Alresford
Children will enjoy the park half way along this walk as well as the duck feeding station.
The private home that is Fulling Mill
The Basics - The Original Route
Time: 1 hour 5 mins
Distance: 3.7 km / 2.3 miles
Terrain: Flat riverside paths, roads and pavements.
Pushchair: An off-road pushchair should be able to complete this route.
Dogs: Dogs should be on leads around town. Most of the park is open to dogs, with just a fence around the play equipment.
Refreshments: There are lots of options around Alresford town centre from pubs, cafes and bakeries to picnic benches at the park. The Alrebury Cafe is located on the first floor of the building beside the car park and also has an indoor play area for under 5’s.
Toilets: There are public toilets on Station Road or in The Alrebury Cafe for customers.
Public Transport: You could arrive in style on board a steam or heritage diesel train on The Watercress Line. Otherwise, Alresford is served by Stagecoach route 64 between Winchester and Alton.
Parking: There are a few car parks around the town, but we find the best one for this walk to be Alrebury Park car park, off The Avenue. It is free for the first two hours and also free on Sundays (Postcode: SO24 9EP - W3W: /// rooks.keyboard.overused)
Fulling Mill from the other side
This is a fantastic family walk that is the most searched for on our website. It starts from the delightful Georgian town of Alresford, with its independent shops and eateries, before joining the crystal clear river where you will spot one of Hampshire’s most photographed homes. The route also includes a children’s play area and a stall where you can buy bags of duck food.
We have also added a new route to this page which includes the main highlights of the original walk, but starts from Old Alresford where there is a park on the village green with a clear stream running past. The walk is slightly longer, but it has less time on roads.
The Original Route
Leave the car park and head towards the town centre down The Avenue and then West Street. Turn left onto Broad Street which leads onto Mill Hill. There are lots of independent shops and cafes to catch your attention along this stretch.
Turn left down Ladywell Lane when you see the footpath and signs for The Riverside Walk. The little lane will soon turn into a riverside path and you should keep following this with the river on your right.
You will pass a little memorial garden on your left which is good for picnics and soon after you will come to the idyllic, and much photographed, Fulling Mill.
After the mill, the next point of interest is a little stand where a local girl and her family put out little bags of duck food in exchange for a £1 donation (bring loose change or use the QR code to pay).
When done feeding the ducks, the river will take a sharp bend to the right. Keep following the river. Soon you will see the entrance to Alrebury Park on your left. This has picnic benches and a lovely play area. If you want to, you could cut the walk short here and walk through the park to the car park on the other side of the football club.
To continue the walk for longer, keep going along the riverside path. The next point of interest will be the old eel house. Go along the wooden walkways around the eel house and then continue along the river. Look out for a little stone bridge on your right. Cross the bridge and bear left, now with the river to your left.
The path will rise up and leave the river. Keep left at the junction and the path will soon take you between two high hedges. At the end, go through the gate, cross the driveway and continue on the footpath on the other side with a fence and a paddock to your right and the hedge and trees to your left.
When you reach the road, turn left and walk along the wide and quiet road. At the next junction, make a left turn and join the pavement on the splendid tree lined avenue which will lead you back to the car park. The play area can be found on the other side of the football pitches.
Gain access to the member's only area of our website where you will find the complete A-Z library of all our PDF files. This includes over 220 self-guided walks ready to print or download, as well as various children's activity sheets. You will also find a digital membership card, giving you access to our current discounts.
An alternative route starting in Old Alresford:
Our route starting from Old Alresford includes this park on the village green
The Basics - The Alternative Route Old Alresford to New Alresford
Time: 1 hour 15 mins
Distance: 4.4 km / 2.7 miles
Terrain: Flat riverside paths, fields and tracks with one steady hill, quiet country lanes with no pavement.
Pushchair: This route is not suitable for pushchairs.
Dogs: Dogs are welcome on this walk but should be on leads through the vineyard.
Refreshments: The Alrebury Cafe is located on the first floor of the building next to the football pitches in Arlebury Park. You can also add a short diversion from this walk to New Alresford town centre where there are lots of refreshment options.
Toilets: There are public toilets on Station Road in New Alresford or in The Alrebury Cafe for customers.
Public Transport: Cresta Coaches service 41 between New Alresford and Basingstoke stops at Old Alresford village hall.
Parking: There are a couple of lay-bys around the village green in Old Alresford - please do not use the village hall car park (Postcode: SO24 9DH - W3W: ///usages.pipes.promising). If the lay-bys are full, we advise starting this walk in New Alresford and using Alrebury Park car park off The Avenue. It is free for the first two hours and also free on Sundays. Join the route at step three below by passing the play equipment to your left and walking down to the river (Postcode: SO24 9EP - W3W: /// rooks.keyboard.overused)
Old Alresford village green
The Alternative Route - Old Alresford to New Alresford
Begin from the corner of the green where the play equipment is. Stand with the ‘start’ of the stream to your right and then turn left onto the road called The Green. You will immediately pass watercress beds to your left and should continue up the lane, passing the entrance to The Brook on your right. Just after this, turn left, following the footpath arrow. Pass all the houses and the tarmac will turn into an unsurfaced footpath. After Manor Farm, veer right and then walk along the bottom edge of an area of newly planted trees and out the kissing gate on the other side. Walk along the bottom edge of the field and at the other side, go through the gap in the hedge. The path will then bring you up to a gravel access track. Turn left and follow this to the road.
Turn left at the road and then take the first footpath on your right, signed to Fulling Mill. Follow this little lane to the old mill, where the water gushes straight under the property! The walk continues by turning right after the mill. If you want to visit old Alresford town centre, you should turn left and follow the riverside path (ten minutes each way), returning to this point afterwards. Walk with the river to your right and you will soon come to Amy’s Duck Food Table where there is usually a good stock of bags of duck food which you can purchase by putting £1 in the box.
After the duck food table, the river will take a sharp bend to the right and you should keep following it with the water to your right. The next diversion will be a gate on your left which will take you into Arlebury Park. There is a good sized-play area and further up the park by the football club is a cafe. If you chose to park at Alrebury Park, you can join the walk here. Return to the river and continue with the water to your right. You will pass some steps where children could access the water for a paddle in the summer. Just after this, you will reach the eel house and should walk around the building along the walkway.
After passing the eel house, the path will soon veer right over a tiny bridge. Keep left after the bridge and now walk with the water to your left. The path will rise up and leave the river and then meet a junction. Keep left and walk along the path between two high hedges. Go through the gate at the end.
Turn right after the gate and walk up the drive to the road. Turn left at the road and then immediately cross the road and take the small footpath up the bank. Go through the tall kissing gate and enter a vineyard. Turn right and walk up the field with the vines to your left. The path will rise to the top of the field and will then drop down again on the other side. Keep in the same direction until a similar tall gate will bring you out onto the road.
Turn right at the road and then take the first turn on your left along the restricted byway. Follow this long straight track for around fifteen minutes until you reach a chain at a little crosspath. Turn right and walk down the track and back to Old Alresford.
Gain access to the member's only area of our website where you will find the complete A-Z library of all our PDF files. This includes over 220 self-guided walks ready to print or download, as well as various children's activity sheets. You will also find a digital membership card, giving you access to our current discounts.
Did you know?
The eel house was used to trap eels as they made their way from the tributaries of Old Alresford Pond, down The River Itchen, into the English Channel and across the Atlantic Ocean to The Sargasso Sea. It is a mind blowing miracle of nature that all eels across the world will make a similar journey to return to breed in that one location. There are usually five or six open days a year, often coinciding with bank holidays, use this link to see when the next one will be.
If you enjoyed this walk…
…try this river walk at Itchen Stoke which also has a crystal clear river to enjoy.
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