Introduction to Longparish
Location and landscape
Longparish is a linear village in a parish of
just over 2,000 hectares beside the clear waters
of the famous river Test, about 5 miles east of
Andover. Here the valley of the Test is over
half a mile wide and the river is braided,
running in several streams, fed by springs
and small rivulets. Most of the village is on
the west side of the river amid the small, flat
grazing fields of the valley floor. On either side
of the valley are low ridges about 80 metres
high, fairly continuous and open on the south
side and more broken to the north and west,
where the village is bounded by Harewood
Forest. On the sloping sides of the valley
arable crops are grown in large fields, enclosed
by hedges. From the ridges, little can be seen
of the village, which is lost in trees. Looking
out from the village, views are bounded by the
ridges, where not hidden by trees.
Access
The village is on the winding B3048 between The Hurstbourne Priors and Wherwell. main access from the east is from the B3400 Whitchurch - Andover road and from the west from the A303. One can also approach it from the A34 along the C165, Nuns' Walk, which runs on the opposite side of the valley to the B3048, and from the A303 by the C87 over Southside Hill, which provides one of the most evocative views of the village. Another approach to the village and one of the most attractive is from the B3400 by the C87, the Middleway, through Harewood Forest.
There are three road crossings of the Test which take you from Nuns' Walk to the main village street: at Upper Mill bridge in East Aston, at Swan bridge by Lower Mill in West Aston and at Southside, Middle and Blacksmiths bridges on Southside Road.