|
|
Post by spindrift on Jun 7, 2010 13:30:32 GMT
We went for a wander in Hampshire last Saturday. It was a glorious day. We drove to an area where Hampshire borders the counties of Dorset and Wiltshire. The river in my pictures is a tributary of the river Avon. Although in the past I had visited the village of Alderholt many times (my father-in-law lived there) yet I had never driven down a side road that leads to Alderholt Mill, perfectly preserved and in working order and on the site of a 13th century mill. The mill-wheel is at the back of the building and in a private garden so I could not access it to take a picture.  The owner (the miller) was dressed in his white milling clothes and serves cream teas to passersby. It couldn't be more idyllic, could it? There are plenty of unseen trout swimming in the pristine water.  Over the road the miller has his vegetable garden and shed  My companion dragged me away to walk up on nearby Milton Down which overlooks the three counties.  The Down is used for cross-country competitions and/or hunting. I saw many jumps next to high gates.   I am looking forward to my next walk as my friend seems to know all the highways and by-ways of Hampshire  |
|
|
|
Post by bixaorellana on Jun 7, 2010 16:16:12 GMT
It's a working mill?! So the bread that's for sale is from flour actually ground on site? Wonderful!
The mill grounds are delightful, but what really transported me are the vistas you show ~~ those shades of green, the rolling terrain, the dark hedgerows, the misty distances ~~ *sigh*
What is the large white patch in the 3rd photo of the Milton Down series?
|
|
|
|
Post by spindrift on Jun 8, 2010 8:51:43 GMT
Thanks Bixa. The large white patch is chalk. Only a few millimetres under the grass there is more or less solid chalk! And lots of flints. Flints, in Hampshire, have been used to build houses and walls for donkeys' years. As far as I know most of Hampshire is composed of chalk. The area is famous for its chalk streams trout fishing, some of the best and most expensive in england. There were huge chunks of chalk lying around on top of the grass at Milton Down.
And yes, the mill is a working mill. It has been completely restored. I was struck by how quiet the mill-wheel was as I've heard very noisy ones in Switzerland. The miller takes in locally grown wheat/grain and it is ground in the mill and then either baked as bread (I'm eatine some now) or sold as stoneground flour.
|
|
|
|
Post by hwinpp on Jun 8, 2010 8:55:48 GMT
Miller and baker all in one, pretty good.
I love your photo essays, to me they're always so English!
|
|
|
|
Post by spindrift on Jun 8, 2010 9:26:48 GMT
Thanks, hwinpp.
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 8, 2010 11:42:21 GMT
Wonderful Pictures, as always, Spindrift!
I do envy you for all the different places you see around England, (and the world), and on such a regular basis. Good for you.
The English countryside has that certain something, a mystical quality. Thanks for sharing these.
|
|
|
|
Post by bixaorellana on Jun 8, 2010 16:28:14 GMT
Looking at the pics again, I noticed the charming flowerpot man in the first one. Hee hee!
Speaking of which, isn't there a giant figure of a man carved into the chalk landscape somewhere in England? Is it in Hampshire?
How do people grow stuff in that chalky ground? Are there such things as chalk mines? I wonder if the advent of the white marking boards has hurt the chalk industry.
I know ~~ lots of questions, but this is all so interesting. One more question, please: you say the mill is from the 13th century. Any idea of the age of the building in the first picture, and of its history?
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 8, 2010 17:04:58 GMT
Lovely, Spindrift. I don't know why so many people think that England is overcrowded. Looks like there is plenty of room to me!
|
|
|
|
Post by onlymark on Jun 8, 2010 19:03:25 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by spindrift on Jun 8, 2010 22:36:12 GMT
Bixa - I should have picked up a leaflet from the mill. There was a notice on the wall and it said that a mill has been in that place since the 13th century. I imagine the building dates back to the 18th or 19th century.
When we were farming in Hampshire we had a good depth of earth on top of the chalk but I noticed on the Downs that the chalk was just under the soil. I seem to remember that farmers sometimes spread chalk on their land to 'sweeten' the soil; perhaps they would do this if animals have used the field for a long time.
I don't know about chalk mines.... but I do know that in many Hampshire fields there are deep dells scattered here and there. These might have been formed when chalk was dug out of them. I shall have to ask around and inform myself about chalk.
|
|
|
|
Post by fumobici on Jun 9, 2010 2:22:51 GMT
Can't be too old, he's got a banana in his pocket. |
|
|
|
Post by onlymark on Jun 9, 2010 4:11:15 GMT
Or maybe just happy to see you.
|
|
|
|
Post by bazfaz on Jun 9, 2010 7:55:45 GMT
Lovely photos. The only place I know around there is Itchen Abbas where years ago I used to stay in the inn. Theree were a lot of watercress beds round there. You could catch a little train called the Watercress Express which connected with the main line to London.
|
|
|
|
Post by spindrift on Jun 9, 2010 9:04:02 GMT
You and Mrs Baz are invited to stay with me and I'll show you around Hampshire |
|
