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the Degree Confluence Project
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United Kingdom : England

2.3 km (1.4 miles) W of Bower Chalke, Wiltshire, England, United Kingdom
Approx. altitude: 135 m (442 ft)
([?] maps: Google MapQuest OpenStreetMap ConfluenceNavigator)
Antipode: 51°S 178°E

Accuracy: 67 m (219 ft)
Quality: good

Click on any of the images for the full-sized picture.

#2: General View of the Area #3: View to the West #4: View to the East #5: GPS Reading #6: Rainer at the Confluence #7: Road to the CP #8: A Family from Ebbesbourne Wake #9: St. Martin dated back from the 13th Century (3km distance) #10: Salisbury Cathedral (finished in 1258), 123m in Hight

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  51°N 2°W (visit #5) (secondary) 

#1: The Confluence - View to the North

(visited by Rainer Mautz)

20-Feb-2005 -- I started my bike trip at 4:45 a.m. in my home in London-Hammersmith. Just after I had left the house I was almost at the point to return home and go back to bed. The reason was the weather. It was unexpectedly cold, frozen puddles made me guess that it was below zero degrees Celsius. But the main reason for almost returning home was the strong wind coming from the West and this was exactly where I was planning to go.

Well, I continued and came through Stains, Camberley, Basingstoke, Andover and Salisbury, of course always facing the wind. Due to an early start, it was just 2:00pm when I reached the old city centre of Salisbury (16 km from the CP).

In order to reach the confluence from Salisbury, I had to ride further West along the little creek Ebble, where small villages string together along the course of the river. The last village is called Ebbesbourne Wake with a distance of 2 km from the CP. The nearby church St. Martin remains from the 13th century.

From Ebbesbourne Wake I had a good climb on a small road towards the CP. At a distance of 700m I followed a track signed for horses and reached the confluence point with ease at 3:38pm after having cycled 163km from London.

I did not go to the exact position, because it is located in a wheat field with young sprouts being sensitive to someone stepping on them. At a distance of 67m I shot the pictures and quickly made my way back to Salisbury, because the wind chill didn’t allow long breaks of standing in the cold.

From Salisbury I took an overcrowded Sunday-evening express train back towards London. Exhausted, leathery skinned from the wind, incredibly hungry but satisfied I reached my home at 7:30 pm with 196km on my odometer.

CP visit details:
Time at the CP: 3:38 p.m.
Duration: 15h (until I was back home)
Distance of bike parking: 67m
GPS hight: 137m
Description: The point is located in the middle of a huge wheat field. The area around is very hilly with steep grades (from washed out chalk). The general area is mostly farmland.
Given Name: The Wind-Chill Confluence


 All pictures
#1: The Confluence - View to the North
#2: General View of the Area
#3: View to the West
#4: View to the East
#5: GPS Reading
#6: Rainer at the Confluence
#7: Road to the CP
#8: A Family from Ebbesbourne Wake
#9: St. Martin dated back from the 13th Century (3km distance)
#10: Salisbury Cathedral (finished in 1258), 123m in Hight
ALL: All pictures on one page