Hook is a busy Hampshire village built around a crossroads and a railway station, and it exists for most riders as a convenient refuelling stop just off junction 5 of the M3. It is not a place of great charm, but the countryside around it is pleasant, with woods, commons and old villages, and there are a few surprises close by.
Odiham, a few kilometres south, is a handsome small town with Georgian houses and old inns. Nearby are the ruins of Odiham Castle, an octagonal keep built for King John, who is said to have ridden out from here to Runnymede to seal Magna Carta in 1215. The Basingstoke Canal passes close by, and its towpath is a quiet place to walk. RAF Odiham is home to the RAF's Chinook helicopters, and you will often hear them overhead.
Hartley Wintney, to the north-east, has a large village green, a cricket pitch and a row of antique shops. The commons around it are covered with heather and oak, and in late summer the heather turns purple.
The riding around Hook is a mix of fast A-roads and narrow country lanes. The A30 and A287 can be busy, but the lanes to the south and west are quiet, with tight bends, high hedges and occasional tractors. Watch for mud and gravel after rain, and for horses and cyclists on the narrow roads.
Fill the tank in Hook, which is quick and painless, then decide whether the day deserves more. If it does, Odiham's old coaching inns do a decent lunch, and the canal towpath behind the town is the quietest ten minutes in this corner of Hampshire.