Hengistbury Head

Coastal
Walk Leader
Trevor Pogson

This will be a walk around Hengistbury Head and the surrounding area, the location gives the opportunity for seascapes across Poole Bay to the west and the Isle of Wight to the east as well as Christchurch harbour to the north. There is also the opportunity to photograph wildlife and if you look carefully, you might see evidence of 12,000 years of human history on this site. Bronze Age barrows and, of course, the Double Dykes are some of the easier archaeological features to spot. Roam along easy-access paths amongst grassland, heathland, woodland and wetland.

To access the entire area requires a good level of fitness and mobility - particularly if you want to walk up to the top of the head. However if you prefer to take it a little easier there is also a tarmac road leading from the car park around the back of the head to some beach huts - During high season (1 April - 31 October), the Hengistbury land train runs daily in good weather.  It's best to check the facebook page for the very latest service status - it runs until 4pm.

There are reasonably level gravel paths from the car park to the beach.

I would recommend good walking shoes or boots for this walk

I am suggesting a 4 hour session from 2.30pm to 6.30pm, golden hour starts at 5.46pm with sunset at 6.30pm - this will give us the opportunity to shoot the sunset as well (hopefully we will get a nice one!)

The walk can be as long or as short as you wish, the full walk around the head can run to a few miles

The reserve is easy to find your way around (maps are available for just £1 at the Visitor Centre if you’d rather). With the harbour on one side and the sea on the other, it really is hard to lose your way.

Once we have all met up, the walk will be self guided and you will be free to go wherever you wish to take photographs, there is a lot of choice and photographic opportunities.

After the walk concludes you could of course stay longer if you wish - just don't forget that the car park (and part of the road) is locked at 10pm!

As we are shooting seascapes and staying until sunset it may be a good idea to bring a tripod, filters, cable release etc.

Walk Location

Hengistbury Head

Walk Directions

Location to meet:

Hengistbury Head Visitor Centre
Bournemouth
Dorset
BH6 4EW*

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Telephone: 01202 128444

Email: hengistburyhead [at] bcpcouncil.gov.uk (hengistburyhead[at]bcpcouncil[dot]gov[dot]uk)

*the actual postcode is BH6 4EN but some sat-navs try to take cars across the stretch of water!!

The main car park is just beside the Hiker Café, opposite the golf course. Parking charges apply.

1 April to 31 October

  • up to 1 hour - £2.80
  • up to 2 hours - £5.50
  • up to 3 hours - £6.80
  • up to 4 hours - £8.30
  • up to 6 hours - £12.40
  • up to 24 hours - £20.40
  • 7 day weekly ticket - £40.80. Can only be purchased by mobile.

This car park is locked between 10pm and 5am.

Hengistbury Head is a long stay car park.

Payment for parking is by credit or debit card only, or mobile. Cash is not accepted.

The card machines will accept Visa, Maestro and MasterCard.

The machines will accept contactless debit cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay for Android devices. The card linked to the phone must be Visa, Maestro or MasterCard - American express cards are not accepted.

Height Restriction: 2.1 metres

Accessibility

To access the entire area requires a good level of fitness and mobility - particularly if you want to walk up to the top of the head. However if you prefer to take it a little easier there is also a tarmac road leading from the car park around the back of the head to some beach huts - During high season (1 April - 31 October), the Hengistbury land train runs daily in good weather. It's best to check the facebook page for the very latest service status - it runs until 4pm.

There are reasonably level gravel paths from the car park to the beach.

I would recommend good walking shoes or boots for this walk

The walk can be as long or as short as you wish, the full walk around the head can run to a few miles.

Feedback Meeting Type
In Person
Feedback Talk Date and Time
Feedback Talk Address

Greyfriars Community Centre
44 Christchurch Road
Ringwood
BH24 1DW
United Kingdom

Feedback Talk Location

50.84502, -1.7892

Feedback Talk Directions

The feedback session will be held in the Greyfriars Community Centre, Ringwood. We will meet in the Hilary Christie Room

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Webform

Please note:

  • There is no charge for RPS members, non-members are charged £10.
  • You are booking the initial Zoom talk, the walk and the follow up discussion.
  • You will receive a link to the initial Zoom talk which will be recorded, a link to which will also be sent to you.
  • You may only book one person at a time using this form. If you wish to add several people, ensure you have all of the information you need at hand and visit this page for each person in turn.
  • If you book more than one person using the same email address then you will only receive one invitation to the initial Zoom talk because Zoom works on email addresses and not names.
  • You do not have to belong to either the Digital Imaging Group, Landscape Group or the RPS to take part. These events are jointly organised by DIG and Landscape.
  • A confirmation email will be sent to the address given here. Ensure that it is correct. If you don't receive a confirmation within 24 hours please check your spam folder and if it's not there use the contact form and we will investigate.
  • Either use the contact form or email TWT [at] rps.org (TWT[at]rps[dot]org) (include the walk title) for any enquiries you may have.
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