Brockenhurst
The village of Brockenhurst lies directly south of Lyndhurst, by 3 miles, and is a popular attraction to visitors to the New Forest. It's a medium sized village that acts as a major gateway to many of the more popular areas in the southern half of the Forest.
The village centres around a relatively short high street, Brookely Road. At the western end of the road is a large ford, a notable landmark of the area affectionately known as 'The Splash' to the locals. New Forest ponies and donkeys often congregate around here and are free to wander throughout the village centre, creating a picture-postcard New Forest scene!
The range of shops and businesses along Brookely Road is somewhat more limited than that of neighbouring Lyndhurst, but there's a good choice of pubs and restaurants, and there is more than one bike hire shop for enjoying the New Forest cycle routes.
A mainline railway station can be found very close to the centre of Brockenhurst, the largest of the four New Forest stations.
On the very northern edge of the village is Balmer Lawn, a popular picnic spot on the banks of the Lymington River. This small area can get quite congested in the warmer months and is a favourite spot for families, students from the nearby sixth-form college and New Forest ponies alike.
The large Balmer Lawn Hotel stands just across the road from the river, one of several reputable hotels in the area, and two New Forest campsites can also be found close by - Aldridge Hill and Hollands Wood.
As previously mentioned, within Brockenhurst there are of course several good pubs to choose from, probably the best known is The Snakecatcher, named after one of the area's most unique characters Brusher Mills - a local Forester who made his living by selling snakes from the New Forest to London Zoo.
Heading away from the village, the Rhinefield Ornamental Drive is just a couple of miles to the north-west and Beaulieu is a bit further to the east.
View the Brockenhurst images on this page in Picasa or in a slideshow.
Getting to Brockenhurst
The A337 is one of the New Forest's major roads and runs north-south right through the centre of Brockenhurst. The village is a 5 minute drive from Lyndhurst to the north, and around 15 minutes from Lymington to the south.
The B3055 runs east-west and connects the village with Beaulieu (east) and Sway and the New Milton area (south-west).
South West Trains serves Brockenhurst station and the railway line connects London with the southwest of England. The station is within easy walking distance of the village centre.
See the location of Brockenhurst within the New Forest National Park.
Brockenhurst can also be located at grid reference 300020 on this PDF map of the south-western sector of the New Forest National Park - [How do I read a map?].
Explore Brockenhurst and surrounding area using satellite imagery.
