Cockercombe is a hamlet within the

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

Over Stowey Over Stowey is a small village and civil parish in Somerset, South West England. A large part of the forest and open heath of the Quantock Hills is within the parish and it includes the hamlets of Plainsfield, Aley, Adscombe, Friarn and Bincomb ...

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

, England, approximately north-northwest by road from the centre of

Taunton Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England. It is a market town and has a Minster (church), minster church. Its population in 2011 was 64,621. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century priory, monastic foundation, owned by the ...

. It contains the Grade II listed Mill Cottage and a Forestry Office.

Geography and geology

Cockercombe lies in the foot of the

Quantock Hills The Quantock Hills west of Bridgwater in Somerset, England, consist of heathland, oak woodlands, ancient parklands and agricultural land. They were England's first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, designated in 1956. Natural England have desi ...

. The Cockercombe Stream flows in the vicinity. Upstream, the steam crosses between

Pepper Hill Pepper(s) may refer to: Food and spice * Piperaceae or the pepper family, a large family of flowering plants ** Black pepper ** Long pepper ** Kampot pepper * ''Capsicum'' or pepper, a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family Solanaceae ...

and Plainsfield.

Cockercombe tuff Cockercombe Tuff is a greenish-grey, hard pyroclastic rock, formed by the compression of volcanic ash containing high quantities of chlorite, which gives it its distinctive colour. It is found almost exclusively in the south-eastern end of the Qu ...

, a greenish-grey, hard

sedimentary rock Sedimentary rocks are types of rock (geology), rock formed by the cementation (geology), cementation of sediments—i.e. particles made of minerals (geological detritus) or organic matter (biological detritus)—that have been accumulated or de ...

, is only found in this area.

Landmarks

The Forestry Commission has an office in Cockercombe. Mill Cottage is a Grade II listed thatched cottage in the hamlet, which was originally built in the early 17th century. It was restored to acclaim in 1998 following a fire and has a new thatched roof. The cottage overlooks the Mill stream. The house is set in about 4.17 acres and has a wooden stable block with three stables.

Recreation

Mountain biking events are held in the area. The Cockercombe Hill Climb was hosted by Somerset Road Club on Sunday 8 September 2019.

References

{{reflist Hamlets in Somerset