Catherington Lith
Horndean
Children will enjoy searching for the wooden carvings scattered throughout this walk.
There are wooden sculptures to find throughout the Lith
The Basics
Time: 50 mins
Distance: 2.8 km
Terrain: Fields, woodland paths, kissing gates. Fields can be muddy in winter.
Pushchair: Pushchairs would struggle to access the lith from Catherington due to the kissing gates and steps. There is a small amount of parking on the Horndean side, which has better access for pushchairs. This is found by turning right at the very top of Lith Avenue.
Dogs: Dogs will need to be on leads around the village and through pony paddocks. The pub is dog friendly.
Refreshments: The Farmer Inn or a picnic area in paddock next to car park.
Toilets: There are no public toilets on this walk.
Public Transport: There are no bus services to Catherington, but you could walk up Lith Avenue and start the walk from Horndean. Use Stagecoach service 37 between Havant and Petersfield and alight at Downwood Way.
Parking: Free car park opposite the school on Catherington Lane (Postcode: PO8 0TD - W3W - origins/essential/restriction)
Some of the tree sculptures hidden around the lith
Whilst the grown ups admire the bluebells, wood anemone and other flowers that grow in this little woodland in spring, children can be kept entertained as they look out for the exquisite tree carvings hidden throughout this walk. The route will also take you virtually through the Farmer Inn, so it would be a shame not to stop! Just down the road is a lovely play area that we have taken the children to since they were tiny.
The Route
Leave the car park, cross the road and turn left along the pavement. Walk through the black wooden lychgate that you will shortly pass on your right into the churchyard. Pass the church on your left and at the far boundary there is a gate in the hedge with a footpath sign leading out into a paddock.
Follow the footpath straight ahead, keeping the electric fence to your left and heading down the hill towards a kissing gate.
Go through the gate at the bottom and then down a few steps onto a gravelly path. Pass an information board as the path bends to the right. There are nice views here over Clanfield/Horndean and Windmill Hill. Along this section of path, you will find carving one. When the path forks just past a garage and the gate of a house called Three Bears, fork right going upwards. As the path levels out, bend left, keeping the garden fence to your left hand side.
Continue along the path and you will see carving two at the side of the path. After this, look out for a little information board about bluebells, as this marks the point where you should look for the carving three. You need to go up the path by the sign and turn right after a few metres. There are two carved tree trunks with dragons and castles. Return to the main path to continue the walk.
Back on the path, walk until you come to a gate. Go out of the gate to leave the nature reserve and walk along an access track. When you reach a junction, you will see a gate on your right that will take you back into the Catherington Lith Nature Reserve. Beside the gate is carving four with squirrels and owls on top.
Walk up the path back into the woodland and very shortly on your right you will see a carving five with two fairies on top and with a space hollowed out so you can sit inside. Keep going along the path and you will spot carving six on your left. The path will fork again when you reach carving seven. Bear left here, and then left again, to pass an information board next to a gate. Use the gate to exit the lith.
Turn right and walk with the hedge to your right until you reach a metal kissing gate into pony paddocks. Go through the gate and turn immediately left to walk along the hedge with an electric fence to your right. Go through the next metal kissing gate and then cross the pony paddock all the way to the other side. Exit the paddock and cross the car park of The Farmer Inn and return to Catherington Lane.
If you want to finish your walk, you can turn right at the road to return to the car park. If you fancy finding another couple of carvings with only a small bit of extra distance, cross the road and take the footpath opposite going to the left of a house with a ship in the window. The path passes narrowly between properties before opening to an orchard. Cross the orchard on the permissive footpath to the opposite side. Here you will meet a path *. Turn right to find the carving of Hooty the Owl. Continue past Hooty and take the path across Parsonage Field. This will lead you to the road or the car park.
Just up the road from the car park is a picnic paddock with picnic benches (dogs allowed in on leads). At the far end of the picnic area is the last carving, which is a rather fine woodland chap in the form of a large seat.
We really like the Jubilee Park on the border between Catherington and Horndean. It has an enclosed play area for little ones, an outdoor gym, basketball court, zip-line, tyre swing and a recently revamped climbing area and slide for older children. You can walk there on the pavement by following Catherington Lane in the direction of Horndean, but it isn’t the nicest walk being beside a busy road. It takes about a minute to drive there from the car park in Catherington and has its own large car park.
*If you want an extension, you can go through the gate here onto Catherington Down. This is an open access space with nice views and is popular with local dog walkers.
Did you know?
The carvings were created by the talented Michael Jones of ‘Man and His Dog Carvings’. He was commissioned by Horndean Parish Council to transform the stumps left behind after the necessary tree felling caused by ash die-back disease and was then invited back in 2025 to add four new carvings.
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