The Solent Way is a long-distance

footpath A footpath (also pedestrian way, walking trail, nature trail) is a type of thoroughfare that is intended for use only by pedestrians and not other forms of traffic such as Motor vehicle, motorized vehicles, bicycles and horseback, horses. They ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

, southern

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. For the most part, the path follows the coast of the

Solent The Solent ( ) is a strait between the Isle of Wight and mainland Great Britain; the major historic ports of Southampton and Portsmouth lie inland of its shores. It is about long and varies in width between , although the Hurst Spit whi ...

, the sea strait that separates mainland Britain from the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight (Help:IPA/English, /waɪt/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''WYTE'') is an island off the south coast of England which, together with its surrounding uninhabited islets and Skerry, skerries, is also a ceremonial county. T ...

. The Solent Way forms part of the

King Charles III England Coast Path The King Charles III England Coast Path (KCIIIECP), originally and still commonly known as the England Coast Path, is a long-distance National Trail that will follow the coastline of England. When complete, it will be long. Various parts of t ...

, as well as part of the E9 European Coastal Path, which runs for 5000 km (3125 miles) from Cape St Vincent in

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

Narva-Jõesuu Narva-Jõesuu is a seaside resort town in northeast Estonia. It is located by the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, on the west bank of the Narva River, which forms the Estonia–Russia international border. Narva-Jõesuu marks the northea ...

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

. The way is marked by circular discs bearing a green arrow and a picture of a

tern Terns are seabirds in the family Laridae, subfamily Sterninae, that have a worldwide distribution and are normally found near the sea, rivers, or wetlands. Terns are treated in eleven genera in a subgroup of the family Laridae, which also ...

. These are attached to wooden posts and street furniture along the route.

Route

The Solent Way starts in the seaside resort of

Milford on Sea Milford on Sea, often hyphenated, is a large coastal village and civil parish in the New Forest district, on the Hampshire coast, England. The parish had a population of 4,660 at the 2011 census and is centred about south of Lymington. Touri ...

, where it connects with the Bournemouth Coast Path. It then follows the coastline and the shingle spit to the fortifications of Hurst Castle. From Hurst Castle there are two alternative routes, one involving retracing steps along the shingle spit ( Hurst Spit), the other catching the seasonal ferry to Keyhaven. From Keyhaven the route follows the marshes and former saltings to the port and sailing centre of

Lymington Lymington is a port town on the west bank of the Lymington River on the Solent, in the New Forest (district), New Forest district of Hampshire, England. The town faces Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, to which there is a Roll-on/roll-off, car ferry s ...

. From Lymington the Solent Way crosses the

Lymington River The Lymington River drains part of the New Forest in Hampshire in southern England. Numerous headwaters to the west of Lyndhurst, Hampshire, Lyndhurst give rise to the river, including Highland Water, Bratley Water and Fletchers Water. From Bro ...

then continues a mile or so inland of the coast, giving occasional glimpses to the busy Solent to the south-east. Soon the path enters the New Forest, passing Sowley Pond before reaching

Buckler's Hard Buckler's Hard is a hamlet in the civil parish of Beaulieu, in the New Forest district, in the county of Hampshire, England, on the banks of the Beaulieu River. With its two rows of Georgian cottages running down to the river, Buckler's Ha ...

on the Beaulieu River. From Buckler's Hard the path follows the edge of the river to Beaulieu and on to Hythe on the west bank of Southampton Water. From Hythe the path takes the Hythe Ferry across Southampton Water to the Town Quay in the centre of the port city of

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

. From Southampton the Solent Way passes through the city centre, crosses the River Itchen by the high-level Itchen Bridge and follows the northern shore of Southampton Water past Netley Castle, the ruins of Netley Abbey, and the Royal Victoria Country Park to the yachting centre of

Hamble-le-Rice Hamble-le-Rice, commonly known as Hamble, is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Eastleigh (borough), Borough of Eastleigh in Hampshire, England. It is best known for being a flying training centre during the Second Wor ...

. Here it crosses the

River Hamble The River Hamble in south Hampshire, England, source (river), rises near Bishop's Waltham and flows for through Botley, Hampshire, Botley, Bursledon, and Lower Swanwick before entering Southampton Water between Hamble Common and Warsash. The ...

on the small pedestrian Hamble-Warsash Ferry to the village of Warsash. From Warsash, the north shore of the Solent is regained, and followed past Titchfield Haven National Nature Reserve and through the seaside centres of Hill Head and Lee-on-Solent to the town of

Gosport Gosport ( ) is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hampshire, England. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census, the town had a population of 70,131 and the district had a pop ...

on the western side of

Portsmouth Harbour Portsmouth Harbour is a / biological Site of Special Scientific Interest between Portsmouth and Gosport in Hampshire. It is a Ramsar site and a Special Protection Area. It is a large natural harbour in Hampshire, England. Geographically it ...

. Here the Gosport Ferry is used to cross Portsmouth Harbour to Portsmouth Harbour railway station in the centre of the naval city of

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

. The Solent Way then follows the seaside promenade through the resort of

Southsea Southsea is a seaside resort and a geographic area of Portsmouth, Portsea Island in the ceremonial county of Hampshire, England. Southsea is located 1.8 miles (2.8 km) to the south of Portsmouth's inner city-centre. Southsea began as a f ...

, and along the western and northern shores of Langstone Harbour past Farlington Marshes Nature Reserve to the village of Langstone. From Langstone the path follows the north coast of

Chichester Harbour Chichester Harbour is a large natural harbour in West Sussex and Hampshire. It is situated to the south-west of the city of Chichester and to the north of the Solent. The harbour and surrounding land has been designated as an Area of Outstand ...

and passes Warblington Castle before reaching its end at the village of Emsworth.

References

External links

Description of the Solent Way from Hampshire County Council
{{Coastal paths of Britain The Solent Footpaths in Hampshire Long-distance footpaths in England Coastal paths in England

Route

See also

References

External links