Pipers Wait to Telegraph Hill

20 February 2009

I have obtained a fab little book full of great little walks that can be combined and turned into great big walks. I have listed it in the sidebar, but for present reference it is called "A Walk Around the New Forest" by Norman Henderson. It is a "Walk Around", too, around the perimeter of the National Park, a perambulation if you will, made up of 35 circular walks. The walks are not always within the boundaries of the National Park, as it now is. Some walks take in outlying footpaths, bridleways and by-ways within Wiltshire and Hampshire.

Where I have used this book for my walks, I will not include directions except as they pertain to my personal experiences recorded here, as the directions contained in the book are concise and I could be guilty of plagierism - no thanks. The walks in the book also detail the map references for car parks where applicable.

The view above is from Black Bush Plain overlooking the hangars of Bramshaw Wood near Pipers Wait Car Park, looking over Plaitford Common towards Romsey. As far as I can tell.

The car park at Pipers Wait is fairly small and the space was further hindered by a great pile of old lorry tyres which had been dumped there, whether by design or fly-tippers I don't know. I do know I had to move one to be able to turn my car around.

The walk is approximately 5 1/4 miles circular. As well as Pipers Wait and Bramshaw Telegraph it also takes in Eyeworth Pond and the plains of Longcross and Black Bush.

It was a beautiful sunny day at first, possibly the first day of Spring, and walking in the sunlight it was tempting to remove my fleece to just leave my T-shirt. I was glad I didn't as I came up through Claypits Bottom as the clouds came over the sun and it became a little chilly.

I did see a deer, which shot across my path near the stream in Crow's Nest Bottom. At the top of Pipers Wait there is a strange-looking hill covered in gorse and trees that doesn't look quite right. In fact, it's a rather cleverly disguised reservoir. Rabbits seem to like grazing the lawn around the base of the hill.

The walk across the open plains was lovely, as the sun deigned to show herself again for a while and the views across them to the further surrounding countryside of Wiltshire and Hampshire were always changing as now sunlight, now shadow passed over, mottling the landscape. In the picture above, the blue cast to the further view is due to its lying in the shadow of clouds at that moment.

Back at the car park I was accosted by a hopeful yearling. Disappointed, it mooched despondently away to munch sadly at some holly leaves after which it wandered away down the path into the woods. I was left to hot tea and Jaffa cakes.