Dowlish Wake, Ilminster, Somerset
If you were out pootling about the lanes exploring this little corner of Somerset, it would be such a lovely thing to stumble upon Dowlish Wake. Off the beaten track, but just a couple of miles from Ilminster, this is such a pretty village, small and peaceful and seemingly idyllic. Thatched Hamstone cottages line the streets, along with a few more modern houses; a roadside brook flows merrily along and under a 17th century packhorse bridge, there’s a pub, a cider farm, and up on the hillside, a Victorian church where a marble bust and memorial commemorates the life of explorer John Hanning Speke who discovered the source of the River Nile in 1862 – Dowlish Wake was his ancestral home.
These days, the reason most people come to Dowlish Wake is to visit Perry’s Cider, right in the middle of the village. Find out how they make their award-winning cider, then toddle over to the tap room to try a pint – if it’s a warm sunny day, sit out in the orchard beneath the trees. There’s also a fascinating collection of cider making and farm machinery, housed in a 16th century barn, a well-stocked farm shop and a café.
A short stroll away is the village pub, The New Inn, where they serve home cooked pub food and chef’s specials. What’s lovely is to stroll through the fields and lanes from Beaverbrook 20 or Churchill 20 and go for lunch – just the kind of thing you ought to be doing on your large group holiday in Somerset.
All information correct at the time of writing