A New Forest Trek With Friends; Weekly Walk #23

I’d only just met my friends Ewa and Maud, and couldn’t think of a better way for us to get to know each other than to take in a New Forest walk. I drove us about twenty minutes through Downton to the east side of Fritham for some good conversation, great pictures, and tasty lunch at the Royal Oak. It was a lovely sunny day as I trundled over Parisian like cobbles and cafés to our bustling market square meeting point, where I bought some juicy cherries for us to enjoy on the road.

It didn’t take long to reach the open New Forest plains, where we were held up by cattle waltzing the road. Some great pictures can be seen on Ewa's blog. I parked at Janesmoor Pond, which looked like something from the African plains, crowded with cattle and ponies taking a drink in the summer sun. By a stroke of luck, there was a cycle race on that day, giving Ewa a chance to get coffee before I led the three of us into King’s Garn Gutter Inclosure.

We followed the winding cycle path into a clearing, where we stopped to take some photos, before walking a path between woodland. It led us back towards the car-park, making it feel a bit of a pointless circuit, but it was nice to explore the woods nether-the-less.

We took a path to the right and followed it back up towards the main road, where we crossed over and walked the lane into Fritham.

Fritham is a small village in the middle of a vast expanse of open heathland and forest, and features a fantastic little pub called the Royal Oak. I wasn’t planning on drinking any beer, until I noticed at least five barrels on gravity. I enjoyed a nice pint of Bowman beer in a shaded part of the garden, and some duck with apple sauce, salad and tasty bread. It was healthy, but filling; a nice change to usual pub food, although I did finish off with a towering rum raisin and berry ice-cream!

We continued along a footpath past houses, before reaching a footbridge and a selection of paths. I had to get my navigating hat on, as the New Forest isn’t like most traditional walks, across designated footpaths, but an amalgamation of little tracks. I whipped out the compass, but mostly relied on the map to lead us through the woods. A group of students on Duke of Edinburgh also seemed to be having trouble, but both our groups emerged at the same time.

The final stretch led us across an open plain towards the car-park, which made for a nice photo stop. Summer had most definitely arrived, with people basking in the sun and horses hovering by people’s cars, either in search of food or trying to cool off.

 

It was nice to have spent this lovely walk with such lovely people, and I would recommend best friends and new friends a-like to take in a walk together. It’s a great way to keep conversation going, and finds like the Royal Oak always seem to add to the fun.

The New Forest and the Bouncing Bomb; Weekly Walk #22

I’ve always lived near military establishments, from camps near Farnborough, to the airbase in Middle Wallop, and then today, as I took a hike through the New Forest, I discovered I’m near the test site of the famous Dam-Buster bouncing bomb. This week I enjoy sun, picturesque views, and cooling woodland as I skirt the edge of the Ashley Walk bombing range on a hunt for WWII history.

I grabbed the last space at the Telegraph Hill car-park, on the junction of the B3078 and B3080, a few miles outside of Downton, Salisbury. It was a typical New Forest scene; a small yet busy roadside spot for hikers to gather before taking various trails and adventures. I picked up my Crimson Short Walks guide, and took a left out of the car-park onto the road and left along a wide gravel track.

Along with the sweltering sun, the open heathland reminded me a lot of the desert in New Mexico, through with the addition of New Forest ponies. I loved it when the sound of the traffic faded away and left me with miles of quiet, blissful wilderness, though it wouldn’t have always been like this.

In the mid-1940s, the Ashley Walk bombing range housed several bunkers and walls for testing bombs and methods of delivery. Dr Barnes Wallis’ bouncing bombs were tested on the No 3 wall, including the initial Highball bomb and the later “Upkeep” bomb used in the famous Dam Raids. The range is now empty, save a few craters and a small brick hut which might have been a viewing post. I later researched and found a great video from the Imperial War Museum; a succession of tests from 1943 of the Highball bomb.

I turned left and followed a way marked cycle track through the managed, man-made woodland of Amberwood and Islands Thorns Inclosures. I stopped by a stream to have my lunch, and enjoyed the peace and quiet, before continuing the winding path out of woodland to Fritham village green. Here, I passed a late-19th century post-box created to save the postman, who delivered and collected mail to and from the nearby Schultze Gunpowder Factory at the bottom of the hill, a ½ mile round trip.

I continued down the hill and came upon Eyeworth Pond, which was serene, and might have made a better picnic stop. I crossed a bridge and followed a track past Oaktree Cottage into a dense wood. I stopped to take pictures of some Fox-gloves, before following the winding path back to heathland. I got turned around and thought I was walking the wrong track, but after doubling back I realised I was headed the right way, and at a junction of paths turned left downhill, then back up towards my car.

You can read more about the Number 3 wall and Highball bomb testing on the New Forest Remembers website, a site dedicated to the New Forest’s importance in WWII.

The New Forest Explorers Guide also has some great information on the Ashley Walk bombing range.

This walk was from Crimson Short Walks, the New Forest National Park guide (number 19, Around the Islands). It’s a great guide with clearly detailed OS maps for each walk. Check it out on Amazon.

Grand National Champions and a Pair of Sore Shins; Weekly Walk #21

Desperate for a well-worn, scenic walk after my recent overgrown, confusing trail from Pepperbox Hill, and in need of a longer walk than last week before work, I turned to my Hampshire and New Forest guide for a walk from nearby Rockbourne, Fordingbridge. I discovered a famous training stable at Whitsbury Manor and didn’t get lost, which was a plus, although I still had to wade a nettle-ridden path in my shorts (and hide the pain of throbbing legs all night).

Once in the village, I parked on the road as the hall and its car-park were in use, and met a fellow walker who'd just enjoyed a similar route. I set-off confidently along the track past a farm and followed a local as he bounded his way past sheep under the blissful sun of the open field. I could've easily cracked a cider and had a picnic, but instead continued my way through gates to a cool, tree-lined path.

 

I walked past a stud before crossing the road to Whitsbury Manor Stables, which are famous for training Grand National champion horses Red Rum and Rhyme‘n’Reason. I’m not a big fan of horse racing, but there was a definite air of professionalism and respect as I skirted the grounds. I continued a path overlooking fields and descended to the bottom of the valley.

I turned right onto a wide track and walked quite a distance past two farms, before turning right again through a gate and heading uphill. I was planning on taking lunch a little further up, but the sun took its toll and forced me to take a breather. Once refuelled, I continued uphill before entering woodland and taking a sharp left down a muddy, forest path.

I emerged from woodland near another farm, turned left down a country lane and right into a field. At the end of the field I found what was meant to be a narrow path, but was little more than a jungle. A pair of walkers and their dog met me halfway; their arms raised high as they waded through thick bushes where the path should’ve been.  “How sensible,” I commented, as I looked between their trousers and my now red-raw, bare shins.

Finally, the path (and the pain) ended at a stile on the left into an open field with horses, which led me back to Rockbourne and my car. All in all, this had been exactly what I wanted from a walk; a good six miles, scenic and straightforward to follow, though it's seems I'm currently doomed to take on overgrown paths, but I suppose they only add to the adventure.

This walk was taken from the Hampshire and New Forest Walks pathfinder guide.

Click the link to read more about Whitsbury Manor Stables on the website for Marcus Tregoning Racing.