Picket Post Distance: 6 miles Map: Outdoor leisure 22, The New Forest Start: Picket Plain car park near to the Picket Post services on the A31. Reference GR 192058. If travelling along the A31, the turn off will be marked for the services and Burley. For a scaleable map of the starting point, refer to the link to the streetmap web page here. The walk: Leave Picket Post car park and walk across the road opposite. Pick your way through the small patch of gorse the other side of the road. There are several small pathways through it. The other side you will find a wider grassy track. Turn left onto the track and follow it as it leads towards the A32 road. At this point, a well-behaved dog could enjoy over 5 miles of walk off the lead, although do look out for any deer on the grassy plains. The track swings slightly to the right and then you are looking to enter a pedestrian and animal underpass. Pass under the main road and a few yards after coming out the other side, turn right onto a cycle path signed track. The track runs roughly parallel with the A31. At any junction, keep following the cycleway signs and remain near to the main road. We do eventually turn away from the traffic noise after a while. About a quarter of an hour into your walk, you will approach a sign next to the road marking a Parking area is 1/2 a mile away. Just before the sign, join a wider track and turn left onto it to nearly double back on yourself. The track gradually sweeps away to the right, leaving the bustle of the main road behind. The rest of the walk is guaranteed to be a lot quieter. Still gradually descending, look out for a clump of holly trees just to your right (Collier's Thorns). Just as you reach them, turn right at a crossroads of tracks to pass downhill just to the left of the holly trees. They were still quite laden with fruit when I passed them the third week of February 2001. Keep following the track downhill until you reach a five barred gate at an entrance to Roe Inclosure. Pass through the gate and continue ahead along the track. Upon reaching what was once a bridge, you may have to use stepping stones to pass over the stream which was flowing well after recent heavy rain. Carry on ahead slightly uphill, crossing a main track and continuing ahead. Maintaing your direction, your route takes you over the top of a small incline. Descend down the other side to reach a wide compact gravel track. Turn left on the track and proceed downhill. At the bottom, the track makes a right hand turn, do not take this route, instead, continue straight on across a bridge which, at the time, was showing weight restriction signs. Crossing Linford Brook and proceeding up the next hill you will arrive at a cottage at Amie's Corner. Take the little side gate next to the cottage and continue uphill ahead. The track will lead you to a minor road but just before you reach this, turn left and pass a small barrier and take a woodland path which winds away at the top of a small ridge with the road dropping away down to your right. At any junctions, take the right hand option, remaining approximately 50 to 100 yards to the left of the road. The path will eventually lead you downhill to a short cropped grassy area opposite the Red Shoot Inn at Linwood. Walking to the far end of the grassy area brings you to a cottage opposite a telephone kiosk. Pass the cottage and turn left aiming for the right hand side of the entrance to the car park at the entrance to Appleslade Inclosure. Cross the track and ditch in front of the car park entrance and turn left to begin to ascend Mount Hill, following the right hand boundary of the unfenced Inclosure. Upon reaching the top of the hill at the corner of the Inclosure, take the middle of three tracks, bearing left at the following fork you reach. The large wooded area to your left and ahead is Great Linford Inclosure. Your path will eventually take you to the far corner of the Inclosure. You should join a gravel track before reaching the far end; the track taking you to Great Linford Cottage. Turn left in front of the cottage and follow the minor road downhill to cross a bridge near the car park at Linford Bottom. Continue ahead to a road junction. Turn left and follow the road for a short distance to pass Keeper's Cottage. Remain on the road until you reach a sharp right hand turn where you should look on the left for a small pathway leading uphill away from the road. Although somewhat indistinct, once you leave the trees by the roadside, the track is easy to pick up as you start to ascend Picket Hill. As you near the top of the hill, you will see the goal posts of Ellingham rugby club. Nearer the club, take the left hand turn at a fork in the footpath. You should go quickly down and up a small gully as the path takes you to the left at the back of the Picket Post garage and service area. Remain on the track to reach the underpass which you go through to retrace your steps back to the car park at Picket Post in about 5 minutes time. Links: Red Shoot Inn, Linwood