Easwin one

Verified Slow Way

Verified by 91.67% of reviewers

I'm sure this would be a beautiful route in the right conditions but unfortunately we had to turn back after only 10 minutes as the river had burst it's bank and the path was completely flooded. We've not had any rain for a few weeks now but the path was still unaccusable. We did meet some walkers equipped with waders and walking poles so if you are going to do this route, make sure you're prepared for flooding.

A cold, winter walk in the sunshine with the dog from the Winchester end. Following a lot of rain over Christmas and New Year, the Itchen was flooded across the path in several places particularly in the middle section beyond Shawford. The water was ankle deep at most but fast flowing.

A few branches down obscured an obvious path in the woods after Otterbourne Lock causing me to retrace my steps a couple of times.

Twyford Road was a noisy, busy last mile after the earlier tranquility!.

We walked this route as a group at the end of September. We found that the route once alongside the river was clearly signposted and therefore easy to navigate. The majority of the route was easy to walk , however there was the occasional section where vegetation was overgrown making it very narrow and with the need to duck down under overhanging branches. The path had also become flooded in a few parts due to the rising river levels following some heavy rain. We thought this would be more of an issue in winter when it would also likely be very muddy. Overall it was a good pathway with plenty to see along the way.

Overall a pretty nice walk, reasonably flat and the views lovely in places (spotted plenty of ducks & swans too!)

As others have commented below though, it's not a good one to try and traverse in autumn as the path is quite narrow in bits and if flooded then it's hard to always see where the bank edge is (even with my wellies on I managed to slip in the mud and take an impromptu dip in the river - luckily able to stop at the Bridge pub in Shawford to change socks!).

Some of the shrubbery can be quite overgrown so needed to duck / hold head-height foliage out of the way if anywhere close to 6ft ;). There are also quite a lot of brambles and stinging nettles at knee height so longer trousers recommended

There are a couple of gates along the route which looked to me to be too tight to get through with a wheelchair or pushchair (see the pics on the overview page to make your own judgements), and in the sludgier parts wheels could struggle to gain purchase / skid (in dry-ish conditions would possibly be OK as long as travelling with companions who could do some lifting).

Overall though, it was an easy-to-follow linear route, and with good public transport options at each end it's easy to get home if you're too tired to walk back the other way :) not many spots to be able to sit down and take a break en route though (aside from the aforementioned pub) so bear this in mind if 12k is more than you usually do in one stretch.

I walked this route as part of a group of about 18 people. We walked in early November following a lot of rain over the previous couple of weeks. The route is mainly single file and as you would expect was very wet and muddy in parts. The river level was high and did cause one section of the path to be shin deep. Wellies were a good choice to have for a few of the sections. If not for the heavy rain good walking shoes should be sufficient for this route.
Accessibility for wheelchairs or pushchairs is very poor and would not recommend this route unless you attempted it in the dry months.
There is a good pit stop opportunity at The Bridge at Shawford and at the end the Black Boy is a good spot to grab a drink.
Overall a very good walk and would want to try this in the summer for a different experience.

This is a lovely flat walk with the mile closest to Winchester being very picturesque. I walked this in early November on a dry day after 2 weeks of torrential rain and the path was muddy but passable and easy to follow. There was one area where the river was so high that it had flooded the path so that wellie boots were the only option for keeping feet dry. I expect I would have given 5 stars if not for this! We stopped at the Bridge Inn in Shawford along the way and enjoyed a rest at the Black Boy in Winchester at the end. Would recommend!.

This is a pleasant flat walk with some great views. I walked it early November and while the day was dry, there had been some very heavy rainfall in the preceding week or two. The path was muddy and in one place submerged at mid-shin height for around 5 metres. Except for this one patch, walking boots would be fine, however due to it I would recommend walking in wellies if there has been bad weather recently. The path is easy to follow, though narrow in places, with The Bridge pub in Shawford a nice pitstop roughly halfway along the walk.

This is a very picturesque route, with lovely views of the river Itchen and the surrounding water meadows. There is also a lovely pub at the halfway stage at Shawford.
We walked this in late October, and the weather had meant that some parts of the route were water logged, particularly between Otterbourne and Shawford, however other than one spot sensible walking shoes meant that these spots were easily navigated without too much effort. The first mile is in a residential area and so on pavement, however there is an alternative route at this stage if you'd rather walk by the river for the entire route. Overall though a beautiful route, easy on the legs with good facilities and transport links at either end of the walk.

I walked Easwin as part 1 of my walk from Winchester to Southampton. It was in the heart of the times of dryness. Beautiful walk, just a few steps on tar roads. The path along the river indeed is quite narrow, but even on a busy summer Sunday it was pleasant. For some sections it was very handy to have a secateur in my backpack. I added a few deviations, inspired by the route of the St James Way, the pilgrims route from Reading to Southampton.

I’ve walked and run this route many times. Interesting water meadows, and generally decent paths. Is susceptible to flooding, particularly in winter, between Otterbourne and Shawford.

Walked part of this route from bottom of Albrook Hill to Winchester in October 2020. It's a nice level walk along the river into Winchester. Can be muddy and flooded in places particularly after heavy rain.
Plan to do this again during summer and do the Albrook to Southampton route.

I walked this route a few weeks ago, it's fairly scenic throughout once the Itchen Way is picked up. At the time I walked it, a section close to Otterbourne was closed - most likely due to flooding - and as a result a short on road detour was required in order to rejoin the path. It must be noted the path is quite narrow and as a result frequent stops are necessary in order to allow walkers travelling in the opposite direction to pass.

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