The rolling chalk hills around Ecchinswell leapt to fame in 1972 as the backdrop for Richard Adams’ first novel Watership Down. The book was the inspiration for Art Garfunkel’s British number-one hit ‘Bright Eyes’, from the 1978 film version.

Rabbits' tales

Adams’ narrative traces the fortunes of a small band of rabbits who set out into the unknown after one of their number, the clairvoyant Fiver, foresees the destruction of their warren at Sandleford. Leaving many of their fellows behind, the group unites under the gentle leadership of Fiver’s brother Hazel and embarks on an epic journey to find a new home.

After setting up home near the northeast corner of the beech hanger on the lofty heights of Watership Down, Hazel realises that his new warren of buck rabbits has no future without females. Helped by Kehaar the seagull, the rabbits relocate to an overcrowded warren at Efrafa and the second half of the book recounts their epic struggle to liberate some of the does from the warren’s tyrannical ruler General Woundwort. Meanwhile, Hazel leads a daring raid on nearby Nuthanger Farm, where an earlier sortie had discovered four rabbits — two bucks and two does — living in captivity. The caged rabbits are eventually rescued from their hutch and return to the warren at Watership Down. Hazel suffers a gunshot wound but survives.

After setting up home near the northeast corner of the beech hanger on the lofty heights of Watership Down, Hazel realises that his new warren of buck rabbits has no future without females. Helped by Kehaar the seagull, the rabbits relocate to an overcrowded warren at Efrafa and the second half of the book recounts their epic struggle to liberate some of the does from the warren’s tyrannical ruler General Woundwort. Meanwhile, Hazel leads a daring raid on nearby Nuthanger Farm, where an earlier sortie had discovered four rabbits — two bucks and two does — living in captivity. The caged rabbits are eventually rescued from their hutch and return to the warren at Watership Down. Hazel suffers a gunshot wound but survives.

Leave the car park by the vehicle entrance, cross the road and take the footpath beside the war memorial. After a few paces, bear left onto a narrow woodland path, cross a plank bridge and continue past a turning on your right with two bridges to the T-junction by a small waterworks building.

Turn right, cross the stream and continue for 150yds (137m) before turning off onto the waymarked path across the open field on your right. Continue through a gap in the opposite hedge and over a plank bridge, then follow the winding hedge on your right to the plank bridge and stile in the far corner of the field. (Ignore an earlier path to the right). Climb the stile and cross the next field to the top corner to reach the road at a stile by a gate.

Turn left along the road for 60yds (55m), pass the entrance to Clere House and turn right onto the signposted footpath. Keep ahead between fields and then along the top of a wooded bank. Keep left where a track joins from the right, then follow the path around the copse on your right and continue along the enclosed path. Bear right as the path matures into a grassy farm track with views ahead to the left of Watership Down.

Turn right onto the gravel lane at the T-junction, swing left in front of Nuthanger Farm and follow the winding drive as it bends down to the right by a house to a wooden stable building. Take a right here onto the narrow path, which continues as a sunken way with open views towards Ecchinswell on your right. The path widens as it drops into the valley to meet the village lane by a newly built part-timber-clad, part-flint red-tiled property.

Bear right along the lane, passing the small cemetery on your right. Just beyond the adjacent Old Vicarage, turn right along the path through the grassy site of the old church of St Lawrence. Cross the footbridge and turn left along the road crossing over the stream to the junction by The Royal Oak; turn right here and walk past the school to the car park.