Parking
The route starts at Pollards Moor Road bus stop. Parking is available outside Copythorne Infant School (SU 308 148) out of school hours; the walk passes the school.
Overview
About Copythorne and Cadnam Common
Why go
- Woodland and open heath glades in one loop
- A Cadnam River footbridge and oak-lined return path
Heads up
- Four stiles and one steeper section
- A road stretch and a hidden Newbridge turn
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the New Forest map
Full mapElevation19–55 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 Copythorne and Cadnam Common, 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
Copythorne and Cadnam Commons0:00 / 0:23
“You're approaching Copythorne Common, where the four-mile loop begins by Pollards Moor Road bus stop.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf New Forest Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- The Apple Scent on the Common
- The Charter After the King's Forest
- The Hollows on Copythorne Common
- Why Spring Brings Foals
- 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 Copythorne and Cadnam Common
What the loop coversAt 4 miles (6.
At 4 miles (6.5 km), this circular walk starts at Pollards Moor Road bus stop and links St Mary’s Church, Copythorne Common, Newbridge and Cadnam Common. It alternates woodland tracks, heathland glades, hedge-lined field paths and short road sections. The narrow concrete footbridge over the Cadnam River is the change of scene between the two commons.
Where it gets fiddlyAllow 2–3 hours.
Allow 2–3 hours. It’s rated easy, though four stiles and one steep section make it more than a stroll, and woodland tracks can be muddy. In Newbridge the return path is tucked away: turn off 25 m past the red phone box and follow the tree-lined path between big oaks back uphill into Copythorne Common. Grazing ponies and cattle help keep open patches within the woodland; look for chamomile on lawns and listen for wood crickets in summer.
Access and parkingCross the M27 on a road bridge and watch traffic at both road crossings; one field-edge stretch…
Cross the M27 on a road bridge and watch traffic at both road crossings; one field-edge stretch runs beside an electric fence. Keep dogs on a lead in the reserve. There are no facilities on the route. Bluestar T3/T4 buses run between Totton and Cadnam. Drivers can park outside Copythorne Infant School, grid reference SU 308 148, out of school hours.
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.
