Carisbrooke

Up early (for me) and decided to stroll to Carisbrooke Castle. I walked up Castle Road to the mini roundabout, and instead of walking up Castle Hill as intended, I took my life in my hands and walked up Whitcombe Road instead. There are no pavements on this road, just brambly, nettley, thistly hedges and quite a lot of traffic coming in both directions. I kept leaping into the hedge and ended up nettle-stung and prickled. After a while I noticed a turning for Carisbrooke Cemetery; this can be seen from Newport as you look up the hill. As I had never been in there, and had meant to visit for some time, I took the opportunity. I'm so glad that I did.

The cemetery road winds uphill to a chapel, which is surrounded by ancient gravestones rising from wildflower meadows. The footpaths wind round and among the burial grounds, with the grounds becoming more clipped and tidied the further from the chapel you get, around the more modern stones. Here you find memorials adorned with plastic flowers, photographs, solar lights, football scarves and the occasional beer bottle, as well as war graves commemorating individuals who dies in the First World War. Benches line the top path, giving spectacular views across the north of the Island, with the sweep of the River Medina to the East, the Solent in the North, and the hills above Chillerton in the West. Newport and Carisbrooke lie below with the ancient tower of Carisbrooke Church, Newport Minster, and Carisbrooke Castle juxtaposed with the modern buildings of Christ the King and Carisbrooke Colleges.

From the cemetery I found a footpath crossroads that led to either Whitepit Lane, Nunnery Lane, or Whitcombe Road. I choose Nunnery Lane and plunged downhill along a dusty path between hedges before coming out on the quiet, narrow Nunnery Lane. Turning right here I passed a Catholic Retreat before coming to the junction with Whitcombe Road with Carisbrooke Priory on my left. Ahead of me lay Carisbrooke Castle. I crossed the road and followed the road round to the left, sticking to the verge where possible, turned right into Froglands Land, and shortly after turned right onto a footpath that led downhill across a field and into a tunnel between two hedges, before emerging at the bottom of a chalk path leading up to the embankment next to the castle moat. I turned left at the top and followed the moat round to the gatehouse and then took a left over a stile, following the path through a sheep paddock and into Millers Lane. 

I didn't really recognise this bit, so turned left and followed the lane past some lovely houses to the junction with Clatterford Shute. Here I turned right and walked along towards Clatterford Road, over the ford where Lukely Brook floods the lane. From Clatterford Road I headed back towards Carisbrooke, crossing straight over the road at the roundabout (had to wait a while for the traffic) and into Gunville Road. The next footpath was opposite Dave Death Motorcycles (great name!), and led past a large pond and down to Wellington Road past various schools. The path resumed on the other side of the road and I followed this back to Newport and a much longed for breakfast!

Distance: approx 6km

Cemetery Chapel