| Date: Location: Walk Leader: Participants: Distance: Parking: Lunch: | 17th December 2014 New Forest Deer Sanctuary Peter Peter, Ray, Rob 9.5 miles Deer Sanctuary Car Park Queens Head Burley ★★ |
After my little dig last week about Rushmore 93 Rob named this walk New Forest 205. We have certainly walked a lot in the Forest recently but ……
This walk was a bit different because it started on a route that avoided the cycle tracks. Slightly risky given the amount of rain we have had recently. Although it was a dull day the walk turned out reasonably well and we all enjoyed it in spite of the fact that one or two deviations made it a bit longer than planned. An early bit of excitement was the sight of a substantial herd of deer with several stags. They appeared a little nervous but stood still long enough for a picture.
The first snag arose when we reached Bratley Water. The stream was flowing quite fast and we had to such in both directions before finding a place where we could cross and this involved balancing on a log! (See picture below.) It's a good job we are all fearless.
The path then climbs steadily towards the A31 before running parallel with the road for a while and then heading out across Backley Plain.
It was a small deviation to visit Soarley Beeches for our morning break and it was well worth the effort as it is a lovely place to sit and admire the scenery.
After the break we continued to the south and into Berry Wood. The paths through here are not that easy to follow and the gps came in handy again. We were quite pleased to eventually reach the cycle track as this promised some easier ground underfoot even if it did seem as it was uphill all the way back to the Deer Sanctuary. There was barely any mention of the famed "Canadian".
We drove back into Burley for lunch at the Queens Head where the gammon eggs and chips was as good as it usually is.
This walk was a bit different because it started on a route that avoided the cycle tracks. Slightly risky given the amount of rain we have had recently. Although it was a dull day the walk turned out reasonably well and we all enjoyed it in spite of the fact that one or two deviations made it a bit longer than planned. An early bit of excitement was the sight of a substantial herd of deer with several stags. They appeared a little nervous but stood still long enough for a picture.
The first snag arose when we reached Bratley Water. The stream was flowing quite fast and we had to such in both directions before finding a place where we could cross and this involved balancing on a log! (See picture below.) It's a good job we are all fearless.
The path then climbs steadily towards the A31 before running parallel with the road for a while and then heading out across Backley Plain.
It was a small deviation to visit Soarley Beeches for our morning break and it was well worth the effort as it is a lovely place to sit and admire the scenery.
After the break we continued to the south and into Berry Wood. The paths through here are not that easy to follow and the gps came in handy again. We were quite pleased to eventually reach the cycle track as this promised some easier ground underfoot even if it did seem as it was uphill all the way back to the Deer Sanctuary. There was barely any mention of the famed "Canadian".
We drove back into Burley for lunch at the Queens Head where the gammon eggs and chips was as good as it usually is.
 Fallow Deer |  Looking bleak |  A tricky crossing! |
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