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This Week's Walks - Archive

Please see the Saturday Walker's Club This Week's Walks page.

This is an archive of walks done by the Saturday Walker's Club. You should only need to use this page if the SWC website is down.

Wednesday 2 August 2017

From the Forest to the Sea (Brockenhurst to Lymington)

SWC Walk 226:  Brockenhurst to Lymington T=SWC.226

Distance:  11.0 miles or 17.7 km for those more metrically minded

Difficulty:  3 out of 10 for the main walk 

Train:  Take the 10:05 AM Weymouth train from London Waterloo to arrive at Brockenhurst at 11:37. Return trains from Lymington are at 27 and 57 minutes past the hour until 18:27 and then at 19:03; 19:33, 20:03 and 21:03 – note the connection at Brockenhurst is much better for the return trains leaving at 18:27 or earlier.  Buy a day return to Lymington Pier.  

I thought it would be good to post this pleasant and varied outing – exploring the southern edge of the New Forest on the way to the charming seaside town of Lymington -- before London Waterloo goes into its summer shutdown…. Also, with any luck, the heather should be starting to come into color during the earlier stretches of the route.  Although ending at the seaside, there is no sea swimming available at Lymington – though there are some open air Sea Water Baths.  You can find more information about the walk and download the walk instructions here.

The recommended lunch spot is the Hobler Inn (01590 623 944) near Battramsley (3 miles/4.5 km into the walk) which serves food all day.  Tea and midafternoon refreshments can be had at the Chequers in Lower Pennington (8 miles/13 km into the walk).  Further post walk libations can be had at a number of hostelries in Lymington with the Ship Inn being suggested with a prominent location along the quay.

Enjoy the walk!

5 comments:

Sean said...

Be prepared for one or two overgrown sections in the middle section of this walk, as reported recently on its Comments page.

Stargazer said...

secateurs packed.... :-)

Stargazer said...

Armed with my secateurs I wondered, as I gazed at the leaden skies from the train window, if I would be the only person on this walk. So, it was nice to see one familiar face emerge from the train into the rain at Brockenhurst -- making for n=2 hardly soles embarking on a journey which at times felt a bit like an assault course. The route started straight forward enough and it was only after a leisurely 2-course lunch (11.95) at the Hobler that things became interesting. First, there was an almost knee deep ford on the heath -- so off came the shoes and socks. Our dry feet did not last though....as the narrow overgrown section of path (which was not too badly overgrown today (perhaps thanks to Anon's pruning a few weeks ago)) was flooded to mid-calf level with no real alternatives but to carry on through the water for 20 meters or so.....Lastly we did encounter some brambles encroaching on the narrow path (passable -- but requiring some care to negotiate).... After these challenges, it was a pleasant surprise to see a "Gin and Beer Tasting" sign outside of Sadlers Farm. Of course, it was only appropriate to stop -- one of the out buildings has been converted into a brewery/distillery and we sampled three small batch gins made substantially from ingredients sourced in the New Forest. Thus fortified we continued on to the Chequers Inn for a short break before the final stretch along the marshes. For a change, the forecast proved spot on making for a day (not dissimilar from those encountered in Knoydart years ago) of w=torrential-rain-followed-by-even-heavier-torrential-rain-and-strong-winds until a brief respite along the marshes towards the end allowing some atmospheric glimpses of the Isle of Wight across a turbulent Solent. Arriving at the train station just as the 19:05 was departing we hopped aboard and decided to have dinner in a very convenient and good quality Italian eatery in the car park at the Brockenhurst Station from which is was the 20:15 home. Notwithstanding the conditions and challenges encountered, it was a very enjoyable day out in good company!

Stargazer said...

Oh, almost forgot...Along the way, we were treated to seeing a doe and two fawns at very close proximity on a field edge and a short time later yet another deer running across a field....

Paul OConnor said...


We walked this on 2/8/17
" the narrow overgrown section of path" was extremely flooded, we should have detoured or wore wellies :-)
"Lastly we did encounter some brambles encroaching on the narrow path (passable -- but requiring some care to negotiate).." - Wearing shorts, this was a long difficukt and painful section.
""Gin and Beer Tasting" sign outside of Sadlers Farm. " - well worth a mention, nice :-)