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May 13, 2025
Melksham to Ringwood: Getting better all the time


Today’s drive

This morning, we bid a sad farewell to Kathy Stearne, our host for the past three nights. We will miss the morning toast with honey and butter, the daily excursions, and the evening conversations.

The good news is that Kathy sent us off with a bunch of detailed maps. She even recommended roads that have low speed limits and little traffic. The even better news is that after several conversations with Airalo, Gail got her international e-sim card working. We now have GPS on the road!

We set out at 10:00 am, stopping for groceries and petrol on the way out of Melksham. We had two planned stops on the way to Ringwood.


Even with GPS working, Gail the driver was still challenged by narrow roads and oncoming traffic


Roundabouts continue to be another cause of anxiety

First: on the road atlas, Gail saw a site of interest labeled “White Horse” outside of Westbury. Kathy (who knows everything about the area) told us it is one of those gigantic chalk drawings high up on a hillside. We drove on a narrow road up a steep hill to see it, but we had a lovely walk.


The best view of the white horse was from the valley below, but we decided to drive up to the top of the hill


The view at the top. While the original horse dated from the late 1600s, the modern version is made of concrete painted white. Still, the panorama was stunning.


On top of the mountain, we were surprised to see a monument commemorating King Alfred’s victory over the Vikings in 878. He became the first king of a united England. Russell was thrilled – he has a lecture about this. The battle ditches are still here!

Second: Kathy recommended we stop at “Langford Lakes” outside of Salisbury for a break. We ended up spending several more hours walking around the lakes, watching the birds, and enjoying sandwiches we had picked up at the market.


Langford Lakes, a wildlife reserve


We spent a couple of hours walking the trails around the lakes


Gail uses the “Merlin” app, which can identify birds based on their songs. Here are just a few that we heard.


We ate lunch in a blind, where we could observe the birds up close without disturbing them


We took a scenic bypass around Salisbury to avoid the city traffic. The closest we came to the gigantic Salisbury Cathedral was seeing its spire in the distance.

We finally arrived in Ringwood at 4:30 pm, an hour and a half past our target. We are staying for two nights at High Corner Inn, inside the New Forest. We will spend two nights here. After the long drive and long walks, we decided to stay in for the evening. Gail took advantage of the ensuite bathtub, and we enjoyed popcorn and a show.


Entering the New Forest


We’re definitely in the country! The road went through a river…


… and there were ponies and donkeys in the road!


Our final approach to our destination was an unpaved dirt road


The High Corner Inn upgraded us to a room with a bathtub! Sadly, this room is only available tonight – tomorrow, we will need to revert to our original, smaller room.

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