In the spring I had a day out in Hampshire. This large county is about an hour's drive south west of London. I visited the pretty town of Stockbridge and had a walk in the surrounding countryside. Stockbridge is full of lovely ancient houses like this one. The wooden timbers visible on the outside of this house are typically found on medieval buildings. This house is probably three to four hundred years old.

This is the main street of Stockbridge. For hundreds of years large flocks of sheep and cattle were driven through these streets on their long journey from the west country to market in London. Nowadays the town is a centre for fly fishing on the nearby River Test. The fishing on these rivers is privately owned and quite expensive to try. 

At the end of the main street was this house with it's beautiful garden overlooking the river. Deep drifts of daffodils lined the river bank.

This little house sits by itself at the end of a small canal. Next to this field there is a wood of coppiced willows, which are cut for fencing and baskets. So I think this must have originally been the coppice worker's cottage. The swans seemed to be enjoying this peaceful spot.

Nearby this substantial Victorian house was sitting beside another stream. The walls of the house are decorated with flints. They crop up in the local fields and are a nuisance to farmers but are often seen on houses and in garden walls.

If you peer into the clear waters of these streams you can see large trout swimming in the shallows. I saw one that was about 35cm long. Thatched fishing huts like this one are used as shelter for the anglers. There are many of these huts on the River Test

The wide open farmland here leads on to Salisbury Plain. Stonehenge is not too far away. Many of the straight paths crossing the countryside were originally Roman roads. This track is a public footpath but may have been used for many centuries.

A misty view from the top of an Iron Age Hill Fort just outside the town. Remains of ancient settlements like this are found all over the south of England.

This chapel on the edge of Stockbridge dates from the 13th Century. The churchyard was full of daffodils. I met a man who had been married in this ancient chapel. Such a pretty spot for a wedding.