We were a grand total of 25 humans and two dogs who gathered in St Peter’s church, Titchfield on the afternoon of Saturday 13th October, ready to walk the 6½ miles along footpaths to our own church of St Nicholas. The route kept as close as possible to the course of the Meon in order to trace the steps of St Wilfrid as he travelled up the valley to convert the Meonwara tribes in the 7th century. So it was that we came to recognise the MVPT waymarking signs as the Meon Valley Pilgrimage Trail.
Starting promptly at 2.00pm, we were led by Reverend Jim Foley, Rector of Droxford, and Gerry Corden, joint compilers of the Pilgrimage Trail booklet (available in the church). We passed by Titchfield Abbey, and the adjacent tithe barn where Shakespeare is said to have staged Love’s Labour Lost; then, after crossing the M27 by a subway unknown to any speeding motorist, we walked through the grounds of the iron foundry established on the bank of the river by the innovator Henry Cort in the late 1780’s.
An attractive woodland walk led us round Knowle Village, and we joined Mayles Lane, to arrive at St Nicholas earlier than planned, after 2½ hours’ comfortable walking. After enjoying a greatly appreciated cup of tea and cake provided by ladies of the congregation of St Nicholas, we finished the day with a short service.
Six walkers from the village enjoyed a very pleasant day in the countryside, and only prior commitments prevented as many others joining us. The Trail, which runs the length of the Meon, is being walked in annual stages from village to village on the nearest Saturday to St Wilfrid’s Day. Next year, we expect to continue the route, from Wickham to Soberton.
Robert Goulson
