 The title refers to the rabbits ' destination , Watership Down , a hill in the north of Hampshire , England , near the area where Adams grew up . The story began as tales that Richard Adams told his young daughters Juliet and Rosamond during long car journeys . As he explained in 2007 , he " began telling the story of the rabbits ... improvised off the top of my head , as we were driving along . " The daughters insisted he write it down — " they were very , very persistent " . After some delay he began writing in the evenings and completed it 18 months later . The book is dedicated to the two girls . 
