One of my favourite local places is Roche Abbey, just on the other side of town, around a 20-30 minute drive, depending on traffic.
What I like about the place is that it's local, but it's so peacful there. I could just sit there all day, hearing the water flowing, the birds singing etc, it's a gorgeous place, and yet, another place I would have loved to have seen in it's prime.
The abbey was founded way back in 1147 as a Cistercian order. Around 1175, in the abbey's peak there was around 50 monks and about a 100 lay brothers and servants.
If you would like to read more about the Abbey, click here for the English Heritage website.
This lovely looking building is the way in to the Abbey (without climbing a fence lol). There's also the English Heritage gift shop in here.
Walking around the abbey (on the outside of the fence), you walk through a little bit of woodland, and as you get to the top of the hill, you are presented with some stepping stones, great for kids and not difficult to cross.
Just below the stepping stones is this little waterfall, and above it is a little dam, which was used by the Abbey (as far as I know).
To the left of the streem is a bench, I love to sit here and watch the world go by, this is my contemplation area, as mentioned before, just hearing the water and the birds singing is fantastic, relaxing and certainly clears the head on those down days.
If you are in the area, it's certainly worth a visit, although be aware of the road down to the parking area, as it's only a single track road, so caution is advised.
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