Alton - Market Town & Parks

Navigating The Route

This is a circular Detective Mystery around Alton Market Town & Parks, with Detectives helping DCI Poppy Hargreaves follow a trail of clues, unpick alibis and expose grudges after Anita Lott is found slumped by the mansion's swimming pool following Ivor Fortune's unexpected will reading.

The investigation covers approximately 2 miles and should take around 2 hours to complete. You'll start outside the main building of Alton train station, work through the town, follow pavements, tackle a hill, use the churchyard path and head towards the Public Gardens before finishing back in the station area.

This Trail is wheelchair accessible and pushchair accessible. The route is mostly flat, but there are some uphill sections, as well as busy roads, a few road crossings and stretches around the River Wey.

Take care on the hill and around the River Wey, and carefully cross Paper Mill Lane and other roads when it is safe to do so. Keep younger Detectives close while the squad is gathering evidence near traffic.

Getting There

By car: Begin the case outside the main building of Alton train station (GU34 2PZ), using ///array.expose.winning. Chief recommends parking your squad car in Alton train station main car park. If the main car park at the station is full, use the additional parking beyond the Station Café.

By public transport: The Trail starts at Alton train station, so make your way there and head outside the main building to begin the investigation. The route is circular and finishes back at the station area.

Need the Loo?

Useful comfort-break intel: toilets can be found just before the Public Gardens.

Bring Your Furry Sidekicks

Four-legged Detectives are welcome to join the investigation 🐾

The route uses pavements and includes busy roads, a hill, the churchyard path, road crossings and sections around the River Wey, so keep canine colleagues close around traffic, slopes and water.

Food & Drink Stops

Cracking alibis is hungry work. There are plenty of places to grab a bite or stock up on snacks in town, with the Station Café mentioned by the start point and The Wheatsheaf pub beside the route into the Public Gardens.

If your squad prefers its rations in the open air, pack a picnic to enjoy in the Public Gardens at Clues 15 and 16.

Want to Make a Day of It?

Curtis Museum

If you have time, the Curtis Museum is well worth a visit. It houses one of the finest local and natural history collections in Hampshire, with displays including prehistoric tools, Roman pottery, Saxon burials, the Battle of Alton, the tale of Sweet Fanny Adams, toys and dolls. Check opening times online before you go.

St Lawrence Church

In 1643, Alton's quiet streets became a battlefield known as the Battle of Alton. Royalist soldiers barricaded themselves inside St Lawrence Church, but the Parliamentarian army broke through. Musket fire echoed, steel clashed and blood was spilled upon the pews. Even now, bullet scars mark the church walls.

Public Gardens

The Public Gardens make a handy place to pause during the case, especially if you've packed a picnic for Clues 15 and 16. Let your team slow the pace, compare theories and refuel before chasing down the next suspicious detail.

Alton Cemetery

Further along Church Street lies Alton Cemetery, the resting place of eight-year-old Fanny Adams. Her tragic murder in 1867 by solicitor's clerk Frederick Baker gave rise to the phrase 'Sweet Fanny Adams', later adopted by the Royal Navy to mean 'nothing at all'. It's a sombre but memorable piece of local history for careful Detectives to discover respectfully.

The Butts

To the southwest of the town centre is a triangle of open land named after a medieval use for the space. The Butts had earth target mounds at one end and was used as a range for compulsory longbow training - a proper historic clue hiding in plain sight.