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Three Towers Hike
The Three Towers Hike is a Scouting-organised, downland hiking competition held annually in early spring, covering footpaths in West Berkshire and South Oxfordshire. It is organised by a team of scout leaders from Reading Central, Loddon, Taceham Hundred and Pang Valley Scout Districts, all of which are within the Scout County of Royal Berkshire of the Scout Association. It is a competitive event, without an overnight camp (although teams must be equipped to bivouac if the conditions are severe enough to warrant it). It was first held as a senior event (Walkers over the age of 18) but now includes three other age groups. Scheduling The hike usually takes place on the second or third Saturday in April, but this may vary depending on the timing of Easter. The event accepts registration from 1 November the previous year. History The first Three Towers Hike took place during the 1970s, when only the Senior event was available. Originally based around the North and West of Reading ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Downland
Downland, chalkland, chalk downs or just downs are areas of open chalk hills, such as the North Downs. This term is used to describe the characteristic landscape in southern England where chalk is exposed at the surface. The name "downs" is derived from the Old English word dun, meaning "hill". Distribution The largest area of downland in southern England is formed by Salisbury Plain, mainly in Wiltshire. To the southwest, downlands continue via Cranborne Chase into Dorset as the Dorset Downs and southwards through Hampshire as the Hampshire Downs onto the Isle of Wight. To the northeast, downlands continue along the Berkshire Downs and Chiltern Hills through parts of Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and into Cambridgeshire. To the east downlands are found north of the Weald in Surrey, Kent and part of Greater London, forming the North Downs. To the southeast the downlands continue into West Sussex and East Sussex as the South Downs. Similar cha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blewbury
Blewbury is a village and civil parish at the foot of the Berkshire Downs section of the North Wessex Downs about south of Didcot, south of Oxford and west of London. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 1,581. A number of springs rise at the foot of the escarpment of the downs. Some springs feed a small lake called the Watercress Beds, where watercress used to be grown. From here and elsewhere tributaries feed the Mill Brook which carries the water to the river Thames at Wallingford. The A417 road runs along below the escarpment above the springs and through the south of the village. The Blewbury citizens are often called Blewbarians. Prehistory The southern part of the parish is chalk downland and includes a number of prehistoric sites. The Ridgeway is an ancient trackway that passes just south of the parish. Half of the high Blewburton Hill is in the parish. It is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scouting Events
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement employing the Scout method, a program of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including camping, woodcraft, aquatics, hiking, backpacking, and sports. Another widely recognized movement characteristic is the Scout uniform, by intent hiding all differences of social standing in a country and encouraging equality, with neckerchief and campaign hat or comparable headwear. Distinctive uniform insignia include the fleur-de-lis and the trefoil, as well as merit badges and other patches. In 1907, Robert Baden-Powell, a Lieutenant General in the British Army, held a Scouting encampment on Brownsea Island in England. Baden-Powell wrote ''Scouting for Boys'' (London, 1908), partly based on his earlier military books. The Scout Movement of both Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts was well established in the first decade of the twentieth century. Later, programs for younger children, such as W ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Four Inns Walk
The Four Inns is a fell race/hiking event held annually over the high moorlands of the Northern Peak District. It takes place mainly in Derbyshire (though it starts in Yorkshire and, near the end, makes a short detour into Cheshire), in northern England. It is organised by the Scout Association. It is a competitive event, without an overnight camp (although teams must be equipped to bivouac if the conditions are severe enough to warrant it). It was first held as a Rover Scout event in 1957, but is now open to other teams of experienced hill walkers and fell runners. Rules The event is undertaken in teams of three or four, for safety reasons, and at least two of these team members must be at least 17 (the others may be 16) on the day of the event. An amount of equipment must be carried by the team, including survival bags, emergency rations, a first-aid kit, and a group shelter. Any member of a team is allowed to drop out at any point, but the rest of the team will not be permitte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ten Tors
Ten Tors is an annual weekend hike in early May, on Dartmoor, southwest England. Organised by the British Army, starting in 1960, it brings together teams of six young people each, with the 2,400 young participants hiking to checkpoints on ten specified tors. The majority of entrants are schools, colleges, Scout groups and Cadet squadrons from South West England, though groups from across the UK have regularly taken part, as have teams from Australia and New Zealand. However, from 2012, only teams from the South West of England are eligible to take part, due to the large numbers of entrants. Event format Teams of six are required to visit ten specified tors; on the top of each tor is a checkpoint. Each team is required to visit all of the specified checkpoints in order. Up to two members per team may fall out during the Challenge; teams falling below this number could merge in earlier years, while later rules required a badly reduced team to forfeit. There are 26 differen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement employing the Scout method, a program of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including camping, woodcraft, aquatics, hiking, backpacking, and sports. Another widely recognized movement characteristic is the Scout uniform, by intent hiding all differences of social standing in a country and encouraging equality, with neckerchief and campaign hat or comparable headwear. Distinctive uniform insignia include the fleur-de-lis and the trefoil, as well as merit badges and other patches. In 1907, Robert Baden-Powell, a Lieutenant General in the British Army, held a Scouting encampment on Brownsea Island in England. Baden-Powell wrote '' Scouting for Boys'' (London, 1908), partly based on his earlier military books. The Scout Movement of both Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts was well established in the first decade of the twentieth century. Later, programs for younger children, such as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tilehurst Water Tower
Tilehurst Water Tower, is a distinctive water tower in Tilehurst, a suburb of the England, English town of Reading, Berkshire, Reading. People from Reading know they are near home when they are coming eastbound along the M4 and they can see the top of the tower. Although in recent years with the growth of trees this has become more difficult. It is a prominent landmark in the vicinity and, located on the Tilehurst ridge line, can be seen from a considerable distance, especially when approaching Reading from the west along the M4 motorway. The tower was erected by Reading Borough Council in 1932, in order to supplement the existing Bath Road Reservoir and supply water to properties at a higher level than the earlier water tower there. Today the tower belongs to Thames Water, and is still in use for its original purpose. It also houses the transmitter for The Breeze (radio network), The Breeze, a local radio station. In November 2018 the tower was illuminated in poppy red to mark ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pangbourne College
Pangbourne College is a co-educational independent day and boarding school located in the civil parish of Pangbourne, in the English county of Berkshire. It is set in 230 acres, on a hill south-west of the village, in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The college was founded by Sir Thomas Lane Devitt Bt. in 1917 as The Nautical College, Pangbourne with the purpose of training boys to become Merchant Navy officers. It became "Pangbourne College" in 1969 and while conforming to the general lines of a British independent boarding school, retains a distinctly nautical flavour; the pupils wear naval uniform. History The college was founded by Sir Thomas Lane Devitt, 1st Baronet, in 1917 as "The Nautical College, Pangbourne", on the site originally occupied by Clayesmore School, now located in Dorset. The Nautical College's purpose was to prepare boys to become officers in the Merchant Navy through his shipping company Devitt and Moore, although both he, and later his son, Si ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Compton, Berkshire
Compton is a village and civil parish in the River Pang valley in the Berkshire Downs about south of Didcot which is buffered from neighbouring settlements by cultivated fields to all sides. The village is in a gently-sloped dry valley and the fledgling Pang seasonally enters from the north west and discharges in the south east and may be joined at the centre of the village by the Roden from the North, when winter bournes rise to fill their channels. Elevations vary from 95 to 155m AOD. Parish church The bell tower of the Church of England parish church of Saint Mary and Saint Nicholas was built in the 13th centuryPevsner, 1965, page 120 and has Perpendicular Gothic features that were added in the 15th century.Page & Ditchfield, 1925, pages 15-21 In 1850 the nave and chancel were modernised or rebuilt and in 1905 the Gothic Revival architect John Oldrid Scott added the north aisle. Transport Former railway In 1882 the Didcot, Newbury and Southampton Railway was completed thr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
East Ilsley
East Ilsley is a village and civil parish in the Berkshire Downs in West Berkshire, north of Newbury. The village is centred immediately east of the A34 dual carriageway which passes the length of the village from north to south. It has the vast majority of its buildings in a traditional clustered centre. History Hildersley The parish was anciently called Hildersley, as in a medieval inscription in the church. West Ilsley was a hamlet in Ilsley. Ilsley has been attributed by antiquaries as a leading contender for the uncertain site of the Battle of Ashdown (Alfred the Great's victory against the Danes). ''Hilde-Laege'', a strong plausible root of Hildersley, means "battle place". Sheep market In 1620 East Ilsley was granted a charter to hold a sheep market in the village, however the market had been informally held from the reign of Henry II. This became the second largest sheep market in the country, after Smithfield, throughout the 19th century.''A Topographical Dictiona ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Catmore
Catmore is a civil parish and village in West Berkshire about southeast of Wantage. Catmore is in the Berkshire Downs and the centre of the village is about above sea level. Population The 2001 Census recorded a population of only 28, making Catmore the least populous parish in Berkshire. In the 2011 Census the Office for National Statistics did not publish Catmore's population separately, but combined it with the neighbouring civil parish of Farnborough. But Catmore remains a separate civil parish, governed by its own parish meeting. Toponym The toponym "Catmore" is derived from the Old English for "wild-cat lake". The earliest known records of it are from 916 and 931 in the ''Cartularium Saxonicum'', where it appears as ''Catmere'', ''Catmeringa'' and ''Catmæringa''. In the same body of charters it is recorded again in 951 as ''Catmeres gemære'' and ''Catbeorh''. The Domesday Book of 1086 records it as ''Catmere''. It evolved via ''Catmor'' in the 12th century, ''Catterm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Didcot, Newbury And Southampton Railway
The Didcot, Newbury and Southampton Railway (DN&SR) was a cross-country railway running north–south between Didcot, Newbury and Winchester. Its promoters intended an independent route to Southampton and envisaged heavy traffic from the Midlands and North of England to the port, but they ran out of funds to complete the line to Southampton. The intended heavy through traffic never materialised, and the line was dependent on larger railways—the Great Western Railway and the London and South Western Railway—for support, which was not freely given. The line opened in two stages, in 1882 and 1885. The Company was absorbed by the Great Western Railway in 1923 following the Railways Act 1921. It became strategically important during World War II when huge volumes of munitions and troops were transported to South Coast ports, particularly in the preparations for the Normandy landings, and the Didcot to Newbury section was doubled, while the southern section was upgraded with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
