<<< POP UP WALK: Poet's Stone and wild garlic
Sun 9th Apr 2017
Walk Details:
A circular from Petersfield in Hampshire - The walk explores a beautiful part of the South Downs National Park with a pub lunch after 7 miles at The Hawkley Inn (please see website www.hawkleyinn.co.uk if you wish to pre-order food) or bring your own food to eat on the attractive village green where there are several benches.
See Petersfield’s connections with John Small; King William III; Peter the Great; and Wetherspoons !
Find out about Steep’s connection to John “Day of the Triffids” Wyndham.
The climb to the Poet’s Stone and afterwards the descent on the Hangers’ Way to Hawkley are both steep, but the spectacular 30-mile sweeping view of the South Downs rewards the effort.
After 10 miles, there will be an escape point at Liss Station – eg, the 16:29 train, with rail bus, arrives Waterloo c.18:39.
For those who wish for a longer walk, the leader will return to Petersfield Station by one of several routes aiming for either the 17:04 (Waterloo 1915) or 1724 (Waterloo 1940) c.15-17 miles in total.
Entry Details:
Walk Report
The Poet's Stone and Wild Garlic, Sunday 9th April 20179 walkers, 15 miles - leader Roderick Smith
After many requests for a Sunday walk, a group of 9 met at Petersfield Station at 10:45 for a "pop-up" walk to mark 100 years to the day since the poet, Edward Thomas, was killed in action at the Battle of Arras in WWI. The idea for the walk arose from a chat between two Committee Members, both of whom were part of the group. The originally planned 20-mile walk south and west via East Meon was discarded, and a shorter 15-17-mile route to the north was substituted when it was found that Network Rail planned an hour-long bus ride from Woking to Haslemere. After an interesting short walk through the town centre, we joined the Hangers' Way (HW) for a short distance to Steep. Both Edward Thomas and John (Day of the Triffids) Wyndham lived in Steep. Diverging from the HW we walked through wild garlic in a shaded gully up 'Little Switzerland' to the Edward Barnsley furniture workshop, and along the ridge to the top of Shoulder of Mutton hill to enjoy the dramatic view down the hill and across to the South Downs. We descended to the Poet's Stone to read Thomas's "In Memoriam" and "Adlestrop". Returning up the hill, we continued on the HW for a 40-minute lunch in Hawkley. Minor paths took us to the trackbed of the Longmoor Military Railway and Liss Station. All joined Tankerdale Lane and the Shipwrights' Way to pass the rural Harrow Inn, and back to Petersfield Station for a train to London at 5pm, arriving Waterloo 19:45. c.15 miles, >3mph moving, on a very warm, sunny day under a cloudless blue sky throughout.
Photographs by Rod Smith and Keith Lane
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