of the village of Melbury Osmond. In front of us was the imposing Monmouth Cottage, with its stone mullion windows.

We walked through the village, across a small ford, to reach the church. The tower is perendicular, but the nave dates only from 1745. The circular window above a portal on the south side is rather unusual.

The next stage of the walk involved a rather convoluted, and not very rewarding, route around the east of the village. Eventually we were on a secondary path through the estate, running more or less parallel with the path we walked up.

We climbed gradually to pass Lucerne Lake.  Sadly it was mostly hidden from sight, but an interesting boat house caught my eye.

We then walked through a wooded area to rejoin the original path through the gates and back to the village.

Conditions: cloudy with some sun.

Map: Explorer 117 (Cerne Abbas & Bere Regis).

Distance: 5.5 miles.

From: Dorset Walks (Pathfinder Books)

Rating: four stars. Very enjoyable.