Pewsey

After a longish gap, Merv and I are back on the walking trail. We start our walk at Pewsey Wharf, just catching a view of a rapidly disappearing rainbow.

We head west under the road bridge and along the Kennet and Avon Canal. A surprisingly large number of boats are moored on the right bank.

We leave the canal after a short stretch along the canal and head towards Wilcot. This proves to be a small but very interesting village. The church of the Holy Cross has been altered several times since its foundation in the 12th century.   According to Pevsner it was much restored after a fire in 1876.

Opposite is a fine house ...

... with a pretty cottage next door.

The manor house, close to the west end of the church, dates from the early 17th century with remodelling in the 18th. It is very well concealed however. We continued along the path away from the village and were delighted to at least get a snap of this delightful circular stone dovecote dated 1737.

We tramped through Mannington Abbots and Charcott to reach the edge of Pewsey. We followed the rear fence of a line of houses and were intrigued to spot this lovely plant which had spread out beyond the fence. I wish I knew what it was.

Arriving in Pewsey we passed the Court House in Church Street. It dates back to the 16th century.

Turning left into River Street we passed a rather handsome brick building which could pretty much only be a former school. It was.

Further into the village we passed The Old Fire Engine House.

After a sandwich break we continued along the road, passing the railway bridge. The interesting thing was that we walked steadily uphill to return to Pewsey Wharf and the canal. I had always imagined that canals were at a low level relative to the surrounding terrain, but this is plainly not so.