Travelling Trev
Meon Walley Railway and Old Winchester Hill
Distance: 15.3km
Ascent: 340m

Dec 2020 - The Meon Valley Railway (MVR) was a cross-country railway in Hampshire, England that ran for just over 22 miles (35.8 km) between Alton and Fareham, closely following the course of the River Meon. At its northern (Alton) end, it joined with the Mid-Hants Railway to Winchester, the Alton Line to Brookwood and the Basingstoke and Alton Light Railway. At Fareham it linked with the Eastleigh to Fareham Line, the West Coastway Line and the line to Gosport. The railway was authorised in 1896 and opened in 1903, making it one of the last railways of any size to be built to main-line standards in the United Kingdom. Passenger services were withdrawn after 5 February 1955, and the line was closed completely on 13 August 1968. Old Winchester Hill has been a famous and popular beauty spot since Victorian times and beyond. The views across the valley to Beacon Hill and down to the sea are superb. The area is rich in archaeology from the Mesolithic (stone age hunter gathers living after the end of the Ice Age) up to WW2. Most visible are the Iron Age hill fort and the earlier Bronze Age barrows or burial mounds. 
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