Kingsley St Nicholas Church
A short history of Kingsley Parish
The parish of Kingsley stretches from Frith End and Alice Holt Forest in the north-east to Shortheath Common and Binswood in the south-west. Kingsley derives its name from the King’s Lea, a meadow or pasture.
At one time the village formed the clearing which lay between the Alice Holt and Woolmer Forests. Both these forests were hunting grounds of the kings. The original settlement was at the western end of the village. Here you can find the medieval church of Nicholas and the Tudor timber-framed Lode Farm.
Sandy heathlands and a wide and varied agricultural countryside provide a beautiful setting for this small village.
Key
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- Route
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- Temporarily closed
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- Restricted use
Directions
From the Deer’s Hut Public House in Liphook follow the tarmac road towards the golf course. After passing the two parking areas on the left take the earth track on the left and continue up the hill. The route takes you through the copse passing several properties on your right and on past the golf course.
As you reach the top of the hill the path opens up to an area where the view to the left is spectacular, looking towards Folly Pond and beyond into Sussex.
The route continues on through the bridlegate and follows the edge of Weavers Down for approx. 2.29km. Here you can take the shorter route to the left through the kissing gate – this follows an enclosed route across the heath. The route continues on down. Near a sunken bend in the path the Roman road from Chichester to Silchester crosses and continues north towards Longmoor Camp.
As you near Langley you may hear the trains going through. At the bottom turn left passing in front of two properties and up the path keeping the fence to your left all the way passing areas of rhododendrons. As you approach Hilly Fields Copse, you will reach a three-way finger post and this is where the shorter route comes out.
Take the route in front signposted bridleway with a blue arrow and follow this route until you reach the next finger post. At this finger post take the middle route where you will pass several properties on your right. At the metal gate on your right continue along the middle path passing a very old oak tree. Carry on until you reach the dirt track that you first started on and turn left back towards the start.
