Sunday April 18
Brockenhurst College,
Lyndhurst Road,
Brockenhurst,
Hampshire.
SO42 7ZE

The first sportive in the Wiggle Super Series has 2 route lengths (83miles / 56 miles).

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Get on your bike for Marie Curie Cancer Care. Enjoy either a 12 mile “leisurely” route or the “challenging” 30 mile option. Both tracks start and finish in Burley. The route follows some classic New Forest gravel trails but with some road sections. Along the way expect to see ponies, donkeys, cattle and deer.

Sunday June 6, 2010
Routes 12m or 30m

Register online. For further information telephone: 020 7599 7337 or email: londonsoutheastevents@mariecurie.org.uk

Marie Curie provide care to around 30000 terminally ill patients and their families – entirely free of charge. Raising just £20 sponsorship will provide one hour of nursing care in a patient’s home.

View images of the 2008 Marie Curie New Forest Bike Ride.

As we approach March, and the start of spring, what better way is there to show how much you love the New Forest than by joining in annual New Forest spring clean?

Resemble not the little snail, who with slime records its trail…

PUBLIC LITTER PICKS – 6TH TO 14TH MARCH 2010

• Date, Location, Grid Reference
• Saturday 6th March, Godshill Cricket Pitch car park. SU182151
• Monday 8th March, Vereley car park. SU197052
• Tuesday 9th March. Dibden car park. SU407057
• Wednesday 10th March, Anderwood car park. SU248058
• Friday 12th March, Broadley car park. SU247988
• Saturday 13th March, Forest Front, Netley View. SU424053
• Sunday 14th March, Kings Hat car park. SU386055

All litter picks start at 10am and will finish by 12.30pm.
Volunteers should wear suitable footwear and clothing (trousers).

There is a minimum age of 16 years on all the litter picks

Spaces on each event are limited so please phone Alexis Reeve at the Forestry Commission on 023 8028 6840 (Mon – Friday 8.30am-4pm) or by e-mail

Learn More

We took a lovely walk today. From Burley Street, Forest Drive then headed north into the forest and back round to Burley. On the way we saw the shedded skin of an Adder, then disturbed a herd of deer who fleeted away from us, and the sun was shining!

Here are the pics.

The National Park Authority are proposing a scheme to make some car parks “dog free”. This comes from their draft Recreation Management Strategy and is causing a bit of a fuss from New Forest dog walkers.

I don’t have a dog. I used to own a Rottweiler though, and I know they do like a good walk! I have only had one bad experience with a dog in the Forest. I got chased by one when cycling. This was from a dog from a local farm, and not really related to the walkers ban issue.

Apart from that my experience of dog walkers has been pretty positive. Most of them are considerate to me, especially when cycling. I suspect there will be irresponsible dog owners who use the Forest, but it is a real shame when this minority will potentially curb the freedom of the vast majority of responsible dog owners and their four legged companions.

The New Forest Dog Owners Group (NFDOG) was started to protect the rights of dog owners. Here is their New Forest Dog Walking Code.

• If you cannot control your dog you must keep it on a lead
• Your dog must not be allowed to disturb or chase livestock or wildlife
• Keep your dog to existing tracks when birds nest on the ground
• Prevent your dog fouling on footpaths and around car parks
• Groups of dogs can be intimidating – keep them under control
• Be considerate to other forest users
• Keep well away for any work taking place in the forest
• Prevent excessive barking by your dog

Here is a publication from the NFDOG regarding this draft from the NPA.

The New Forest Full and Half Marathons have become a regular fixture in September of each year. This years marathon is on Sunday the 21st September.

Raising between £40000 and £60000 each year for charity. The marathon will start from New Milton passing through Bashley, Wootton, Holmsley, Burley to the South Oakley Inclosure then running back through Sway and returning to New Milton for the finish.

The entry book is closed for this year, but you can learn more about the New Forest Marathon here.

Went for a nice cycle ride this morning. Headed out for the Bratley Plain, just north of the busy A31. Listening to my iPod helped drown out the traffic noise. Cycling along I saw a nice view of ponies grazing in the purple heather. I stopped, got my camera out, and then saw three stags, who had just seen me. Fumbling with the camera, I was too slow and the three deer made a dash for the cover of the nearby trees.

On the way back I noticed some orange and yellow fungi, just along the road to Burley.

I enjoyed my visit to New Forest Cider, who are tucked away behind the Forest Tea Rooms, Pound Lane, Burley. I came away with a few litres of their excellent Snake-Catcher Scrumpy too, which made the trip even more rewarding, what’s more I even have the pictures to prove it.

Cider Making Open Weekend

On the 18th and 19th October 2008, from 11am to 4.30pm you can:
" Come and see cider making as t’wer done in Grandfer’s day with a vintage steam driven mobile press, a hand operated twin screw press and a horse drawn travelling press."

www.newforestcider.co.uk

Yesterday I took my Specialized Rockhopper Disc ‘08 mountain bike for a quick spin. In the end it turned out to be a little bit more than a fleeting outing around the forest.

As a former Scout, I try to adhere to the "be prepared" mantra. Cycling round the New Forest, especially on it’s gravel tracks, can be hard on bike and rider. Cycling alone, brings added responsibilities too. Do you carry a puncture repair kit, tools, and a pump with you? My Speacialized Sirrus Pro for 7 years yielded no punctures on it’s daily commute, on the relatively smooth West London streets. I did have a good tyre though. Specialized Armadillos. Heavy, but exceptionally puncture resistant.

No matter how prepared you are. Things can go wrong. A friend of mine used to regularly take his campervan abroad in the summer. Trekking down to Spain, he even took a spare clutch with him. However when the clutch did eventually give way, he found that his spare clutch was the wrong model! I found myself in a similar situation yesterday. I got my first flat in the forest. Luckily it happened less than a mile and a half from my home. I had a spare tube, pump and CO2 canister, what could go possibly wrong?

I thought that I would just inflate the tyre with my brand new CO2 cartridge, and cycle straight home. This is where I came unstuck. I installed the cartridge, in the pump thing. But I couldn’t get a good coupling on the front tyre valve. The cartridge released, but most of it escaped the tubes inners.

I tried using the manual pump but again couldn’t connect properly with the valve. So I gave up, and pushed the bike home. Along the way I admired and took some pictures of ponies, cattle and also some funguii that I would have missed if my tyre had been inflated.

Today, I fixed the puncture at home, and inflated the tyre using my stirrup pump. At least the bike is ready for another outing. I know how to connect my Combo2 pump, now the lever needs to be up to latch the valve, the opposite to my stirrup pump, again made by Specialized. Well, I know now. Next time I will be better prepared before I cycle out into the New Forest.

Essential Cycling Kit

• Helmet – goes without saying on these gravel tracks
• Pump – working!
• Puncture Repair Kit
• Tools – allen keys, spanners, screwdriver
• Mobile Phone – a good idea

One of the highlights of my days is when the sun goes down in Burley. The twighlight brings out one of the magical and celebrated creatures of the night, the bat. These elusive creatures often skim over my rooftop as they hunt for insects.

There are 17 species of bat in the UK. I am not sure what species the bat in my photo comes from, but all the same, he or she is a fascinating warm blooded creature. Like the snake, numbers of bats have decreased drastically over the last century. Visit Bat Conservation Trust to learn more about protecting these wonderful flying mammals.

If you too are batty about bats you could sign up for the Family Bat Discovery guided, short walk this Friday on August 22nd 2008.