Visit Wickham Water Meadows and walk a loop around the start of the Meon Valley Trail.
The old train abandoned track is a stunning path through the valley and the meadows sit right alongside it.
Location
Wickham village is the heart of the Meon Valley, and is the second largest medieval market square in England. The architecture is incredible and little houses, businesses and buildings have been preserved from various historic periods.
Now of course they are filled with boutique shops and tea rooms to potter around. It’s like you’ve stepped into the pages of a Jane Austen novel, you can just imagine Elizabeth Bennett and her sisters heading here on one of their walks. It has quaint English countryside charm by the bucketful.
Just around the corner from the square you’ll find Wickham Water Meadows. A pretty riverside setting that’s perfect for a paddle, or a picnic.
You can access the meadows two ways, the first is from the railway car park, you turn right onto the Meon Valley trail and walk down it until you see some step stairs on your right.
The other way, which is much easier from an accessibility point of view, is from the square itself. Walk to the edge of Wickham Square by Green’s Restaurant and Bar and you’ll find it down on the left.
Wickham Water Meadows
Wickham Water Meadows are a naturally occurring feature offering a beautiful riverside setting.
The meadows are a quiet and tranquil place to have a picnic or take a book for some downtime. You wouldn’t believe this was just around the corner from the hustle and bustle of the village square.
Along the river are small stone sections that the river passes over which look like tiny rapids.
The meadows stretch across eight acres, either side of the Meon Valley trail but, the main area with access to the water is relatively small. That’s why it’s nice to include a walk with your visit.
Stretch your legs on the trail and take in the pretty aerial views of the local church and roads leading up into the square.
You’ll also pass through the golf course and see the edge of Wickham Vineyard which is a view that will make you think you’re in France, not the south of England!
Local volunteers have worked really hard to transform the meadows back into a useable space. Originally the meadows were used for grazing cattle and belonged to the Lord of the Manor but the area had become unmanaged and over grown. Thankfully it is now a lovely place to walk around thanks to a lot of time and hard work from incredible local people. Nice one Team Wickham!
Timings & Accessibility
Leave about 60 to 90 minutes to walk around the loop. If you want to extend it this can be done easily by including some of the nine mile Meon Valley Trail. But, it won’t loop around so you’ll have to walk back the way you came, or cut across country.
The trail is very flat and easy, so makes it perfect for the whole family to get outside and enjoy the countryside. It’s very popular with cyclists and horse riders, and once you’ve walked it, you’ll see why.
Useful Map
When I walked this loop I found this useful map produced by Wickham Parish Council to guide me. Once you’ve done the route once, you won’t need this but, I found it helped me on my first walk around.
The Water Meadows
Wickham Water Meadows and the surrounding walk is a lovely little addition to a day out in this Hampshire village.
Have you discovered the Wickham Water Meadows yet? Let me know in the comments below.
If you liked this, take a look at these other great places to visit in Hampshire…
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Excellent walk, did it yesterday as never knew it was there
Oh so glad you enjoyed it. I didn’t know it was there either. If you liked that, check out the one that runs through Winchester that I wrote – it’s even better! You’ll like it I think!
Oh my goodness me too, I’ve walked it several times since the summer and it’s a nice and easy route to stay social distanced on while catching up with a pal too! No really very narrow bits!
If you liked this one, have a look at my post on Winchester Water Meadows. That’s beautiful.
I do this walk every day – its actually longer than you see on your map Rebecca. You can also cross a field by the vineyard which will take your along a longer footpath. Or you can walk beyond the vineyard for an extra walk. I love it there – its quiet, beautiful snowdrops and daffodils at this time of the year. Saw a Little Egret by one of the ponds; also a number of Green Woodpeckers. My walk takes about 1.5 hours roundtrip – every day! Word of warning – the car park get full quickly because you have to pay in the the car park in the square, so people park all day in the free old station car park. Also there are a lot of cyclists who do the route, so Fridays and weekends also get busy. But, the walk towards the vineyard is always very quiet. Yes I recommend it!