Nub News has been given a guided walk along the Frome river path stretch which campaigners are fighting to keep open.

And to our delight were treated to the sight of a magnificent heron taking off from the water meadow.

Campaigners have been fighting for years to have a stretch of pathway, the Wallbridge-Adderwell route, registered as a public footpath and be formally made a right of way. This would mean that it would have to be formally re-opened so that walkers, cyclists and families can wander the path and enjoy the diverse nature.

However a developer of the land adjoining the River Frome, insists that there is no public right of way and have put up fencing to stop access.

The path in question begins on the right hand side as you head towards the Old Mill past The Retreat in Frome, and as campaigner Chloe Jones told us, the way onto the path is not that easy : " You have to do a little wiggle under a bar to access the path, be careful it can be slippy."

The path was shut off by the first developers and then when a second set of developers took on the site, it was never re-opened.

Campaigners insist that this is a permissive path - so used over decades - and should never have been closed. On the meadow alongside the path there was once a small homestead, with chickens and pigs, allotments, and even a couple of workshops used by local artists including a glass blower.

" What we are saying," explained Chloe, " is that this path is a public right of way as of use. It has been used consistently for over 20 years so it matches the criteria of a right of way of use. We have sent in photographs to prove this and the path is on an old Ordnance Survey Map, but it is not on the current one."

They have an application in with the Secretary of State to have the path - which leads to a stunning water meadow - registered and are now half way into the six week deadline within which Somerset County Council must respond as to why the path is not listed.

The team have aerial photos from the 90s which show a path on the land, but the developers continue to insist that this is not a public right of way and that people should not be using it.

" If Somerset do say there is no legal right of way, we can appeal, we can challenge and use other channels, or if they do say there is a path, it can take 18 months to get it registered. So we need to protect it while that happens.

" We want to raise awareness and show as much support as possible to keep this path open. We want to make sure that Mendip say that any planning on this site DOES take account of this path and the path is kept open."

Campaigners have an exhibition about the path at Silk Mill studios September 4-6 with photos and talks from the campaigners and Friends of the River Frome.

Chloe herself runs a business Earth, Mother Energy, which is all about connecting children back to nature, teaching them about eco systems and the environment so her passion is contagious.

" I think it is not just about being a nice path to protect. This is a green corridor in Frome, which has a thriving eco system. At the moment in the world we are losing so much nature, and it is truly important to keep places like this. There have been otters spotted here which are obviously a protected species, kingfishers, water voles, slow worms... and in Frome people have really enjoyed using the river for their well being, especially during recent months.

" We have lots of medicinal plants which grow down here as well, like Mug-wort, St Johns Wort and Elderberry. This area is providing such a rich environment for wildlife and plants." Chloe adds: "Please do join the campaign, We will be organising a walk down here.. we just want know what about nature inspires people and helps people.. and for that reason we want to protect it."

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