Bathscape is perhaps best known for organising Bath’s annual walking festival, showcasing why the city and the surrounding area is such a fantastic walking destination.
The festival falls in September, but the team behind it work year-round to get people out enjoying the local area throughout the seasons. Here they share some tips for enjoying the Bath countryside all year round.
Autumn
Autumn is festival season in Bath - the best-known events are The Jane Austen Festival and the Bath Children’s Literature Festival. But for those looking to stretch their legs and explore the area, September’s Bathscape Walking Festival fits the bill perfectly, offering a range of free guided walks led by knowledgeable local experts.
The walk leaders will help you find the lesser-known pathways, give you an opportunity to meet the locals and to find out something new about Bath’s social history. There's also a collection of self-guided walks for you to try at any time of year, as well as fun additional activities aimed at boosting your walking prowess, including a 'map skills for beginners' workshop and more.
Image: Bathscape
As the seasons change, the mist hangs in the valleys, creating those unforgettable views across the city. And of course, autumn brings the trees in full colour. Bath City Farm, Alexandra Park and Beckford's Tower are all great spots to look over the city and enjoy the ever-changing colours, or you can enjoy the trees at one of the city's other gorgeous parks and gardens.
Image: Royal Victoria Park in the autumn
Winter
Take a break from the hubbub of the Bath Christmas Market and other shopping treats, and these same footpaths will take you to frosty meadows and misty mornings. Walking and exploring the outdoors in winter has many advantages. The quality of the light soon after sunrise, the views revealed by the still bare trees, the mellow golden afternoon sun reflecting off the warm stone.
Image: View of The Royal Crescent in snow
Seeing nature is known to improve your mood, and it’s even more important at this time of year. It’s a great time to see and experience the different shapes, bark colour and texture of trees or spot your first snowdrop. All followed by the cosy pubs, cafes and restaurants to warm up afterwards.
Spring
Spring is a lovely time to visit Bath for walking. From the centre, you can walk to the countryside in 15 to 20 minutes and enjoy views across the city.
As winter comes to an end, tree leaves will be bursting through. You’ll see willow dripping in catkins and the white flowers on blackthorn, one of the first trees to blossom. Early spring brings daffodils, and early woodland flowers like celandine and primroses. Everywhere nature is bursting into life.
April and May are full of the smell of wild garlic and carpets of bluebells, one of the highlights of an English spring, you’ll find them in our parks and woodlands. Try Beech Wood and the southern slopes of the city, near the village of Combe Down.
Image: Bluebells and wild garlic in flower
Summer
Everyone who visits Bath in the summer should take a trip to the wildflower meadows! Within a surprisingly short walk from the city centre along the National Trust's Bath Skyline route, you can quickly be amid flowers and butterflies, and look over the whole of Bath. The best time to visit is in June, but the flowers will be putting on a good show all the way through to August.
If you're after some shade, head up to the lookout in Alexandra Park following this route. You’ll be able to see the city from a different angle (it’s a steep climb up, but well worth it) before meandering through a hilltop paradise at Lyncombe Hill Fields and back through the fine residential areas of Lyncombe Vale and Widcombe, perhaps stopping at one of the cafes on Widcombe Parade at the end.
In summer you’ll see plenty of butterflies, including the marbled white, birds, bees and the meadows in full bloom. Along the canal look out for dragonflies and damselflies.
Image: The view from Alexandra Park in summer
Find out more
You can discover lots of walks in the Explore section of the Bathscape website, as well as the regular walking groups and year-round nature-based activities that they run. You can also find inspiration from listening to Bathscape's fabulous podcast, Footprints, which covers topics including walking in Bath, the city's landscape, its social history, and much more.
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