Parking
Use the public parking in Burley village. Start at the bus stop opposite The Burley Inn; public toilets are in the village.
Overview
About Burley Village Walk
Why go
- Castle Hill's Iron Age earthworks and clear-day valley views
- A mix of village lanes and open forest
Heads up
- Three road crossings and a stretch beside the main road
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the New Forest map
Full mapElevation45–100 m
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
1 active New Forest alert
- CautionNew Forest outdoor-fire restrictionDo not use BBQs, campfires, stoves, outdoor camping equipment or other naked flames on the open Forest.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
New Forest Tour Guide
Your drive to Burley Village Walk, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for New Forest National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this trailhead
Burley Village0:00 / 0:34
“You're approaching Burley, a village of thatched cottages, roaming ponies, and witchcraft shops.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf New Forest Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- How Burley Took Shape
- Lovey Warne's Red Warning
- A Road Through the Hillfort
- The Mill Behind Mill Lane
- 283 audio storiesacross New Forest’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Red Deer, White-tailed Eagle, Harbor Seal, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 70 trails, 48 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Burley Village Walk
The village loopBurley Village Walk is a 4.
Burley Village Walk is a 4.2-mile loop from the village to Castle Hill's Iron Age hillfort and back around Burley's edge. Allow 2–3 hours. The earthwork ridge is the main stop; in clear weather, look southwest over Cranes Moor and the Avon Valley toward the Purbeck hills.
Climb and returnStart at the bus stop opposite The Burley Inn and take Pound Lane.
Start at the bus stop opposite The Burley Inn and take Pound Lane. After the village pavement ends, follow the track uphill past Burley Beacon to Castle Hill. A steep dip and short climb lead to the earthworks. Descend toward Randells Farm, cross the main road and walk beside it over Coach Hill Lane to Forest Road. A footbridge crosses the ford; then the Open Forest opens to your left. Pass a Bronze Age tumulus and turn down Chapel Lane, crossing Mill Lawn Brook twice before the old chapel. Beechwood Lane climbs toward St John the Baptist church; Church Lane's gravel track through a small wood completes the loop.
Before you goMost of the route is easy walking with one long, gentle uphill, though the dip at Castle Hill…
Most of the route is easy walking with one long, gentle uphill, though the dip at Castle Hill is steeper. Expect three road crossings and a stretch beside traffic. Dogs are allowed; keep them on lead in car parks and alongside roads, and under effective control elsewhere. Burley's public parking, toilets, shops and pubs are at the village start or finish.
Wildlife
Wildlife in New Forest
28 sightingsRed DeerMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
10 sightingsWhite-tailed EagleMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
14 sightingsHarbor SealMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
176 sightingsEuropean Fallow DeerMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
93 sightingsWestern Roe DeerMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
54 sightingsMute SwanMost seen around 6 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across New Forest. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
