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Where to Ride: New Forest: Leisure
Burley | Words and Pictures: Hugo Gladstone
The New Forest couldn't be much better prepared for the pleasure cyclist. It is by-and-large flat (although can spring the odd surprise), often sheltered by trees and almost blanketed by a maximum 40mph speed limit upon its roads. Even better are the 100 miles plus of cycle-permissible forestry tracks. While these may not present much of a challenge to the hardcore mountain biker, they make for the ideal traffic-free dawdle amongst the trees and across the heaths.
The potential for good easy cycling has not escaped the notice of local entrepreneurs. In the small village of Brockenhurst there are at least two cycle hire companies. Competition between them means a high level of service, reasonable prices and decent bikes. Hire outlets also exist in Lyndhurst and Burley - the latter of which I headed to when a late afternoon outing tickled my fancy.
The village is a leafy little place tucked away towards the southwestern corner of the National Park. Thanks to the one-time residence of occult figurehead Sybil Leek, the village comprises an awful lot of witchcraft-themed tourist shops. Never mind the dreadful tat they sell, it remains a charming and bucolic place where winding lanes entice you off in every direction.
Forest Leisure Cycling's shop is right in the centre of the village and inside I'm talked through some of the local rides by the man behind the till, Mark. From beneath the counter he plucks a map marked with seven colour coded routes and a healthy smattering of pubs. He particularly recommends the 12-mile Deer Sanctuary Loop to the north of the village. Not only does this pass an animal reserve with a viewing platform where in the summer months you can watch fallow deer being fed (1:30pm-2:30pm), but it also takes in the majestic trees along the Bolderwood Arboretum Ornamental Drive. Another ride he highlights is the old railway route which passes the "highly recommended" Station House tea room.
"This is the most popular one with our customers," he says. "The old railway is completely flat, so it's ideal if you have young kids."
To reach the old railway you head out of the village up Pound Lane, directly across the street from the shop. Coming the other way I see a couple of parents leading kids in trailers. They look satisfied after an afternoon's riding.
The entrance to the rail trail is on the left of the road at the Burbush Hill car park. Heading east, the trail is initially wet and boggy. The New Forest, you see, sits in a basin that was once the bed of a river estuary and the sea. For days after heavy rain the lower lying sections of the National Park retain water like a sponge. Within a couple of hundred yards, however, I'm out of the cutting and happily skimming along a dry, gravel track across heathland.
I find the Station House at a break in the old line. It indeed looks a fine establishment, offering meals, snacks, cakes and beverages. I briefly entertain the idea of a cup of tea out on the veranda, but all I really want to do is keep pedalling.
From the tea room, the old railway line continues towards Brockenhurst, but not without first sharing its route with a mile long stretch of heavily trafficked B-road. Looking for a more pleasant option, I retrace my tracks through an avenue of trees. At the next road crossing I turn right to return towards Burley by quiet back lanes.
As I leave the old railway, I am greeted by a horse plodding towards me down the road. These can be found all over the New Forest, grazing at roadsides, in the woods and even -in the villages- at garden privet fences. It's thanks to their persistent, widespread nibbling, that the forest is not one big overgrown thicket.
Although a legacy of William the First's somewhat unpopular anti-enclosure laws, the free roaming animals are perhaps one of the most charming aspects of the New Forest. Their renowned presence had even my girlfriend -one of the most reluctant cyclists going- itching to come down and join me for the ride. Had my visit to the New Forest not clashed with an intense period of study for her, we'd still be there now, oohing , ahhing and no doubt ramming memory card after memory card with photos of New Forest ponies.
The road I follow snakes sweetly up across a heath to a crossroads. Crossing it without a plan, I feel like I've entered New Forest pony mode myself. Just as they do, I find myself roaming freely - on the road, off the road and around the backstreets of the village. Dreamily I pass through a beech wood, cross a pasture and pause on a bridge to hear the water of a brook trickle by. When I look upstream, the gulley it runs through seems as lush as a verdant rainforest.
At forest gate nine, I join a section of the Deer Sanctuary Loop and meet a couple heading off for a ride into the evening. "Do do you know where there's a pub?" one of them asks. I unfold my map and curiously ask what their plans are.
"We're heading to the Isle of Wight for a few days," I'm told. "We thought we'd spend a night down here on the drive down."
They were pretty disorganised, they explain, hence the late start. But at least had the foresight to pack bike lights with them. The notion strikes me as very romantic: pedalling off through the forest for dinner at a pub then returning to a B&B by moonlight.
Leaving them to it, I freewheel on, in just the perfect mood for ambling. The lanes are leafy. The late afternoon light is delicious and reflects warmly off the side of a chapel. I keep on exploring until the sun sets.
Route
See Map My Ride
Useful Links
New Forest Cycle Hire
Burley: Forest Leisure Cycling
Brockenhurst : Cycle Experience; Country Lanes
Lyndhurst Bike Hire: AA Bike Hire
Beaulieu: New Forest Activities
