History of the Basingstoke Canal
The Basingstoke Canal is in the south east of England and flows
through the counties of Hampshire and Surrey. It originally ran
from the Hampshire town of Basingstoke to its junction with the
River Wey Navigation in Surrey, 37 miles away.
Today, 32 miles of the original navigation have been restored, from
the Wey Navigation as far as North Warnborough in Hampshire, as a
public amenity catering for boaters, walkers, canoeists, anglers
and naturalists.
It has 29 locks, all but one in Surrey, which together raise the
canal 204ft from the River Wey. You can find more about the
Basingstoke Canal here.
Tank Trap
This stretch of the canal was one of the most fortified during
the war and there are many WWII relics still to be seen. Here you
can see a pill box - one of many dotted along the Canal. At this
point you are probably saying where is the pill box ? Well
look over the canal and into the field beyond - look carefully into
the small copse of trees and that is a pillbox at the bottom
!!.
The cache is reasonably close to parking. The whole towpath can
be walked or cycled by all ages - bring bread if you have little
ones as there are always ducks around.