Waterfalls

A waterfall is the place where a stream or river flows over the edge of a steep or vertical cliff and falls into a pool below.   Waterfalls often occur where a horizontal band of resistant rock lies over softer rock.  The soft rock erodes more quickly forming a step.  The harder rock is then undercut by hydraulic and abrasive forces, forming an overhang, which eventually collapses. The fallen rocks drop into the plunge pool and as they are moved around by the force of the water, they cause more erosion of the river bed and banks and another overhang is formed, which also eventually collapses  Thus the waterfall gradually recedes upstream, forming a steep sided gorge downstream.  Waterfalls can also occur at the edges of plateaus, at sea cliffs, where a hanging valley meets a steep sided valley created by a glacier and where rivers cross faults caused by earthquakes. Some waterfalls are ephemeral and only flow during times of high rainfall or snowmelt.  Waterfalls can also be created artificially as garden features.

Waterfalls are few and far between in Somerset.  The most dramatic ones I have found are located in the Brendon Hills near Comberow, where an unnamed tributary of the Washford River drops over a near vertical cliff and at St Audrie's Bay, where an unnamed stream falls over a sea cliff onto the beach.  The Great Cascade at Hestercombe is manmade waterfall, which is supplied with water by a purpose built leat.

Western Cliff Wood, Comberow, Brendon Hills

 

Western Cliff Wood, Comberow, Brendon Hills

Western Cliff Wood, Comberow, Brendon Hills

 

Small waterfall, Horner Water, Exmoor

 

Sherford Stream, Trull - near Staplehay

 

St Audrie's Bay

 

St Audrie's Bay

 

Cam Brook Waterfall, Highbury Hill, High Littleton

 

 

Great Cascade, Hestercombe Gardens

 

Great Cascade, Hestercombe Gardens

Water cascading over Wimbleball Reservoir dam

Cascade at Wimbleball Reservoir

Temporary small waterfall by the entrance to Snowdrop Valley, Wheddon Cross

Glenthorne Beach

Cist burial in Langridge Wood

A few metres south of the Coleridge Way footpath as it runs through Langridge Wood on the northern slopes of the Brendon Hills, there is Bronze Age cist or burial chamber.  It would originally have been covered by a cairn of stones.  The cist was discovered in 1820 when workmen removed the stones from the cairn to use for road building.  The stone lined grave contained a skeleton, which was re-interred in Treborough Churchyard.  The large capstone, which is about 5 feet in diameter, is still in place, although when I visited in January 2019 it was covered in fallen leaves.

Grid reference: ST014 373

Langridge Wood Cist - partly obscured by fallen leaves

 

Inside the Langridge Wood Cist

A Miscellany of Mosaics

On my travels around Somerset I have come across the following colourful mosaics.  Some of them aren't strictly true mosaics but they have a similar format.

In March 2002, with the help of a youth worker and a professional artist, the West One Youth Club in Crewkerne designed and created a set of mosaics outside what is currently the West One Surgery in West Street, Crewkerne.  The project was funded by the National Lottery and Crimebeat.

West One Mosaic, Crewkerne

West One Mosaic, Crewkerne

West One Mosaic, Crewkerne

Plaque on the West One Mosaic, West Street, Crewkerne

Diamond Jubilee Mosaic, St Thomas Street, Wells

Brick mosaic on the back wall of Taunton Canoe Club in Priory Bridge Road, Taunton

This photo was taken on a very snowy day in March 2018

To celebrate the Millennium, the children of Brookside School in Street created this 140 Smiles "mosaic".  The figures are self-portraits by the children from Years 3 and 4 in 2000.  They were helped by ceramic artist Julia Gatrill.

140 Smiles, High Street, Street

Victoria Park, Taunton

Pastoral scene mosaic on the public toilets, Wheddon Cross public car park

Winsford Village Hall

In October 2001 George Caton and the Osborne family discovered a large  Romano-British mosaic floor at Lopen near Ilminster..  They contacted Somerset County Council's archaeological team and over the next three weeks the mosaic was fully excavated, cleaned, recorded and then covered over again to protect it from the elements.  An 8 roomed villa was revealed, which is thought to date from about 360AD. The mosaic is believed to be the work of the Saltire School, who were based at Corinium (now Cirencester).  The designs used in the mosaic included large squares, saltires, a dolphin, a cantharus (two handled cup), flowers, fish, heart shaped leaves and guilloche (plaits or braids). 

The loose tesserae, which were found in the soil around the mosaic were donated to the village by the land owners and used to recreate a section of the mosaic.  Volunteers washed and sorted the pieces and Nicholas Durnan and Gina Wright placed the 3,000 or so pieces into lime mortar to create a cantharus.  It was completed in 2002 and is now on display on the floor of All Saints Church in Lopen.  The surround is made from Ham Stone.

Cantharus Mosaic, All Saints Church, Lopen

Lopen Church Mosaic

Seasons Mosaic, Grove Park, Weston-super-Mare

Grove Park, Weston-Super-Mare

Wrington 

Aller Dragon on the side of Aller Village Hall

Aller bus shelter

This mosaic includes historic characters from the village's past e.g. King Alfred, his wife Ealhswith, their son Edward, the Viking leader Guthrum and the Aller Dragon.  The mosaic and the one of the Aller Dragon above were apparently made by local potter Bryan Newman but I have not been able to confirm this or find out when they were made.

Aller bus shelter mosaic - right hand panel

Aller bus shelter mosaic - left hand panel

Yin and yang mosaic in the sensory garden at Vivary Park, Taunton

Dragonfly pebble mosaic on the side of the River Tone near Firepool Lock

St Decuman pebble mosaic, Watchet

This pebble mosaic, which is located outside Watchet Library, commemorates the arrival of St Decuman in Watchet by boat from Wales in the late 7th century.  It was created in 1996 by Maggy Howarth of Cobblestone Designs.  St Decuman brought his favourite cow with him, which can be seen in the photo above.  He came to evangelise the people of West Somerset but he wasn't welcomed by everyone and was beheaded.  Being a saint, this wasn't a problem to him, as he washed the blood from it in the waters of a holy well and put it back on his shoulders.

Compass rose in the St Decuman pebble mosaic, Watchet

St Decuman's severed head

Sword used to cut off St Decuman's head

Swan mosaic plaque on the former Swan Inn, 2 Silver Street, Wiveliscombe

Mosaic on the wall of the toilet block of Ilminster Recreation Ground

Heart pebble mosaic dated 1614, 

St Andrew's Church, Old Cleeve

Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee mosaic, 2012, 

Priorswood, Taunton

Platinum Jubilee mosaic, Priorswood, Taunton

Platinum Jubilee mosaic, Priorswood, Taunton

East Coker Roman mosaic

This is on display in the Museum of Somerset in Taunton.  It shows two hunters returning home with a deer slung on a pole between them.  It probably dates from the 2nd half of the 4th century AD.  A Roman villa was discovered near East Coker in 1753

Low Ham Roman mosaic

This is on display in the Museum of Somerset in Taunton.  It is the oldest object in Britain to tell a complete story and dates from around 350 AD.  It tells the tragic love story of Dido and Aeneas.  This was recorded by the poet Virgil in c25 BC.  The mosaic was found in the bath block of the Roman villa at Low Ham.  It was discovered by a local farmer Herbert Cook in 1938 when he was digging a hole in which to bury some dead sheep.  It was excavated 1946-48 by Lionel Walrond, Steven Dewar and C.A. Ralegh Radford.  The 120,000 tesserae were made from local materials, including lias limestone and fired clay.

Mosaic seat, Minehead Seafront

This is the first of 8 seats spelling out the word Minehead.

Wyvern Mosaic, Magdalen Lane, Taunton

Bird and frog mosaic on the back wall of a shelter in Collett Park, Shepton Mallet

Two agricultural labourers taking a break at harvest time 

Woodborough Road, Winscombe

Pebble flower mosaic in the Four Seasons Garden, The Newt, Hadspen

Dragon of Worminster Sleight mosaic, Wells

This mosaic was created in 2001 as part of the Three Villages Dragon Festival, to commemorate the slaying of the Worminster Dragon by Bishop Jocelyn during the 13th century. It was made by the artist Kate Rattray with the help of 6 local schools and community groups.  It is located at the side of the footpath on the south side of the Bishop's Palace.

Beware! The Dragon of Worminster Sleigh, who returns to Dinder, Dulcote and North Wootton every 50 years.

Watchet Seaspray Gallery 2015

This mosaic was organised by Watchet Arts Group.  It is made up of around 1500 tiles.  The tiles were decorated by local people and visitors.