Warnford Day Walk 26th September 2018

Isabel's walk started in the village of Warnford and with several buzzards and kites wheeling above, we headed up Wheeley Down, passing some incredible sculptures on the way. We stopped for a break on Beacon Hill, with great views over the Meon Valley. We had a whole day of sunshine and a temperature just right for walking. We spent some time admiring the view up on Beacon Hill, where we could see the Isle of Wight, Southampton oil refinery as well as the forts above Portsmouth. After descending via the South Downs Way we reached Corhampton. The Saxon Corhampton Church is one of the oldest churches in Britain and was built in 1020 AD, using local flints and surprisingly stone which came from the Isle of Wight. This stone was almost certainly shipped to Droxford, a mile south, using the then navigable River Meon. The Meon Valley was highly productive with flour and other produce being shipped south to Southampton and Portsmouth. The church is also home to some very old decorations dating back to around 1150 AD and represent scenes from the life of St Swithun, who died 300 years earlier. We had lunch in the excellent Bucks Head before heading on the route of the Meonstoke Valley Railway, which used to run from Alton to Fareham. Use as a passenger line ceased in 1955 and the final goods service was in 1968. It was designed as a single track line with twin tracks at stations. It now makes an excellent walking route and took us back to Warnford. The walk was just over 7.1/2 miles