This week we have been staying at a cottage in North Warnborough, close to the site where the ponies live. As well as walking a total of twenty-five miles, we saw the ponies at least once a day. They are all fine with two on the slim-side but the grass will catch up with and overtake them soon I hope.
It's Jack's first year 'in the wild' since he was a foal, and as he is now 26 it will probably be his last, but what a wonderful experience for him with his own herd of girls, and he has adapted to the wide space and lumpy ground very well.
We bumped into a few other HIWWT friends including Tom, the Reserves Manager. This is the Highland Bull at North Warnborough.
Three cows Flower, Fagan, and Flora (not photographed) and two ponies at Bartley Heath
Hook may not be the obvious choice for a holiday - there seems to be no big push as a tourist destination - but walking through all of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight reserves in the area, and the RSPB heathland at Hazeley is a real treat, and a reminder that between these busy roads and all around the outside there is some beautiful countryside.
