VOLUNTEERS from the National Trust have breathed new life into a centuries-old dry stone wall, stretching 75 metres along Back Lane in Selworthy, on the picturesque Holnicote Estate in Somerset. 

The project started a year ago, with a team of seven committed volunteers working through the seasons. The wall was strewn with holes and covered up by neighbouring overhanging trees, which had to be carefully pruned.

Beyond aesthetics, the newly-restored wall serves a practical purpose, with livestock now able to be moved safely between fields. 

Back Lane, once a bustling thoroughfare for villagers from Allerford and Bossington, now winds its way through the heart of the Holnicote Estate. Generations have trodden this path, once the main route for local parishioners to attend Selworthy’s distinctive white church. 

The Acland family, former owners of the estate, would traverse this very lane, which linked the formal gardens of Holnicote House to the woods and the more wild, wider estate. Today it is a busy footpath for walkers exploring this corner of Exmoor National Park. 

From the vantage point of Back Lane, Porlock Vale stretches out below. On the horizon, Dunkery Beacon stands sentinel - the highest point in Somerset. 

Aislinn Mottahedin-Fardo, National Trust ranger on the Holnicote Estate, hopes the redeveloped wall will now “stand for many years to come.”

She said: “The completion of the wall is a terrific achievement by the Holnicote Walling Group and a testament to their hard-work, knowledge and skill.

“The group have been involved in the restoration and repair of countless miles of walls across the estate, including the Selworthy wall which stretches 3.5km from Selworthy Church to Bossington, and acts as a barrier for livestock grazing the woods and Bossington Hill.

“It has been fantastic to see the development of the wall over the year and I'm sure it'll stand for many years for people and nature to enjoy.” 

Walling volunteers Alistair and Gill Campbell, who have been involved in the project, said: “Our latest walling team project, restoring the dry stone wall in Back Lane, has been challenging and rewarding in equal part.

“When we started the wall was in a very poor state and, when the farmer was driving his sheep along the lane, the sheep often decided that climbing the wall was more fun than staying in the lane.

“Now, the wall is fully stock proof and looks splendid. We've carefully added some plants like navelwort back into the wall face and within a few years visitors will never know that it is a recent restoration.” 

Holnicote’s dry stone walls are valuable habitats for wildlife providing shelter and warmth. Bird's nests and vole runs are frequently found along them and they are also home to mosses, lichens and wildflowers such as pennywort, primroses and foxgloves. 

To find out more about volunteering for the National Trust on the Holnicote Estate, get in touch with the team by emailing [email protected]