Farnborough North to Frimley Walk

A Blackwater Valley Nature Walk.

Visit their website for more details and maps here.  

 Starting from Farnborough North station, start at the Platform 1 side and go up the lane to the bridge over the A331, down the other side and turn left at the bottom. Then go through the gate on the right onto the Blackwater Valley path. 

You can now enjoy this riverside path, with fishing lakes on your right. On the way you may find Kingfishers and a spot for Grey Wagtails at a culvert from the lakes to the river, in winter listen for Siskin in the alder trees. Soon on the right, there is a reedbed beyond the trees full of singing Reed Warblers in summer. The river disappears under the A331 here. 

After passing two benches, (the first down a short path on the right where you can see lots of winter birds like Shoveler, Teal, Gadwall and Black-headed Gulls), carry on through the gate, emerging onto the roadside path. Go up to the bend and cross the road carefully. Coming from Frimley / Frimley station, cross the road bridge and carefully, cross right to join the path, following the signs Blackwater Valley Path North. Go over the A331 bridge and take the wheelchair friendly route on the left. Do not take the non-wheelchair path down the steps. At the bottom of the short slope, there is a large property and an electricity substation. Follow the grass path to the left of the house. Don’t follow the Blackwater Valley Path signs or cross the river here. 

This permissive path is uneven in a few places but a nice place to find birds and butterflies. After the road bridge, the path has a native planted hedgerow screening from the railway. You should be able to identify the trees and plants here such as hawthorn, hazel and wildflowers in summer. Follow the path as it bends left down to the river bank. Here is Himalayan Balsam, an invasive plant, attractive when flowering and attracting bees later in the summer. Children will enjoy seeing the seeds explode when they touch them in late summer. Carrying on into Grants Moor you pass a small patch of heathland and an area of acid grassland, grass snakes, adders (they fear you more than you need to fear them) and common lizards can be found here and many more butterflies. Next a bit of woodland before the path diverges. Going left it's bumpy but takes you past ponds and rich insect and bird habitats. Going right continues a straight hedgerow route back to where you started.