Watership Down
Kingsclere
Children will enjoy watching the movie and then spotting the locations they recognise in the landscape of the North Wessex Downs.
The view over The Warren from Stubbington Down - “Come and look! You can see the whole world up here”
The Basics
Time: 40 minutes each way
Distance: 2.1 km / 1.3 miles each way
Terrain: A gravelled track with a gentle incline.
Pushchairs: It might be a bit bumpy on the stones, and there is a gentle incline, but most pushchairs should manage it.
Dogs: Dogs are welcome on this walk.
Refreshments: There are no refreshments on this walk, but the grassy area near the car park seems to be a popular place for a picnic.
Toilets: There are no public toilets.
Public Transport: There is no public transport to this location.
Parking: White Hill/Stubbington Down car park (Postcode: RG26 5UD - W3W: ///variously.rigid.buck)
The Gallops overlooking Watership Down
Children of the late sevetnties/early eighties may have somewhat vivid memories of watching the film adaptation of Richard Adams’ famous book. But they may not realise that Watership Down is a real place in the North Hampshire Downs. Whilst you take in the views on this walk, you can pick out locations such as Nuthanger Farm where the caged rabbits lived and the beech tree whereunder they finally found a safe warren of their own.
The Route
On a boiling hot June day, we decided to keep our walk simple and completed a linear walk from White Hill car park, over the Gallops, with views of the North Wessex Downs National Landscape. It would be possible to walk up to the downs on footpaths from Kingsclere if you wanted something more challenging, or you could extend this route to Ladle Hill if you want something longer. For those who really want to stretch their legs, our route is actually only a snippet of the 24 mile Watership Down Trail, a long-distance walk starting in Whitchurch.
Begin your linear walk by exiting the car park back to the road and then crossing the road with care. On the opposite side, you will see a gate, which you should go through.
We followed the wide, gravelled track as it made its way across the downs and over The Gallops, an area where race horses are trained.
Along the way, you will have amazing views on all sides, but the ones to your right are the ones that contain locations from the movie. You may be able to spot Nuthanger Farm for instance, where the fierce dog and cat terrorised the rabbits, or the River Test, where the rabbits used the boat to make their way to safety.
One of the most significant landmarks was the beech tree under whose branches the rabbits found the safety of the new warren. Unfortunately, this tree was torn down in a storm a few years ago, but a new one has been planted to replace it with a plaque in memory of Richard Adams.
There is a footpath about half way along on your right that goes across The Gallops, we took a little diversion down here for good views of Watership Down. You could continue along this path all the way to Kingsclere if you wanted.
We chose to turn back at the end of The Gallops, where the path narrowed tightly and began to descend.
The grassy area near the road/car park appears to be a popular place for people to bring a picnic and enjoy the views.
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Did you know?
Richard Adams originally came up with the story for Watership Down as a way of entertaining his two daughters in the car. They begged him for a story and his response began, “Once upon a time there were two rabbits, called eh, let me see, Hazel and Fiver, and I'm going to tell you about some of their adventures…”
If you enjoyed this walk…
…try this one on Beacon Hill overlooking Highclere (Downton Abbey), as this is another walk that celebrates the views of the North Wessex Downs
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