WALK THREE

West Ashton - Carter's Wood - Kettle Lane Walk length 3.75 miles approx. Walk time 2 hours approx.

From the Village Hall, turn right and walk down Bratton Road towards its junction with the busy A350. Cross this with care and continue down the hill on the right hand side of the road until you reach a gate and a hard track to farm buildings on your left. Enter the field on the left beyond the track and use the permitted path from the stile. In the first field, walk parallel to the hard track past a stile with a footpath sign. Ignore this as there is a deviation which leads through the gate in the far left corner just beyond the sheds. Go through this gate and turn left with the footpath sign into the second field which has a row of tall trees on the left. The exit to this field is diagonally opposite your entrance, close to the line of trees. Go through the gate. Continue in a straight line with the trees on your left. The River Biss borders the right hand side of the field, and in fact every other field until it comes to Yarnbrook. The exit from this field consists of an unusual double stile built from steel pipes. Look for this in the corner ahead.

This leads into a long field which may have cattle grazing and may be divided in two by a barbed wire fence. Stay on the obvious path and this will bring you safely through a gap in the fence. In the far left corner of this field is a gate. Ignore this and the stone track which leads up to the farm. Continue in a straight line towards the houses at Yarnbrook. There are three gates at the end of the field. Ignore the gate facing you and ensure you take the second gate into a lane and continue along the grass lane which will bring you out to the left of a red brick house. Turn left to the busy A350.

Carefully cross the road and turn right, away from Kettle Lane. Use the pavement and head towards Yarnbrook. About 50 yards before coming to the roundabout, look out for a sign on the left pointing to Kettle Lane i mile. To follow this path you must go through a garden and a small paddock, each with gates to negotiate. Please secure the gates behind you. Once past this, you should find yourself in a field. On your right is Pickett Wood, with Flowers Wood on your far left. Follow the path in this field towards a stile in the far corner. Keep to the right in the next field, next to the wood. Cross the bridge over the stream in the far right hand corner of this field. In the next field keep to the right again.

On your left are some chicken houses and ahead of you are some cottages at the end of Kettle Lane. Go to the stile in the far right corner and cross on the small bridge over a ditch. On your left is another stile. Climb over this into yet another field. Walk through the middle of this field and go over the stile which is at the edge of the wood as it juts out into the field. The next field is up a hill. Keep in the middle of this field and walk towards the stile in the hedgerow. The stile is immediately under the overhead cables at the point where they cross the hedgerow. Cross the stile and bridge over a ditch, into another field. This next field slopes slightly uphill. As before, walk through the middle of the field, then cross the stile and bridge in the hedgerow.

The Village School

In the next field, head towards the roof tops of the village houses in the distance. When you get to the centre of the field you will be able to see the town of Trowbridge on your left and the Westbury White Horse on your right, both in the distance. Bear left and drop down gently into a hollow on the far side of the field. Go through the gate and turn right up the hill in the next field. Walk towards the clump of split willow trees, but watch out as there could be an electric wire across this field. Veer towards the farm buildings on your left and continue until you reach the road. It is usually muddy at this point, even in fairly dry weather. Go through the gate and you will find yourself on Bratton Road. Turn left and walk through the village. About half a mile away on the right, just past Welam House is the Village School. Walk past the front of the School and across the School field to a kissing gate. Walk across the field towards the Parish Church facing you. On your right is Rood Ashton House. Continue round the right hand side of the church boundary wall and over a stile into the Church's car park. Walk down the drive to the left, pass Church Lodge at the cross roads and make your way up Bratton Road to the Village Hall.