Stockbridge lies on the River Test, famous for its trout fishing and beautiful scenery. The broad High Street reflects its early role as part of a drovers' road where it was common to see flocks of sheep or herds of cattle being driven through the town en route from Wales. The Welsh drovers rested here with their flocks on their way to various sheep fairs and markets in the South East. A thatched cottage known as 'Drovers House' has the message in Welsh painted on the wall: 'Seasoned hay, tasty pastures, good beer, comfortable beds'. Two ancient roads meet and cross at Stockbridge, one running east to west between Winchester and Old Sarum, later Salisbury, and the other running North and South along the valley of the Test.
In slightly more modern times, there was the addition of a railway- the Andover to Redbridge Line, known affectionately as the Sprat and Winkle Line, which operated between 1858 and 1967.
This series follows some of these old ways that contributed to the prosperity of Stockbridge. We start on the old railway track, now part of the Test Way, then cross the Test valley to follow some old byways which join an ancient road that would have brought the drovers from the West to their crossing of the river. The route is mainly on tracks, with two very short road sections, and with no stiles or gates to cross is recommended for cycling. (There is one bridge where cyclists must dismount, and a minor obstacle, and these will be detailed on the relevant cache pages).
The hides are a mixture of small/regular containers and micros, hopefully not too tricky but with enough variety to keep up the interest. As you go round, don't forget to look under the lids of the larger boxes for the bonus clues- just like the drovers you need to find all your STOCK before you reach the BRIDGE to cross into the town.
Further notes on the route and caches are given on the individual cache pages.
Cache number one- to start off the series. Don't forget the bonus!
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