A loop around Alice Holt Forest
"Follow the beautiful Lodge Pond Trail around this popular and historic woodland."
Walk directions
Walk through the car park from the visitor centre and turn left at the purple waymarker post (Lodge Pond Trail – LPT) opposite the large central fingerpost and signboard. Keep ahead past the turning on your left and descend to a forest track.
Turn left along LPT for 45yds (41m), then turn right down the steps, cross a brook and climb the steps on the other side. Follow the winding trail past a bench seat and down the steps to cross a stream. Bear left beyond the steps on the other side, climbing steadily on the undulating route before the path levels out to a crossways by a bench.
Keep ahead (purple arrow), pass a seat and then a clearing on the left and keep ahead. Climb steadily to a purple waymarker post (LPT) indicating a narrow woodland path off to your left.
Turn left here, and left at the T-junction (on LPT). Continue to a five-way junction by a bench and keep ahead across the broad forest track, waymarked towards Lodge Pond. Keep ahead at the next junction and turn left to walk parallel with the edge of the pond. Bear left past picnic tables, then turn right through a small parking area to a T-junction at the top of the clearing.
Turn right (on LPT) onto the forest track and continue for 500yds (457m) to a waymarked junction. Turn left, following the purple arrow, and keep ahead at the crossways that you passed earlier (Point 3), then take the right-hand turning (following the purple arrow) onto a path that leads down to a large wooden owl play structure.
Turn left at the wooden owl, now following the yellow arrow (Habitat Trail) and pass the picnic table and another play structure, then turn right at the crossways (yellow arrow). Cross a stream, pass the Giants play area, and keep left (purple arrow), then climb almost to the crest of the hill.
Turn right (purple arrow), pass another play area, bear left and across a track, then turn right past more play equipment to reach the forest centre. Turn right past the café and walk back to the car park.
Additional information
Terrain
- Well-marked tracks and woodland paths, muddy in places, several flights of steps
Landscape
- Undulating mixed woodland
Dog friendliness
- Popular for dogs
Parking
- At Alice Holt Forest
Toilets en route
- In the visitor centre
About the walk
There’s been a forest at Alice Holt since about 5000 bc. Iron Age people were using the local clay, water and fuel to make pottery here in the 1st century bc and those potteries expanded into a major industry in the years following the Roman invasion. Many of the trees had already been felled to... fuel the pottery kilns by the time the Romans left, early in the 5th century. The Saxons continued the felling, this time to create fields for their crops, but by the Middle Ages Alice Holt had become a royal hunting forest governed by a strict legal code. In later centuries more timber was extracted for construction and shipbuilding, so that by 1655 Charles II ordered the woods to be replanted. The forest’s heartbeat is measured in decades and the trees grew quietly for more than 100 years until the Napoleonic Wars once again created a demand for shipbuilding timber. Replanting a forest The modern history of Alice Holt really began after the Enclosure Act of 1812, when 1,600 acres (648ha) were enclosed and once again replanted with oak. By the time those trees came to maturity Britain was in the thick of World War I and the coal mines and trenches were swallowing up vast quantities of timber for pit props and revetments. Timber was a scarce commodity in postwar Britain and the government set up the Forestry Commission to help boost the supply of home-grown timber. The new agency took over responsibility for Alice Holt in 1924 and set about planting quick-growing conifers to meet the demand. Following World War II, the Forestry Commission began developing a research station around Alice Holt Lodge to the west of the A325 and additional laboratories were built in the late 1970s. Today, the Commission’s scientists are working on topical issues like environmental change, as well as exploring potential sources of biomass energy. But, as you’ll see from the picnic areas and play structures along this route, recreation facilities have also become a key part of the forest.
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Been on this walk?
Send us photos or a comment about this route. Or recommend a route of your own.
Walking in Safety
Read our tips to look after yourself and the environment when following this walk.
Get an AA guide
Explore our range of ‘50 Walks in’ guides - they’re the ideal companion for a ramble.
About the area
Hampshire’s varied landscape of hills and heaths, downlands and forests, valleys and coast are without rival in southern England. Hike across the chalk downland of the north Hampshire ‘highlands’, meander along peaceful paths through unspoilt river valleys of the Test, Itchen, Avon and Meon, or explore the lonely salt marshes and the beautiful medieval forest and heathland of the New Forest.
Nearby places to stay
View all (8)
Hotel
Frensham Pond Country House Hotel & Spa
★★★★
"Stylish 15th-century house and spa in pretty grounds...."
- Family rooms: 16
- Free TV
- WiFi available
Hotel
Bush Hotel Farnham
★★★★
"Right at the heart of this charming and historic town...."
- Family rooms: 5
- Free TV
- WiFi available
Holiday Park
Tilford Woods Lodge Retreat
★★★★
"A most peaceful and tranquil location in the Surrey countryside...."
Nearby places to stay
Frensham Pond Country House Hotel & Spa
Situated in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, overlooking Frensham Great Pond this is a walker’s and water-lover’s paradise close to footpaths that run through the 1,000-acre Natio...
★★★★ Rating
Bush Hotel Farnham
The Bush is an independent hotel that has been welcoming guests since 1618. Steeped in history but embracing contemporary design, it is situated in the heart of Farnham’s historic town ...
★★★★ Rating
Tilford Woods Lodge Retreat
Retreat to the woods when you stay in one of the log cabin style lodges at Tilford Woods. All accommodation features full self-catering facilities, with top of the range log cabins even...
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Four Seasons Hotel Hampshire
Four Seasons Hotel Hampshire is a Georgian manor house, set in 500 acres of undulating grounds and English Heritage listed gardens. Just an hour from London, it offers the upmost in lux...
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Harper's Haslemere
Harper's Haslemere is part of a small family of laid-back steak houses, fired up by the big, juicy stateside flavours from the best of east to west coast dining; from comforting to mind...
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The Hoddington Arms
This property is currently closed. The Hoddington Arms is a characterful independently and family run pub with rooms at the heart of Upton Grey village, offering a friendly welcome wit...
Awaiting inspection
King’s Arms & Royal
The King's Arms and Royal is in the town of Godalming, and was first mentioned in 1639. Nestled between the Surrey Hills AONB and the South Downs National Park, this charming property w...
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The Crown Inn Chiddingfold
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