Take a stroll between Watercress Line stations in Mid Hampshire.
Running through beautiful Hampshire countryside, the Mid Hants Railway, known as The Watercress Line, is one of the most successful heritage railways in the country. The line first opened in 1865, and although it survived the Beeching cuts of the 1960s it was thereafter closed by British Rail in 1973. A preservation society was formed and thanks to the work of dedicated volunteers and enthusiasts the Mid Hants Railway was re-opened to visitors as a heritage railway in 1977. It initially ran from Alresford to Ropley, with the line later extended via Medstead & Four Marks Station to Alton, a distance of 10 miles in total. In the past it was used to transport quantities of locally grown watercress (Alresford was the centre of the watercress industry) to London’s Covent Garden market, which gave it its nickname.
Train tickets allow you to hop on and off all day with unlimited travel, and there are special events throughout the year, such as the Autumn Steam Gala (October 6-8 this year). The Watercress Line is an ideal family day out with much to see and do for everyone. For those who want to stretch their legs and explore some of the surrounding countryside on foot, sections of St Swithun’s Way, a 34-mile waymarked route between Winchester and Farnham in Surrey, can be followed, since the route connects Alresford and Alton, with short linking paths to the two other stations along the way, Ropley and Medstead & Four Marks. This linear walk links these last two. As well as The Watercress Line, there are also bus services.
Ropley Station, notable for its topiary, which is over 130 years old, is the engineering hub of the Watercress Line and well worth looking round. As well as the carriage restoration and loco shed viewing galleries there is the King’s Cross footbridge (used in Harry Potter films, dismantled, and removed from King’s Cross in 2008), a miniature railway, children’s playground, a restored ticket office and a representation of a typical station master’s parlour. Most of those who work on the line – station staff, guards, signalmen and locomotive crews – are volunteers. Right next to Ropley station are Watercress Lodges & Campsite, an ideal base for a short stay (or longer). Each of the lodges is named after a station on the line.
Medstead & Four Marks Station (originally known just as Medstead) is the highest station on the railway and due to the gradient either side, journeying through it is sometimes described as ‘going over the Alps’. Here you can visit the ‘Delivering the Goods’ exhibition about goods handling on the railway. There are pay and display car parks at Alresford and Alton stations and parking is also available at Ropley station and Four Marks.
THE ROUTE
1. (SU630324) From Ropley Station head to the entrance shared with Watercress Lodges & Campsite, turn right at the road (Bighton Hill) and cross the bridge. Fork left at a footpath fingerpost and follow the path diagonally downhill to the A31. Cross with care and continue along Gascoigne Lane on the opposite side to the right. Follow this for a short distance to a kissing gate on the right. Continue across the field and at a crossing path keep straight ahead to the far corner. Go through a gap into the recreation ground and keep along the right-hand side to a gap in the fence, turning left along the lane past Ropley Parish Hall and its car park. Keep ahead passing the primary school then Courtyard village shop both on the right.
2. (SU645319) Just after the shop is an entrance to the churchyard of St Peter’s Church on the left. A visit to the church is well worthwhile. St Peter’s was severely damaged by fire in 2014, but has been beautifully rebuilt and restored, thanks to the great generosity and expertise of the locals. It reopened in August 2022. Return to the road and turn left for another 200 yards along Church Street (a Conservation Area) passing a turning on the right, then another on the left. Just beyond this, next to the village pond, you’ll see a fingerpost on the left with a St Swithun’s Way (SSW) waymark. The discs have an image of a shell – a common symbol of pilgrimage - over two crossing crosiers, representing St Swithun (Bishop of Winchester in the 9th century) and St Thomas Becket (Archbishop of Canterbury in the 12th century).
3. (SU648319) Turn left soon entering a field and continue along the left-hand side to the bottom corner. Keep ahead across the next field to a kissing gate and fork left, continuing to follow St Swithun’s Way (SSW). The path continues north-east across fields descending gently to reach Andrew’s Lane next to a large cream-coloured house. Turn left to the road junction.
4. (SU654326) Go straight across and continue up the field edge to Old Down Wood. SSW is waymarked keeping briefly ahead, then right through the wood, but you can also turn immediately right along the wood edge, the path re-joining the waymarked one. Keep following SSW through the wood, then go straight across a field.
5. (SU666331) Cross Kitwood Road to Kitwood Lane and continue along SSW to left of latter. Path follows wide grassy field edges to Hawthorn Road. Cross it and carry on initially right alongside it, then in a north-east direction. Bear left at a junction to reach Garthowen Garden Centre, passing the car park on the right.
6. (SU676346) At the road (Alton Lane) the walk parts company with SSW. Cross and continue along the path to the right of the house. Cross another road and continue to the A31 at Four Marks. Turn left for just under 200 yards, then right up Station Approach to Medstead & Four Marks Station. For the car park stay on the A31, turning left just before the garage, then right.
COMPASS POINTS
Start/finish: Ropley Station (SU630324)
Map: OS Explorer OL32
Distance: 5 miles (8.1km)
Terrain: Field paths following waymarked St Swithun’s Way
Time: 2½ - 3 hours.
Refreshments: Coffee Room, next to the village shop, Ropley; Coffee Shop, Garthowen Garden Centre
Public transport: Watercress Line, watercressline.co.uk. Stagecoach bus 64 from Winchester to Alton via Ropley Dean and Four Marks, stagecoachbus.com.
