An interactive tourist and visitor map for Itchen Valley Country Park and Riverside Park, Southampton. This map highlights the habitats and facilities found in the lower Itchen Valley as well as indicating the best places to see the wildlife that lives here. Zoom in to the map to reveal more detail and click on features to display additional information.
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Itchen Valley Country Park is located in the borough of Eastleigh, on the northeastern fringe of Southampton, UK. Covering a site of approximately 440 acres (1.8 km²), the park was founded in 1979 with the High Wood Barn Visitor Centre facilities constructed in 1990.
Predominantly woodland and meadows, this park contains a wide range of outdoor leisure facilities. Two barbecue sites (pre-booking required), a number of picnic areas, playgrounds for both younger and older children and a Go Ape! tree top adventure course are located here. The country park also contains a series of way-marked walks, an off-road cycle trail, a designated bridleway (restricted only to horse-riders, fee applies) and a woodland nature trail, located in a more secluded section of the park. This map highlights these trails and facilities and provides further details and links to other sources of information about Itchen Valley Country Park.
Itchen Valley Nature Reserve, a combination of lowland meadows, floodplain grazing marsh and fens, is ideal for wildlife observation. Otters and Water Vole are recorded at this location along with annual sightings of Osprey, a regular passage migrant. Through the summer months in particular, the reserve is home to a wide range of butterflies and dragonflies, including the nationally rare Southern Damselfly.
Riverside Park, Southampton, is a popular park on the eastern bank of the River Itchen. A large park but one which is subdivided into several smaller sections, Riverside Park runs alongside the River Itchen from Cobden Bridge in the south to Mansbridge in the north.
The southern-most section of the park contains a riverside walk and an accessible pontoon. This feature is a favoured spot amongst visitors for feeding the birds that congregate on the river. Primarily seabirds and wildfowl, large numbers of Mute Swan are almost always present here too. The Riverside Miniature Railway, open to visitors on Sunday afternoons (between 1pm and 4pm), is a key attraction during the summer months. Other notable features of this region of the park are the recently redeveloped children's playground and dedicated cycle training facility, complete with a network of small scale roads and signposts.
The central section of the park is the largest. It is also the region which most closely resembles a typical urban park or recreation ground. This area of Riverside Park is generally considered to be the best for dog exercise. A large number of grass sports pitches are found here, primarily used for football and cricket. A small secluded area next to the River Itchen, often referred to as the 'Beach', holds three picnic tables. A small stretch of the river is accessible from this location. This section of the park also contains one tennis court, accessible to the public, and an extensive skate park.
The northern-most section of the park, arguably the most picturesque, contains a riverside walk. The water here is typically slow moving and is, therefore, a popular location for fishing. Trees on the opposite bank overhang the the river and hide the urban environment beyond. As like further downstream, the river here is typically populated with wildfowl and Mute Swan. This section of the park has a landscaped appearance and is dominated to a degree by a popular 18 hole pitch and putt golf course. Picnic tables, a modern children's playground, containing equipment of an 'organic' nature (close to the car park) are also found in this section of the park. During the summer months, an ice cream van is regularly located in the car park here.
This map has been built with open data. Over time, as more or better information becomes available, I hope to add to this map and, more importantly, correct any errors or inaccuracies that are currently present. Please help me to make this map better by informing me of any errors that you notice. Thank-you for your help.
Data for this map has been sourced from the OpenStreetMap project. This map also makes use of OpenData from the Ordnance Survey and land cover data sourced from Natural England and released under the Open Government Licence.
Please note that the views and opinions expressed above and on this map are my own and are not necessarily, therefore, those of the landowners, authorities or other organisations that operate these sites or are mentioned on this page.
For more information, please visit these websites:
Birds of prey
Birds (including Mute Swan)
Butterflies (including Meadow Brown)
Butterflies (including Peacock)
Dragonflies and damselflies
Seabirds
Church
Bench
Bicycle parking
Car park
Country park car park
Convenience store
Dog waste bin
Petrol station (fuel)
Public telephone
Public toilets
Drinking water outlet
Barbecue site
Cafe
Ice cream van
Picnic facilities
Public house
Restaurant
Visitor attraction
Point of interest
Information panel
Grade I listed building
Grade II* listed building
Grade II listed building
Landmark
Sculpture
Wind turbine
Country park
Children's playground
Nature reserve
Park or common
Popular dog exercise area
Recreation ground
Viewpoint
Cricket pitch
Equestrian centre
Fishing
Football pitch
Pitch and putt golf course
Skate park
Tennis court
Bargeman's Walk
Itchen Valley Country Park Forest Trail
Itchen Valley Country Park Honeysuckle Trail
Itchen Valley Country Park Meadow Nature Trail
Itchen Valley Country Park Off Road Cycle Route
Itchen Valley Country Park Woodland Nature Trail
Itchen Valley Country Park Woods and Meadows Walk