Glastonbury Tor - a sacred hill

The Tor dominates the surrounding countryside. Surprisingly, it's often not so visible in the town, for instance it is almost invisible from the Abbey, where it is hidden by the rounded bulk of Chalice Hill. It rises majestically from the Somerset Levels, and there is a symbiotic relationship between the Tor and the Chalice Well. The Tor is surmounted by the ruined tower of St Michael's Chapel.

How do you like your ascent, steep or less steep?

Many visitors to Glastonbury want to climb the Tor, and there are good views to be had over the Somerset Levels from the top. There are two routes - a steep route from Stone Down Lane approaching from the north-east, and and less steep route that starts from Wellhouse Lane very near the Chalice Well approaching from the west. The steep route ascends roughly the left-hand side in the header image here, the route from the Chalice Well ascends the right-hand side. You start from roughly 20m at the Abbey car park and the top is 158m. In summer you can take the Tor Bus from the Abbey car park. This takes you to the 100m contour at Stone Down Lane, but in penance for the short-cut you are then committed to the steep route for the remaining 50m to the top. 

The Market Cross.

From the Abbey car park take a right towards the market cross, then follow the road to the right up the High Street. That in itself is an experience, and this is your chance to get a cup of coffee, or something stronger to fortify you for the ascent. When you get to the crossroads at the top of the road turn right. A high stone wall will soon appear on the right hand side of the road, this is the wall to the Abbey gardens. You'll get to a large archway in this wall, through which you can see Abbey House. 

 

Abbey House. Note that from the road you see it through a stone arch in the wall, though there's nothing stopping you taking a snap like this through the arch. You can't get to the Abbey this way, unless you work there.

 

The steep route

Opposite this is Dod Lane going off to your left - take this. After about 120m you will come to a Y junction with a private road for Shekinashram to the right - take the private road which is also a public footpath. Go through the kissing gate at the end of the road and follow the steep footpath up through Bushy Coombe. There's a fair view over the Levels when you get to the top. The good news is you've done about half the ascent, and you get a breather on the level as you carry on, through another kissing gate and onto the minor road for about 60 metres. After that the road bends away to the left but you can carry straight on along the footpath through some trees.  

Tor in the distance by the side of the path from the top of Bushy Coombe

You're about in the place of the picture with the horse, you can see the Tor to your right, but there's still a little way to go. Pass through the gate at the end and follow the faint path across the field bearing right down towards the road in the distance. When you meet the road, turn left onto it and keep on going for 400 metres till you see the National Trust sign board and gate going towards the Tor on your left. This is where the Tor Bus would drop you off, and where you can get a ride back into town. There is only disabled parking here, and custard tarts do book people, particularly at weekends and bank holidays.

It's now a case of sticking with the path. We should be grateful for the volunteers at the National Trust who paved this path with concrete - while it may not have the ldyllic romance of grass, this track used to get a right mudbath in winter in the past. This is the steep part of the route, as you will find out. As you ascent the Tor, note the odd terracing of the slopes. 

The steep ascent. It's not normally this busy, but the people show the route. Note the terracing on the side of the Tor

The terracing is odd because there si no archaeological evidence that the upper slopes of the Tor were farmed. Geoffrey Ashe postulated that this is the remains of an ancient seven-spiral labyrinth. Kathy Jones introduced this as part of her Priestess of Avalon trainings. It takes several hours to walk the spiral, since the pilgrim is not only supposed to walk in to the centre of the spiral, getting to the top of the Tor. They are also meant to reverse their path and exit the way they came. Labyrinth walkers looking for an easier challenge may prefer the Millennium labyrinth in St John's Church in the centre of town.

The less steep route

This seems to be the more popular route, it starts from Wellhouse Lane, reached just after the Chalice Well from Chilkwell Street. It's much more straightforward to find for someone not familiar with the area because it starts almost from the main road, you don't have to follow any forks in the footpath or minor roads.

 

Carry on past Dod lane, till you get to a roundabout, and continue straight on along Chilkwell Street till you get to the Chalice Well

 

Carry on past the Chalice Well and in about 20 metres you will come to Wellhouse Lane. Turn left into the lane and the path to the Tor starts with a few tens of metres on the right-hand side. 

The view from the top

The view from the tower looking east

 Once you've reached St Michael's Tower, there are a couple of stone benches inside to rest. The view over the Levels is magnificent, and an informational sign at the trig point names the hills you can see in the distance. 

St Michael's Tower