Holbury Manor Park & Warren Copse

Holbury Manor Park & Warren Copse On the evening of 15th May we had a walk round Holbury Manor Park and Warren Copse. Our first challenge was to find the car park situated off Holbury Drove. We eventually located this small car park tucked away opposite Depedene Close and entered Manor Park on foot. Manor Park is the site of a medieval monastic grange granted to Beaulieu Abbey in 1312 which existed until dissolution. This was replaced by post medieval houses the latest of which was destroyed by fire in 1976. The site now holds a house divided into flats built in the late 1980’s. A moat and fish ponds are the only remnants of the ancient monastic grange. The parkland is now maintained as a recreational area and wildlife reserve for the surrounding area. Entry from the car park is into a grassland area with mown paths to encourage wild flowers on the uncut meadow. We turned left to enter the wooded area of Warren Copse. This ancient woodland has been cleared of debris and opened out to reveal the forest floor. At the time of our walk bluebells were in flower and covered many of the cleared areas of woodland; a living testimony of conservation work. Many of the old beech trees had recently come into leaf with their pristine lime green and unset leaves. Large oak trees towered above the forest floor already well into leaf compared to the just opening leaves of the ash. Oak before Ash and we will have a splash being the better option to a soak. We occasionally came across small trees covered in blossom with some doubt as to their identity but on reflection they were probably Crab Apple since the blossom had a slight pink tinge and are known to grow in the area. We eventually came out of Warren Copse on to the Rollestone road and turned right to walk along the road into the New Forest National Park. Shortly after passing under electricity wires we turned off the road into a wood and walked alongside a field. The wood eventually changed to open moorland and we followed a feint path across in the same direction. This path eventually took us into Green Rollestone Copse and the path continued along ever more muddy and trampled stretches until we came across a pound used for gathering ponies during the annual drift. Although this was part of a public right of way the gates were locked shut but we were able to untie a metal section in order to walk through. We entered a rough track called appropriately Roughdown lane which we followed round to the left and into a small hamlet called Roughdown. Some of the houses were obviously very old as they were single story very small dwellings with small windows and corrugated iron roofs but one or two had been replaced by modern out of town buildings. At the end of the houses we turned left and walked along a tree lined path at the edge of Rollestone Copse until we emerged from the wood at the entrance to a private estate and turned right to walk down a small country lane. The verges of this lane were covered in bluebells and white stitchwort which must have gladdened the heart of any passing Scotsman. On a warm still evening as the sun was dipping below the horizon the walk along this country lane proved very pleasant indeed. We recognised the field on our left as the one we had walked along the other side on our outward journey: not least because of the large electricity pylon in the middle. At the end of the lane we crossed over Rollestone road and re-entered Warren Copse. We took a more westerly path through the copse almost alongside Park Lane and eventually came to the small fishing lakes of Holbury Manor Park. Our path then took us across the meadow back to the car park from which we had started. This walk turned out to be interesting and varied and could be so at any time of the year but probably well worth another visit in June.