Trial and Error

By DawnC

Which way to go?

I took the dogs for a walk at a place near here that I've always known as Older Hill. Apparently, it was previously known as 'Holder Hill' and somewhere along the line the H was dropped presumably. I understand it is also called 'Telegraph Hill' and this name came into being because the hill was the site of a station on the semaphore line from London to Portsmouth, which operated from 1822 to 1847.

The two round discs on the footpath sign are markers for the Serpent Trail, which is a 64 mile long distance footpath. It runs from Haslemere (in Surrey) to Petersfield (in Hampshire) by a circuitous route and is designed to join up the many heathland areas on greensand in the western Weald. The path apparently takes its name from both its serpentine shape and from passing through the habitat of all three British species of snake.

And here endeth the local history lesson for today.

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