King Arthur Tour

Tour of the West Country Featuring King Arthur's Historical Locations but not excluding Interesting Sites on the Way.


There are so many extraordinary things to see on this tour. You can not see them all. Stick with what is recommended. You can always come back. Start your tour on the M3.


Actually the Arthur tour really starts at Cadbury Camelot also called Cadbury Castle, located just south of South Cadbury in Somerset. Just off the A303 a mile or two past Wincanton, but:


If you have time, the tour should start with a visit to Winchester. Which is the first capitol of Saxon England. There is a giant statue of Alfred the Great (about the year 800) the first Saxon King of England in the center of town (park there) near the Norman Cathedral which has the longest nave in Europe. See it. There is an Arthur round table near the Cathedral. Ask directions there. The M3 goes to Winchester.


From Winchester I recommend that you take the short cut to the A 30 to Salisbury and visit the Norman Cathedral there which has the highest spire in Europe and its repair by Wren is worth learning about. It almost fell down.


Then leave Salisbury take the road straight north to Amesbury 5 or 6 miles and junction with the A 303 and two miles west (left) find Stone Henge. If you haven't seen it stop for a few minutes


Then about 15 miles further west on the A 303 pass Wincanton and find Cadbury Camelot located just south of South Cadbury in Somerset. Just off the A303 a mile or two past Wincanton. At the site is a path owned by National Trust to the top of the tel. Many Arthur sites are close by. The Battle of Baden was fought at Badbury Rings some miles southwest near Poole which we will visit at the end of the tour. Cadbury Camelot is a major site and time spent here will be worth while. Archaeologists have found pottery from Tintagel in the ruins of this Camelot. Arthur was born at Tintagel Castle (later on the tour). Glastonbury Tor is less than 10 miles away, as the crow flies. It can be seen from the top of Camelot. Further by car.



Glastonbury Tor


I am not sure how long these visits will take but you should be able to make it to Glastonbury for the night. Perhaps book a B&B there and tour the town next day. There you must climb Glastonbury Tor, a mystical and magical place and visit the spring at the bottom ot the Tor where 25,000 gallons of water issues out every day. Then to town center and visit Glastonbury Abby. Arthur and Guinevere were buried there and the place is marked. Learn the legendary story about Joseph of Armethea starting the Abby after he started the church in Exeter in Cornwall. There is no other legend so it may be true and is the background of Arthur's Knights seeking the Holy Grail because Joseph (Uncle to Mary mother of Jesus) is said to have brought it there. The fact that about the year 500 they were still looking for it 400 plus years later establishes how old and how strong the word of mouth legend was. You will learn about the Dissolution under Henry VIII there. Lots to be seen in Glastonbury. Big drive tomorrow or if time drive 30 to 35 miles to Lynton the same night. Go through Minehead. Don't stop.


From Clastonbury to Lynton-Lynmouth on the Severn Estuary in N Devon. You can see Wales across the estuary. Lots of good B&B's in Lynton ranging fro $27 per person and up up. Look them up on line. Lynmouth is on the bottom of the cliff and is a harbor town. Lynton is at the top. Good hotels there. The main thing you must see is the funicular rail road connecting the two towns. Almost straight up and down and it is free or was when we were there. It is run by gravity and you will enjoy the experience of riding this phenomenal invention which has been operating every day since 1890. 120 years!


Then from Lynton find your way to Clovelly. From Lynton it is probably about 20 to 23 miles just off the A 39 south of Westward Ho and Northam. It is a must see. Many tourists will be there. Clovelly is built on the Cliff side face. It is called up and down Clovelly. There are no roads in this sizeable town with shops and restaurants etc and all shops are stocked by donkey back. No motorized vehicles. At the very bottom there is a Range Rover that will take you a circuitous route to the top for a fee. But it is a walking town and a unique English place. Cornish Pasties that will knock your eye out are sold in most villages. Nothing like them anywhere else in the world.


Continue on south from Clovelly on the A 39 about 15 miles to Tintagel the fabled home of Merlin who raised Arthur after his illegitimate birth. Look it up on line. It was near here that Uther Pendragon committed adultery with Igraine the duke of Cornwall's wife and Arthur was born of the union and raised by Merlin the sorceror. The castle is a ruin but if you don't get an eerie feeling there I will know you do not believe in ghosts. You have to do a lot of walking there and a digital camera is a must.


If you miss Bedruthen Rocks its OK but they are on the coast north of Newquay which is a good place to eat and seals are in the ocean here. But then make the rest of the journey to Penzance I am not sure how far, may be as much as 40 miles from Tintagel. Settle in at Penzance. Here you have to see Mousehole, Land's End, palm trees there. Walk the streets of St Ives too popular to miss. Then visit Michael Mount in the bay of Penzance. It is an Island accessible by walking at low tide but you may have to take a boat back. Don't miss it.


Start the day leaving Penzance and go to Looe Pool only a very few miles east. See it last when you are leaving Penzance. It is near Porthleven just east of it on the B3304. It is where excalibur went back to the Lady of the lake. The first picture in this article is of Looe Pool. You have to open and close gates on private land where there are signs but it is worth the walk. If you can't find it ask, do not miss it. All locals will know where it is. It is on the maps of UK and is a mile long lake which is separated from the ocean by a 200 yard wide causeway of sand and stone almost a mile long. Beside being an authentic Arthur location it is a geological wonder worth seeing.


This s almost the end. There is just one more stop on the Arthur tour and it is back in Dorset a long long way. You can fill in some places if you like on the way. Seeing the original church at Exeter might be one where Joseph Of Armathea is said to have begun his ministry in England, before he went to Glastonbury. (I am a believer.) And perhaps Plymouth where a replica of the Mayflower, the ship that took the first settlers to New England, is moored. Good fish restaurants in Plymouth harbor. Next stop is near Poole before Bournemouth. Follow the A 35 to the A 31 to Wimbourne Minster and junction with the B3082. and go toward Blandford Forum and Badury Rings will be half way on the right about 4 or 5 miles from Wimbourne. Badbury Rings had been inhabited as a fortress from 800 years before Christ. And it is the location of the Battle of Baden where Arthur defeated the Saxon invaders and turned them back in the early 500's which set the stage for Camelot when Arthur ruled. He ruled when and because the Romans had abandoned Britain until the overthrow of Arthur's Celts by the Saxons, aided by Mordred's foolish overthrow of Arthur. The Saxon vistories began the Anglo Saxon rule which gave England its name derived from the Angles. Badbury Rings was also where, later during Nero's reign, Vespatian and his Roman armies were stationed in Britain. It was most likely that Nero called him from there in about 68 to put down the rebellion in Jerusalem. Vespatian became Emperor before Jerusalem fell. Which event he left to his son Titus who ended the siege of Jerusalem and destroyed the Temple in 70 AD.


There are many extraordinary places and things that you will miss on this tour, like Bodman Moor, Polperro and the town of Looe really beautiful places and great beaches. But you can always go back. One of the best ways to go back is to ask my son George where and how he rents self catering cottages and get one and drive out from there to the areas near by.


All the best and let me know what you think.


Fred