Circle the natural wonder of Upton Heath. From its urban edge, weave between towering silver birch, aromatic heather, and the clumpy, sharp gorse. Pass the site of an old brickworks with views over the heathland to Poole Harbour. Its harsh environment often played the backdrop in Thomas Hardy novels, when it was only inhabited by … Continue reading Upton Heath
Explore the scenic National Nature Reserves of Tadnoll and Winfrith. Climb up a rare, ancient bell barrow, rising high above the heathland, to views across the south of Dorset. Follow the railway to the road to cross bridges built by generous landowners, allowing access between their estates. Use the old carriage rides of Moreton Park … Continue reading Tadnoll
West Knighton. Wander through a landscape where the villages have been deserted, woods exploited and the ground quarried. A landscape, full of forest, heath, floodplains and a lonely standing stone, which was once bustling with life from the medieval period, through to both World Wars. The Norman knights, American soldiers and extraction machinery have all gone … Continue reading West Knighton
Off the tourist trail on the Isle of Purbeck, filling the low land between Corfe Castle and Poole Harbour, is Wytch Heath. Follow medieval trails over little stone bridges through a once heavily industrial landscape, its resources tapped since the Bronze Age. Skim the oil refinery, hidden behind thick Corsican pines and hard working nodding donkeys, … Continue reading Wytch
Follow the River Stour as it meanders through the valley under the shadow of Hambledon Hill. Visit an island nature reserve, with the river lapping at its banks and otters splashing in the water, before arriving at the old Somerset and Dorset railway line. Cross fields and farms to the secret village of Hammoon, hidden … Continue reading Child Okeford and Hammoon
Reaching out into Poole Harbour, this sandy peninsula is home to all six British reptiles, managed and protected by the RSPB. Wander through the ancient woodland, minding out for the odd WW2 bomb crater, to reach the white shell beach of Shipstal, lined with trees clinging to life by their roots. Admire views across the … Continue reading Arne
