Walks you can reach from Branksome by train

Recommended

Time: 3h30–7h

1 lunch spot: the Fleur de Lys (1h–1h30 in)

2 end-of-walk rewards: the Snakecatcher Pub, or the Huntsman

Warnings: Can be EXTREME mud in Lymington Reeds Beds Nature Reserve.

Adapted from: The Rough Guide to Walks in London & the South East (3rd edition).

Similar walk: Railwalks (inc. GPX).

Reverse direction: the Saturday Walkers Club and Slow Ways (inc. GPX).

Rolling Thomas Hardy Country pastures, large woods, dairy farms, remote scenic coombes, steep chalk clifftops, rock stacks, limestone arches, caves, beautiful coves, parkland, heath and bluebell woods.

Time: 7h

Warnings: Can be muddy.

Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Thomas Hardy country east of Dorchester — his thatched birthplace cottage and the woodland and heathland of Thorncombe Wood.

Hardy's Cottage: The thatched cottage birthplace of writer Thomas Hardy, set within Thorncombe Wood nature reserve and cared for by the National Trust.

Thorncombe Wood: A mixed woodland nature reserve surrounding Hardy's Cottage with waymarked trails and heathland.

Lunch: The Under the Greenwood Tree cafe at the Hardy's Cottage visitor centre; pubs and cafes in Dorchester.

Warnings: Hardy's Cottage can only be visited on a guided tour; check National Trust opening arrangements before setting out.

Walk details: Visit Dorset (tips, photos and local insights).

Forest inclosures and heath between the villages of Lyndhurst and Brockenhurst, with Lymington River bathing spots and spring bluebells. Strenuous.

Walk details: New Forest Walks (tips, photos, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Ancient woodland, open heath and inclosures, crossing the Beaulieu River past Matley and Denny Woods. Strenuous.

Matley Wood: A small but beautiful tract of ancient and ornamental New Forest woodland reached across open heath.

Denny Wood: An ancient and ornamental woodland of beech and oak flanked by ferns and surrounded by heath and wetland habitats.

Warnings: Some roadside walking with limited footpath; take care.

Walk details: New Forest Walks (tips, photos, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Open heath and forest inclosures, a caravan park and a dead-straight stretch of the disused Castleman Corkscrew railway, now a cycle route. Strenuous.

Warnings: Some short road sections have no footpath; watch for traffic.

Walk details: New Forest Walks (tips, photos, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Recommended: The huge view of Weymouth Bay and over to Portland opens up suddenly and exhilaratingly from the top of the South Dorset Ridgeway; the views are spectacular. Undulating but easy walking, mostly on tracks across intensively farmed arable hills and with a roady margin leaving Dorchester. Climbs to the South Dorset Ridgeway before dropping through a holiday park to the coast and a long promenade walk. Follows the Hardy Way and the Jubilee Trail. Passes a reedy bird reserve behind the coast path. Trains roughly two-hourly. Worth a diversion to view the Osmington White Horse.

Time: 4h–8h

Lunch: A couple of pubs on the way, and plenty of chip shops on the Weymouth seafront.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Coastal path.

Walk details: Railwalks.

Uses Forestry England approved routes.

Woodland: two fifths under tree cover.

Time: 5h–10h

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Coastal path, with a long section from the station to reach the coast.

Walk details: Railwalks.

Time: 3h30–6h30

Warnings: Follows a busy road for a fifth of the walk.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Chalk downland, Cerne Valley, historic Dorchester city centre and two modest climbs with fine views.

Warnings: Hilly ascents.

Source: An alternative variant of Maiden Newton Circular or to Dorchester – the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).