A climb to the common at Mottistone
Visit a mysterious ancient monument and enjoy fine views over the Mottistone Estate and down to the sea from the heather-covered common that's rich in wildlife.
Total steps: 8
Total steps: 8
Start point
Mottistone Gardens National Trust car park, grid ref: SZ405838
Step 1
Take the path down from the car park towards the entrance to Mottistone Gardens. Turn left and go up the sunken path (BS43), then take the right fork signposted 'Footpath to the Long Stone and the Downs'. Follow the path upwards, skirting Mottistone Gardens on the right. Cross the track at the top of the stone steps through a kissing gate, and continue uphill to the Long Stone.
Step 2
Follow the track round to the right. After 30 yards (25m) take the path on the left by a wooden bench and interpretation panel, which has more information about the history of the Long Stone. Follow the grassy path gently uphill, with the mounds of Castle Hill on the left near the top of the rise.
Step 3
Where the path opens out by a fenced tank and wooden bench, turn left towards a line of trees, then diagonally right down the field to a five-bar gate near the right edge of a copse. Turn right through the side gate and follow the path as far as the tarmac road (Strawberry Lane).
Step 4
Turn left and follow the road for 750 yards (675m) to a lime kiln on the left, just after the road begins to climb. Continue up the road to the T-junction. Turn left along the roadside for 30 yards (25m) then turn left again.
Step 5
Go through the gate and follow the track upwards onto Mottistone Down, noticing a number of Bronze Age barrows on the right. Cross over the summit by the prominent Harborough barrow and descend again.
Step 6
Turn left by a Tennyson Trail wooden fingerpost, shortly before two metal gates. Almost immediately, turn left again and follow the public bridleway. This grassy path gently rises and then descends. Enter a wood through a metal gate and follow the bridleway downwards, keeping to the left edge of the wood.
Step 7
Turn right onto a track at the next gate. There are fine views across the Mottistone Estate down to the sea, and you can see another Bronze Age barrow on the right. Around 130 yards (120m) after a memorial bench, and shortly before a sharp right bend, turn diagonally left down a path.
Step 8
Head downwards to a wider crossing path. Ignoring the gate on the right, turn left for 15 yards (15m) then right through a kissing gate and continue downhill and back to the car park.
End point
Mottistone Gardens National Trust car park, grid ref: SZ405838
Trail map
More near here
A Mottistone meander: south to the sea
A circular walking route that takes you south from Mottistone Gardens to the coastal cliffs at Sudmoor Point.
Compton Bay and Downs walk
A 7.5 mile walk around Compton Bay and Afton Ridge, taking in far-reaching views and the dinosaur fossil beach.
Estuary Newtown walk
Take a gentle stroll through the varied habitats of the island's only National Nature Reserve, and visit a hamlet with a colourful past.
Tennyson Down trail
Enjoy a figure-of-eight walk, in two lengths, with a splendid view of the Needles, a 19th-century fort, Cold War rocket test site and a monument to the poet Tennyson.
Get in touch
Mottistone, near Brighstone, Isle of Wight, PO30 4ED
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We’ve partnered with Cotswold Outdoor to help everyone make the most of their time outdoors in the places we care for.
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