Conkwell

Midford Brook is a small river in Somerset, England. It is formed by the convergence of the Wellow Brook and Cam Brook at Midford. It passes Tucking Mill and joins the River Avon close to the Dundas Aqueduct and the remains of the Somerset Coal Canal. For its entire length it defines the boundary between Bath & North East Somerset and Wiltshire.Although the Midford Brook is named on Ordnance Survey maps, the Environment Agency does not recognise it, instead identifying the Wellow Brook as continuing to the Avon.The Midford Brook has a catchment area of 147.4 km2 which is largely over impermeable Lias. The deep steep-sided valley means that it responds rapidly to rainfall.

Dundas Aqueduct (grid reference ST785625) carries the Kennet and Avon Canal over the River Avon (the Somerset / Wiltshire border) and the Wessex Main Line railway from Bath to Westbury. The aqueduct is near Monkton Combe, Somerset, and is about 2+1⁄2 miles (4 km) southeast of the city of Bath. It was designed by John Rennie and chief engineer John Thomas between 1797 and 1801, and completed in 1805. James McIlquham was appointed contractor. It is named after Charles Dundas, the first chairman of the Kennet and Avon Canal Company. The aqueduct is 150 yards (137.2 m) long with three arches built of Bath Stone, with Doric pilasters, and balustrades at each end. The central semi-circular arch spans 64 feet (19.5 m); the two oval side arches span 20 feet (6.1 m).The canal crosses back across the Avon and the railway on another aqueduct at Avoncliff. This diversion onto the right bank of the Avon avoids the steep sides of the river valley at Limpley Stoke, and the need to cross the Midford Brook and River Frome. It is a Grade I listed building, and was the first canal structure to be designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument in 1951. Over many years, leaks had developed and the aqueduct was closed in 1954. For a while in the 1960s and 1970s, the canal was dry and it was possible to walk along the bed on each side of the river, as well as through the aqueduct itself. The aqueduct was relined with polythene and concrete and restored, reopening in 1984. Care was taken not to disturb a colony of bats living under the aqueduct. The aqueduct is also the junction between the Kennet and Avon Canal and the largely derelict Somerset Coal Canal. The short stretch of the Somerset Coal Canal still in water forms Brassknocker Basin, used for boat moorings, cycle hire and a cafe, and is next to Dundas Wharf where the small tollhouse, warehouse and crane still stand. The stretch of river below and above the aqueduct is used by Monkton Combe School Boat Club (Monkton Bluefriars) up to six days a week, since at least the 1960s. At the opposite (Wiltshire) end of the aqueduct a wharf was constructed serving the Conkwell stone quarries.Between 2002 and 2004 further restoration was undertaken, which included replacing engineering bricks used by GWR with Bath Stone to match the original work. In 2015, the railway below the aqueduct was lowered to allow the route to be used as a diversionary route for freight trains in the future. Network Rail published a time-lapse video of the work.

Inwood, Warleigh (grid reference ST800633) is a 56.9 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Wiltshire, notified in 1988. Although the nearest village is Warleigh in Somerset, the site is in the parish of Monkton Farleigh in Wiltshire.

The Kennet and Avon Canal is a waterway in southern England with an overall length of 87 miles (140 km), made up of two lengths of navigable river linked by a canal. The name is used to refer to the entire length of the navigation rather than solely to the central canal section. From Bristol to Bath the waterway follows the natural course of the River Avon before the canal links it to the River Kennet at Newbury, and from there to Reading on the River Thames. In all, the waterway incorporates 105 locks. The two river stretches were made navigable in the early 18th century, and the 57-mile (92 km) canal section was constructed between 1794 and 1810. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the canal gradually fell into disuse after the opening of the Great Western Railway. In the latter half of the 20th century the canal was restored in stages, largely by volunteers. After decades of dereliction and much restoration work, it was fully reopened in 1990. The Kennet and Avon Canal has been developed as a popular heritage tourism destination for boating, canoeing, fishing, walking and cycling, and is also important for wildlife conservation.

Warleigh Weir is a river structure located on the River Avon in Somerset, near Bath. The weir was originally built to supply a head of water to a grist mill in Claverton. The weir was subsequently raised by a height of 12 inches between 1809 and 1813 as part of the construction program for the Claverton Pumping Station, which sits on the site of the old grist mill.The weir is accessed from the adjacent island which is created from the bifurcation of the river running to the Claverton Pumping station and the main flow of the River Avon. The weir and the bridge to the island are both owned by the Canal and River Trust.

Claverton Pumping Station in the village of Claverton, in the English county of Somerset, pumps water from the River Avon to the Kennet and Avon Canal using power from the flow of the river. It is a Grade I listed building, having been upgraded from Grade II in 2019.The pumping station was built by John Rennie between 1809 and 1813 to overcome water supply problems on the canal. It uses a 24-foot (7 m) wide wooden breastshot water wheel to drive two Boulton and Watt 18-foot (5 m) long cast iron rocking beams, which power lift pumps to raise water 48 feet (15 m) up to the canal. The pumping station has undergone several modifications since its initial construction, including revising the wheel into two sections each 12 feet (3.7 m) wide separated by a 9-inch (23 cm) gap. The station's operational life ended in 1952, by which time its maintenance and repair had become uneconomical in the light of falling traffic on the canal. In the 1960s and 1970s restoration was carried out by students from the University of Bath and the Kennet and Avon Canal Trust, who replaced and repaired the buildings and equipment and returned the pumping station to a functional state by 1978. It is now owned by the Canal and River Trust and maintained by the Claverton Pumping Station Trust CIO, open to the public as an industrial heritage museum.

Winsley Mines (grid reference ST795607) is a 1.48 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest, near the village of Winsley in Wiltshire, England, notified in 1989. The site is a hibernation roost for the Greater Horseshoe bat, and forms part of the Bath and Bradford-on-Avon Bats Special Area of Conservation.

Claverton is a small village and civil parish about 2 miles (3 km) east of Bath at the southern end of the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, in Somerset, England. The parish has a population of 115.

The American Museum and Gardens (formerly American Museum in Britain) is a museum of American art and culture based at Claverton, near Bath, England. Its world-renowned collections of American furniture, quilts and folk art are displayed in a Grade I listed 19th-century house, surrounded by gardens overlooking the valley of the River Avon.

Winsley is a large village and civil parish about 2 miles (3 km) west of Bradford on Avon in Wiltshire, England. The parish includes the hamlets of Conkwell, Turleigh, Little Ashley and Great Ashley.

Limpley Stoke railway station is a former railway station in Limpley Stoke, Wiltshire, England, UK. The station was originally started by the Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway, which was bought by the Great Western Railway before service started. The station served as a loading point for limestone from nearby quarries until 1960. Two camping coaches were positioned here by the Western Region from 1956 to 1957. The station closed in 1966, and the building is now in private hands. The line remains open, and has regular passenger service.

Freshford railway station is a railway station serving the village of Freshford, Bath and North East Somerset, England. It also serves the nearby village of Limpley Stoke in Wiltshire. The station has two platforms and is served by Great Western Railway. For many years the station had a notable flower garden maintained by the Vaisey sisters. This later faded but in 2007 local residents renovated the garden and planted new flowers in the memory of the Vaisey sisters. A few weeks later staff from Network Rail cut down all the flowers.In February 2006, Platform 2 at Freshford was raised by 30 cm to reduce the large stepping gap between the train and the platform. It had been lowered in 1988 as part of the realignment of the track through the station to allow trains to pass at a faster speed. At the same time the platform was raised, the station also received additional improvements including better lighting and the construction of a new waiting shelter.