Anyway, this is the start of a mini-series on mills and their environs in the area where I grew up.
This first picture is all that remains of the mill at Brockhampton. Unfortunately, the upper reaches of this little stream have been drastically reworked over the years, and are not as I remember them as a small boy. The stream flows into Bedhampton creek, which is a strange mixture of dereliction, boat moorings, electricity station and gravel yard, all adjacent to the local sewerage works. Nice!... but see the next picture:
This shows the gravel yard and I think, if not picturesque certainly has some interest. The watercourse on the left is downstream from the mill at Bedhampton, but that will have to be a subject of a future posting, as I currently have no photos.
Walking on down the creek one eventualy gets to the coast:
It is a stony foreshore looking across washed up seaweed and mudflats at low tide, with the occasional small island. In the distance you can see Portsmouth and just left of centre, the Spinaker Tower. This is a great place for seabirds and for all manner of creatures around the tide line. Walking in the shallows in boots can be hazardous for the unwary - the black mud is oozy and smells rather ripe and there can be small underwater pits left by bait-diggers just to guarantee the odd bootfull of seawater!
I thoroughly enjoyed Portsmouth and Old Vics Pub, where I downed Whitbreds Dark and played darts with the locals, used to be able to hold my own pretty good there, throwing tons at a time. 