Itchen Valley Country Park

We started our weekend walks with a trip to Itchen Valley Country Park, mainly because I wanted to purchase a copy of The Itchen Way guidebook, which is only sold at their gift shop. I doubt we'll ever do the full 10hr walk, but by breaking into smaller pieces we intend to walk the length of the Itchen Navigation this year.

Upon arrival there was plenty of parking and the car park was reasonable at £2.50 for 1-4 hours. A copy of the guidebook was acquired and stashed in the car and we headed into the park.

On a slightly soggy January afternoon the park was pleasantly quiet and we decided to walk the 1hr Woods and Meadow Walk. Except I accidentally put us onto the Forest Trail, having mixed up the names. The forest trail was a pleasant wander through the woods on very good paths (several buggies were encountered) and quickly took us back to the car park. The half hour walk-time was pessimistic - we weren't rushing and it took us maybe 15 mins max.

After our little meander we looked at the map(!) and this time did find the Woods and Meadow Walk, which took us across High Hill Field and into the Woodland Nature Reserve - the field was a bit wet, and the woodland was very muddy, but it was a nice little walk - again, the 1hr estimate was a long way out, and it took about 25 mins.

At one end of the Woodland Nature Reserve trail there's a little side track to a viewing platform which overlooks the brick kiln which was discovered on the site in November 2003.

We stopped in at the very reasonably priced cafe on our way for a quick cuppa then headed home. I probably wouldn't drive up here again, because the walks are a little short even for us, but it's only about a 45 minute walk from home so we will probably walk up and back in the summer and try the Meadow Trail.

The map of the park is displayed on boards at the park, freely printable from the Eastleigh BC website (below) and can be purchased in booklet form for 60p from the on-site shop.

As noted above, the estimated walk times were about double what it actually took two adults to stroll around. Perhaps if you were corralling dogs and tiny children it would take the times stated, but otherwise expect to complete the loops a lot more quickly.

In the winter, the park is open from 8am to 7pm and the cafe and visitors center are open from 10:30am to 4:30pm on weekends and school holidays. There is also a Go Ape centre on site for the more adventurous.

Statistics:

Total Walk Time: 45 minutes
Walking Conditions: Easy and Flat, muddy in places.
Cost: £2.50 for 4 hours in car park

Useful Websites:

Eastleigh BC Website:
https://www.eastleigh.gov.uk/sport,-countryside,-parks-culture/countryside/itchen-valley-country-park.aspx

Go Ape:
https://goape.co.uk/days-out/southampton

Trip Advisor:
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g503826-d215554-Reviews-or10-Itchen_Valley_Country_Park-Eastleigh_Hampshire_England.html