Weston Patrick and Upton Grey - Circular
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Updated with very minor changes December 2015
This circular walk takes in the two villages of Weston Patrick and Upton Grey and can be started from a number of different points, e.g. from either of two interesting village churches, or from the Hoddington Arms in Upton Grey.
Weston Patrick is not mentioned in the Domesday Survey. But there is a very attractive twelfth Century Church of St Lawrence, with its pagoda bell turret, built of flint and stone, which is listed Grade II*. There is a poignant reminder of World War 2 in the front hedge near the gate. The Weston Patrick Conservation Area was designated in 1980 by Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council in recognition of the special architectural and historic interest of the village.
The Upton Grey Conservation Area was first designated in 1973 and extended in 1989. Upton Grey is a larger village which has 27 listed buildings, many of which are passed on your route.
At the time of the Domesday Survey there were two former Saxon manors, with a combined population of around 175. These have since merged to create Upton Grey. The manor of Upton Grey changed hands many times and from 1877 it was the seat of the Barons of Basing.
The manor-house has since become celebrated as the location of a 'lost' garden first created by Gertrude Jekyll in 1908 and now, along with the Elizabethan manor-house itself, magnificently restored. Your route passes outside the back of the garden. See Additional Info.
St Mary's Church dates from the 12th Century, with later alterations and additions. The church makes a particularly important contribution to the character of the village, due both to its intrinsic interest and prominent location on the hill.
Outside these very attractive villages, the quiet of the rural walk is only likely to be disturbed by birdsong and the sound of some seasonal agricultural activity. But your eye may well be drawn to two different signs of aircraft activity – helicopters away to the north-east and light aircraft towing gliders to the south.
RAF Odiham is still a front-line support helicopter base. The airfield at Odiham originated in 1925 as a grass runway. The site was used for flying from April to September only, reverting to grazing land for cattle and sheep during the winter. In 1937 the new RAF Odiham was opened by General Erhard Milch, Chief of Staff of the Luftwaffe! General Milch was so impressed with what he saw that he is reputed to have told Hitler: "When we conquer England, Odiham will be my Air Headquarters" and he ordered his pilots not to bomb RAF Odiham. Whether or not this story is true, the fact remains that RAF Odiham never was bombed during the war.
Wartime activities there included Free French, Belgian and Canadian training units and the station later became a PoW Reception Centre.
In 1960 RAF Odiham began operating helicopters and the mainstay of the helicopter force at Odiham between 1961-1981 was the Wessex. In 1981, their place was taken in 1982 by the Boeing Chinook helicopters which still dominate the operations there today.
The former RAF Lasham, to your west, opened in November 1942 as a fighter airfield, operating Hurricanes and Spitfires. Later it became a bomber base and from here Dutch and Polish squadrons operated alongside other RAF squadrons. The airfield closed in 1948, although MoD kept the freehold until 2001.
The airfield is now home to the world's largest gliding club, with 230 gliders, recording over 25,000 launchings in the year to October 2010. In addition, an aircraft maintenance company uses the main runway several times a week to bring in Boeing airliners for overhauls and is the largest employer in the area.
Finally, the Hoddington Arms in Upton Grey had a major facelift during 2011 and might well add to your enjoyment of the walk - see Additional Info.
England - South England - Hampshire - North Downs
Features
Birds, Church, Food Shop, Good for Kids, Great Views, Industrial Archaeology, Pub, Public Transport, Restaurant, Stately Home, Wildlife, Woodland
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