Smitten Corner Trail Junction – Littlebredy Cricket Pavilion loop from Abbotsbury
Smitten Corner Trail Junction – Littlebredy Cricket Pavilion loop from Abbotsbury
5.0
(2)
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hikers
Smitten Corner Trail Junction – Littlebredy Cricket Pavilion loop from Abbotsbury
03:27
11.8km
320m
Hiking
Moderate hike. Good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels. The starting point of the route is accessible with public transport.
Last updated: July 16, 2026
Tips
Your route passes through a protected area
Please check local regulations for:
Waypoints
Start point
Bus stop
Get Directions
229 m
William Weare and the Haunted Pews of St Peter's Church
Highlight • Religious Site
William Weare, who died in 1675, was a committed Royalist during the English Civil War. According to local legend, he harbored a peculiar death wish: he desired to be buried "neither in the church nor outside it."
A long time ago, during a fierce winter storm, the church bells began to ring completely on their own in the dead of night. The local vicar, thinking it was pranksters, marched up to the heavy wooden doors. But when he pushed them open, the church was completely empty, bathed in an eerie, pale blue light. Sitting in the pews were not people, but the shimmering phantoms of old smugglers who had used the churchyard to hide their illegal casks of brandy years before. As the vicar gasped, the phantom crew raised a silent toast to the altar, and the bells abruptly stopped. When the sun rose, the local blacksmith went to check the bell tower and found the massive iron clappers rusted solid—meaning they couldn't have made a sound by human hands.
Tip by
2.68 km
Hardy Monument
Highlight • Monument
The monument is managed by the National Trust and, for a small fee, you can walk the stairs inside to reach the viewing tower at the top. There's a car park here, some benches and often an ice cream van.
Tip by
3.07 km
Smitten Corner Trail Junction
Highlight • Viewpoint
Hardy's Monument lies mere moments up the road, as do far-reaching views, pockets of woodland, a sculpture area and Neolithic burial chambers.
Tip by
6.41 km
Littlebredy Cricket Pavilion
Highlight • Viewpoint
Tip by
8.75 km
The Moot Stone
Highlight • Historical Site
Appearance: It is a large, unassuming stone. Because it is essentially a boundary marker, it is quite easy to miss unless you are specifically looking for it while walking the ridgeway trails. Purpose: The name suggests that this was the site where the people of the Uggescombe Hundred would gather to "moot"—or hammer out—local legal and administrative matters. Though it would have been a very exposed and "draughty" place for a meeting, its location was likely chosen for its prominence and centrality to the surrounding parishes.
Tip by
9.24 km
View of Rolling Hills and the Coast in Dorset National Landscape
Highlight • Viewpoint
Tip by
11.8 km
End point
Bus stop
Way Types & Surfaces
Way Types
5.77 km
3.35 km
2.32 km
295 m
< 100 m
Surfaces
4.47 km
2.65 km
2.64 km
1.71 km
218 m
149 m
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Elevation
Highest point (230 m)
Lowest point (60 m)
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Weather
Powered by Foreca
Thursday 16 July
26°C
16°C
14 %
Additional weather tips
Max wind speed: 19.0 km/h
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Our route recommendations are based on thousands of hikes, rides, and runs completed by other people on komoot.
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