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Alverstone Marshes

English Site of Special Scientific Interest stubsIsle of Wight geography stubsMarshes of EnglandSites of Special Scientific Interest notified in 1951Sites of Special Scientific Interest on the Isle of Wight
Use British English from June 2015

Alverstone Marshes (grid reference SZ572859) is an 83.8 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest on the Isle of Wight, notified in 1951. The Alverstone Marshes are the site of a wetland restoration project by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. It is also noted for water voles.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Alverstone Marshes (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors).

Alverstone Marshes
Sandown to Newport Cyclepath,

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N 50.66997 ° E -1.19194 °
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Sandown to Newport Cyclepath

Sandown to Newport Cyclepath
PO36 0HJ
England, United Kingdom
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Alverstone
Alverstone

Alverstone is a village 2 miles from the east coast of the Isle of Wight, near Sandown. The name Alverstone is most likely of Saxon origin meaning "Alfred's Farm". Up until 1960, boating took place on the river and tea-gardens were very popular with local people, who came by train on excursions. There is evidence from an archaeological dig in Alverstone of a Roman military presence in the area.Kern Farm is the oldest farm in Alverstone, situated to the north of the village. It was at one point a Mill held in 1086 by William I and previously by King Harold at the time of the Norman Invasion. Alverstone Farm, situated to the east of the village, consists of a manor mentioned in the Domesday Book and other sandstone buildings of interest. When Richard Webster became Chief Justice of England in 1900, he chose the title Lord Alverstone because it was the title he was permitted to choose which was "closest" to Sandown, one of his favourite locales. Alverstone Manor is located here. Prince Albert was instrumental in creating a 'model' brickworks in Alverstone in the middle of the 19th century (but that is a different 'Alverstone', east of Whippingham Isle of Wight, on the southern edge of QV's Osborne Estate).The Village Hall was built by Lord Alverstone in 1879 to serve as the village school. It remained as a school until 1921 when it briefly served as a church. The Newport Junction Railway opened a station at Alverstone on 1 February 1875, and the station first appeared in a public schedule in June 1876. The journey to Sandown took 3 minutes and the journey to Newport took 20 minutes. Alverstone railway station finally closed 6 February 1956. The original wooden station was replaced with one built with earth and clinkers, with wood siding. There are many wetlands around Alverstone. Nature lovers enjoy visiting the Alverstone Marshes. The Alverstone Mead is a 55-acre (220,000 m2) woodland and nature reserve about 1-mile (1.6 km) from Sandown. Alverstone Mead is southeast of Alverstone, and south of the cycleway between Sandown and Newport. It was farmed as water meadows until 1993. Since then the lease has been held by the Wight Nature Council and it has served as a nature reserve with some ancient woodland. It was once part of the Lower Borthwood Farm.Transport is provided by Wightbus route 23, running between Newport and Shanklin.

Knighton, Isle of Wight
Knighton, Isle of Wight

Knighton is a hamlet near to Newchurch on the Isle of Wight. The name should be pronounced as Kay-nighton to avoid confusion with the larger, homophonic village of Niton, near Ventnor. Knighton is situated under Knighton Down and has historically always been a part of the parish of nearby Newchurch. Knighton consists of little more than a collection of farm houses, most now turned to residential use. The only amenity in the settlement is a post-box. To the south is Knighton Sandpit Ltd which is an aggregate extraction company. The pit is also used for off-road driving events. This is however, a little way from the main residential area. Knighton Gorges Manor in Knighton was one of the grandest manor houses on the Isle of Wight. But when the owner's daughter married against his will, he had it demolished, rather than allowing her to inherit it. Hugh De Morville, one of the knights responsible for the murder of Thomas Becket, fled to Knighton Gorges. There was a medieval settlement in Knighton, but nearly all of the population moved to the nearby village of Newchurch to escape the “Black Death”. Flint arrow heads can still be found in fields surrounding the area. It was estimated that at one time, the hamlet contained up to 60 houses. Jimmy Tarbuck lived at Griggs Farm in the 1980s whilst performing in the nearby town of Sandown. Knighton is the home of the “Wight Crystal” drinking water company, whose water comes from Knighton. John Wavell and Anna Cowlam farmed Knighton farm after their marriage in 1735 in Newchurch. They were the great-great-grandparents of Archibald Wavell, 1st Earl Wavell (1883-1950), former Field Marshall and Viceroy of India.

Borthwood Copse
Borthwood Copse

Borthwood Copse, near Sandown, Isle of Wight, England is a piece of woodland owned by the National Trust and is one of the numerous copses which make up part of the medieval forest which covered most of the eastern end of the Island. Borthwood Copse sits on the outskirts of Newchurch, and is close to the neighbouring hamlet of Apse Heath and the villages of Queen's Bower and Alverstone. Borthwood Copse was originally a royal hunting ground. It was bequeathed to the National Trust in 1926 by Frank Morey. He had purchased it a few years earlier to preserve it for wildlife. Subsequent additions have been added to the land and it now covers a total of 60 acres (240,000 m2). There are some ancient oaks, and a distinctive grove of beech trees which stand amongst glades of coppiced sweet chestnut and hazel. The woodland is one of the very few examples of working coppice with standards which can be seen on the Isle of Wight. A bridleway and many smaller paths lead through the woodland, which is open to the public. It is particularly popular with visitors in the autumn with its vivid colours and, in the springtime, when carpeted with bluebells. Borthwood Copse is one of the countless locations in the Eastern Isle of Wight that are home to large numbers of Red Squirrels. Owing to its position on the downs, much of Borthwood Copse is hilly, and in wet weather the soil often becomes waterlogged and marshy, making travel through the copse on foot difficult. Within the wood is a viewpoint looking east from where you can catch a glimpse of Culver Down and the sea. As the copse climbs a small hill, Bembridge Windmill can be seen in the distance through the downs on clear days. Wildlife includes dormice, red squirrels, a wide range of bats, and many invertebrates. The view point is called Kite Hill.

Newchurch, Isle of Wight
Newchurch, Isle of Wight

Newchurch is a village and civil parish on the Isle of Wight. It is located between Sandown and Newport in the southeast of the island. Anthony Dillington, owner of the Knighton Gorges Manor in Newchurch wrote to his son Robert in 1574 that, "This is the very Garden of England, and we be privileged to work in it as Husbandmen......." Newchurch obtained its name from the new church built in 1087 by the Norman monks of Lyra. The Newchurch Parish for many centuries stretched from the north to south coasts of the Island; by the early Nineteenth Century the growing resort towns of Ventnor and Ryde were included within its boundaries. The parish was administered by the Church Parish Vestry until 1894 when civil matters were passed to the newly formed Parish Council which now forms the second tier of Local Government under the Isle of Wight Council. In 1982 Alverstone was included in the civil parish. The present day parish includes Newchurch Village, Apse Heath, Winford, Whiteley Bank, Alverstone, Alverstone Garden Village, Queen's Bower, Princelett and Mersley. Public transport is provided by Southern Vectis bus route 22, operating between Newchurch and Shanklin. Wightbus used to operate bus route 23 between Newport and Shanklin but this was discontinued when Wightbus ceased operations. The Sustrans route 23 cycle route also runs through the village at the bottom of the Shute, allowing easy access to Cowes, Newport and Sandown. Between 1875 and 1956 Newchurch had the advantage of a railway station. There is a pub called "The Pointer Inn" and a sub-post office.