Circular walk from East Meon

Rolling downs, rivers and a picturesque village

A mix of grass and uneven ground. One long climb and descent.

Getting here

By bus: Regular services from Petersfield and Winchester, visit traveline.info/se.

By rail: The nearest train station is Petersfield, visit nationalrail.co.uk.

Points of interest

East Meon

The picturesque village of East Meon, once owned by the Bishops of Winchester, is home to many historic buildings including the Old Court House. There are a couple of pubs offering delicious local food and a village shop for essentials. The walks in this leaflet start at the imposing Norman church of All Saints with its magnificent spire which was added in 1230. Pop inside the church to see its beautiful, medieval font.

River Meon

Filtered by the chalk of the South Downs, the crystal clear waters of the River Meon flow for 21 miles down to the Solent. At South Farm you’ll see one of the sources of this beautiful river known as ‘the Swift one’. Providing a rare and precious habitat for
an array of species, you might be lucky enough to spot otter and kingfisher. The river supports a good population of fish too such as wild trout, minnows and brook lamprey.

South Downs Way

Stretching the entire length of the South Downs National Park, this 100m national trail runs from the historic city of Winchester to the white cliffs of Beachy Head at Eastbourne. The section of this trail in these walks gives you stunning views out over
the quintessential English, rolling countryside.

The Meon Valley Partnership (MVP)

The Meon Valley Partnership (MVP) was created in 2008 to help improve the condition of the River Meon. Working with volunteers and local people the MVP have been part of a number of projects including re-introducing water voles in the
Meon Valley. Recorded as locally extinct in 2003 they are now thriving and have been
recorded at 30 locations along the River Meon from source to sea, including at East Meon.

The partnership have also been involved in naturalising the river by narrowing it to
create pools and flow deflectors to generate places for fish to hide from predators and keep the river cool. Plants have been added to the riverbanks to increase biodiversity, attracting insects, birds and small mammals. Examples of this can be seen through the centre of East Meon village.

www.meonvalleypartnership.org.uk

Directions

1. Starting at the church, walk up through the cemetery and continue in this direction to Chalk Dell Cottages.
2. Cross the road and continue on the footpath opposite, crossing several fields to Drayton Farm.
3. At Drayton Farm, turn left on the road and cross the River Meon before turning up onto Halnaker Lane. Continue south on this byway through woods until you come to a crossroad of paths, where you meet the South Downs Way.
4. Here you can take a short cut by turning left onto the footpath back to East Meon. For the longer trail, continue uphill on this byway for nearly two miles, to the Sustainability Centre on the crest of the downs.
5. Walk along the path adjacent to the road, crossing two road junctions and proceed on the South Downs Way, now as a stony byway for about 1km, until you reach a footpath on your left.
6. Follow the footpath downhill towards South Farm and the source of the River Meon (a pond). Then continue across the road to a footpath at Lower Farm.
7. This footpath zig zags, following field boundaries, to marker 8 on the map and the next path junction.
8. Turn right and follow the fence-line for about 350m, then turn right through a wooden gate and follow the path into East Meon.
9. At the road turn right following it past the village school and shop. At the end of the road turn left to cross the river and reach your starting point.