Winchester Circular, 15 June

Train:

Waterloo 9.05; Clapham Junction 9.12; arr Winchester 10.05 (Buy return tickets to Winchester)

The walk:

This is a varied and vigorous walk of 11 miles. There are two climbs, one in the morning and  an optional one in the afternoon. There are options for the afternoon which would shorten the walk to  6 or 7 miles.  There is a drop-out point at Shawford to get the hourly train back to Winchester. 

Other attractions are the afternoon tea at St Cross (timings permitting) and the possibility of joining evensong in the Cathedral at 5.30 pm.

To make the most of the day I suggest that you bring picnic snacks and drinks and that we picnic just before reaching Shawford and go into the Bridge pub for drinks/ loo stop. The pub seems to be very popular and I do not think we will have time for a relaxed lunch there.  

We will walk briskly through ancient Winchester through the Cathedral Cloisters to the river Itchen and follow it across the meadows and up to St Catherine’s Hill. We then enter the valley of Twyford Down before crossing the Motorway,  then circumnavigating a wheat field and  a golf course back down the Itchen.

I will consult at lunchtime on the itinerary for the afternoon. The full walk goes ‘ up and over’ the hill behind Winchester then back down to the almshouses at St Cross and tea, it is also possible to walk along the river directly to St Cross.  After tea we will walk back into the City  across the meadows. 

Practical Details:

Please use loos on the train if possible so we can make a swift exit from the Station.

Please bring poles if you usually use them,  they will help with any overgrown sections we may encounter.

Bring snacks/ lunch/ water/ something to sit on at lunchtime.

Leader:  Sue C