Blue Anchor railway station

Blue Anchor is a seaside village, in the parish of Old Cleeve, close to Carhampton in Somerset, England. The village takes its name from a 17th-century inn; the bay, Blue Anchor Bay, was previously known as Cleeve Bay. The bay and inn were the subjects of a watercolour by J. M. W. Turner in 1818, now in the Lady Lever Gallery, Port Sunlight. The village marks one end of the Blue Anchor to Lilstock Coast Site of Special Scientific Interest along which the Triassic cliffs have geological interest for the variety of fossils. The coloured alabaster found in the cliffs gave rise to the name of the colour "Watchet Blue". The village lies on the route of the West Somerset Coast Path and Celtic Way Exmoor Option. Blue Anchor railway station is a station on the West Somerset Railway, a heritage railway in Somerset. It is situated in the village and houses the museum of the West Somerset Steam Railway Trust. Within the village is the only example of an updraught brick kiln known to have survived in Somerset. It was built around 1830, supplied by small vessels carrying limestone to the small culm landing, and is now used as a garage. The kiln is thought to have been used until the 1870s when the large-scale production of bricks in Bridgwater rendered small brickyards uneconomic. Marshwood farmhouse dates from the late 15th century and was originally a manor house or grange. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II* listed building. Coincidentally there is another Blue Anchor Inn directly north across the Bristol Channel in East Aberthaw, The Vale of Glamorgan.

Blue Anchor to Lilstock Coast SSSI (grid reference ST033435 to grid reference ST195462) is a 742.8 hectare geological Site of Special Scientific Interest between Blue Anchor and Lilstock in Somerset, notified in 1971. It provides an outstanding series of sections through the Early Jurassic Lower Lias, spanning the Hettangian and Pliensbachian Stages and named the "Lilstock Formation". This sequence and the good Rhaetian succession beneath are repeatedly affected by faulting, making it of interest to geologists and fossil hunters. It also displays coastal geomorphology which demonstrates a particularly well-developed series of intertidal shore platforms varying in width from about 200-600m. The cliff and beach are rich in reptile remains, including complete skeletons. Lilstock also yields ammonites, shells and fish remains. A unique specimen of an ichthyosaur, named Excalibosaurus costini McGowan, 1986 in which the lower jaw is shorter than the upper was found in the Lower Jurassic Sinemurian Stage, Lower Lias beds on the foreshore at Lilstock and is now in the Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery. The Triassic cliffs have geological interest for the variety of fossils. The coloured alabaster found in the cliffs gave rise to the name of the colour "Watchet Blue". It is on the West Somerset Coast Path.

Withycombe is a village, civil parish, and former manor 2.5 miles (4 km) south east of Dunster, and 5 miles (8 km) from Minehead within the Exmoor National Park in Somerset, England. The parish includes the village of Rodhuish. The manor house of the manor of Withycombe survives as Sandhill Farm.

The River Avill is a small river on Exmoor in Somerset, England. It rises on the eastern slopes of Dunkery Beacon and flows north through Timberscombe and Dunster flowing into the Bristol Channel at Dunster Beach. It runs South-West of Minehead, and North of Taunton. The Gallox Bridge in Dunster dates from the 15th century. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building and Scheduled Ancient Monument. It is a narrow stone packhorse bridge, on the southern outskirts of Dunster, with two arches over the River Avill. It was originally known as Gallows Bridge and has a roadway width of 1.2 metres (3.9 ft), a total width of 1.9 metres (6.2 ft) and is 13.5 metres (44.3 ft) long. The river then skirts Dunster New Park surrounding Dunster Castle. Near to Dunster Beach the stream is crossed by a bridge on the West Somerset Railway. The river was part of the inspiration for the hymn All Things Bright and Beautiful.

Chapel Cleeve Manor is a Grade II* listed building in Chapel Cleeve, Somerset, England. It started life in the 1450s as a pilgrims' hostel. The building was enlarged in the 19th and 20th centuries when it was a private house and then a hotel.

Carhampton is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, 4 miles (6.4 km) to the east of Minehead. Carhampton civil parish stretches from the Bristol Channel coast inland to Exmoor. The parish has a population of 865 (2011 census).

Old Cleeve is a village 5 miles (8 km) south east of Minehead in Somerset, England, and also a civil parish. The civil parish of Old Cleeve covers an area of 2,092 hectares (5,170 acres) and includes the villages of Old Cleeve, Roadwater and Washford as well as hamlets such as Bilbrook, Chapel Cleeve, Golsoncott and Leighland Chapel. Approximately half the parish lies within the Exmoor National Park. The remaining half is on the southern edge of Exmoor. The village has been in existence since the early 13th century. The village held its first council meeting in 1711. By the 1720s the parish had several churches, in which to meet. The town hall was built in 1727. The first church here was built in 1694, built by the Eastern Christian Society. This church was destroyed in a fire in 1847, and has been rebuilt and restored. In 2011, the population of the parish was 1,672.

The Anglican Church of St Bartholomew in Rodhuish, Somerset, England was built in the 15th century. It is a Grade II* listed building.

Dunster railway station is near Dunster, Somerset, England and is on the West Somerset Railway, a heritage railway.

Washford railway station is a station on the West Somerset Railway, a heritage railway in England. The station is situated in the village of Washford, which is itself within the civil parish of Old Cleeve in the county of Somerset.

The Yarn Market in Dunster, Somerset, England was built in the early 17th century. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building and scheduled monument. Dunster was an important market place in the Middle Ages particularly following the construction of Dunster Castle and the establishment of the Priory Church of St George. The market cross was probably built in 1609 by the Luttrell family who were the local lords of the manor to maintain the importance of the village as a market, particularly for wool and cloth. It still bears the damage caused by cannon fire in the Civil War. Nearby was an older cross known as the Butter Cross which has subsequently been moved to the outskirts of the village. The Yarn Market is an octagonal building constructed around a central pier. The tiled roof provides shelter from the rain.

The Luttrell Arms in Dunster, Somerset, England was built in the late 15th century and is located in the centre of the medieval town of Dunster. The building has been designated as a Grade II* listed building since 22 May 1969. The original building has been enlarged over the years by addition of further wings. It is now used as a hotel.