The New Forest
Sports massage and injury rehab for Beaulieu riders, paddlers and sailors
Beaulieu is about 4.7 miles from my Hythe sports therapy clinic along the B3054, a drive of roughly 11 minutes. I’m Alice, and I see people with knees sore from the forest loop, shoulders tight from paddling the tidal river and aching lower backs after a day’s sailing from Buckler’s Hard, as well as the everyday aches of desk work and long days on your feet. Whichever it is, an injury assessment is where we start.
About Beaulieu
The beautiful place of the king
Beaulieu takes its name from the French ‘beau lieu’, meaning beautiful place, and it borrowed that name from its abbey. King John founded the abbey in 1203–04 as a Cistercian house, settled by 30 monks sent from Cîteaux in France, and gave it the Latin name Bellus Locus Regis, ‘the beautiful place of the king’. The abbey church took more than forty years to build and was dedicated in 1246, with Henry III and his queen there to see it.
When the monasteries were dissolved in 1538, the abbey and estate were sold to the Earl of Southampton for £1,340. The church, cloister and chapter house came down, but the monks’ refectory survived and has been the parish church ever since. Palace House, built around a 14th-century monastic gatehouse, has been home to a branch of the Montagu family from that same year. From 1941 to 1945 the estate hosted the Special Operations Executive’s training schools for secret agents, and in 1952 the 3rd Baron Montagu began what became the National Motor Museum with five cars shown in Palace House.
The village sits in the south-east of the New Forest where the river turns tidal; a tide mill worked until 1942. Downstream at Buckler’s Hard, master shipwright Henry Adams oversaw the building of 43 Royal Navy ships, three of which fought at Trafalgar in 1805. It remains a small parish of 806 residents at the 2011 census, and its sailors, paddlers and riders come to me in Hythe for sports massage and rehabilitation.
Places you’ll know
- Beaulieu Abbey
- Founded by King John in 1203–04 and a scheduled monument since 1915; the monks’ old refectory is still the parish church.
- Palace House
- Grade I listed, built around a mid-14th-century gatehouse and greatly enlarged in 1872, and the Montagu family home since 1538.
- National Motor Museum
- Started with five cars in Palace House in 1952 and moved into its own building in 1972; its land speed record display includes Bluebird CN7 and Golden Arrow.
- Buckler’s Hard
- About 2.5 miles downriver, first planned as ‘Montagu Town’, later the yard that built three of the ships that fought at Trafalgar.
- Beaulieu River
- Rises near Lyndhurst and meets the Solent at Needs Ore, tidal from the village down and owned, bed and all, by Lord Montagu.
Staying active
On the forest loop and the tidal river
Around the village, a lot of exercise happens on the forest tracks or out on the river. The New Forest National Park Authority’s Beaulieu to Brockenhurst cycle loop starts on the High Street and runs for 16.3 miles, about half of it off-road, and the Solent Way path follows the river towards Buckler’s Hard. New Forest Activities runs canoeing and kayaking on the tidal river and also offers bike hire, Buckler’s Hard Yacht Harbour has 211 berths, and for a Saturday 5k there are parkruns at Woodside Gardens in Lymington and at Brockenhurst. If a dodgy ankle is putting you off the start line, sports taping can hold it steady for the 5k.
Long mixed-surface rides load the knees and the lower back. Paddling the river and handling ropes tire the shoulders and forearms, and uneven off-road tracks are good at catching an ankle. I’ll pin down what’s behind it and loosen what has tightened, reaching for myofascial cupping when shoulders are properly stuck, then build you back up for the next ride or paddle.
How I can help
- Sports Massage From £30
A lap of the forest loop to Brockenhurst or an afternoon paddling the tidal river can leave legs, shoulders and forearms tight, which massage can help to loosen.
- Injury Assessment From £55
The off-road forest tracks on the cycle loop are easy places to turn an ankle or jar a knee, and an assessment identifies what you’ve hurt and how to look after it.
- Strength & Conditioning From £50
Sailing and paddling on the river ask a lot of your back, knees and grip. Your programme can be followed in your own gym or with a home set-up, and it all begins online, with a free consultation.
Also available: Rehabilitation, Myofascial Cupping, Sports Taping, Pitch-side & Event First Aid.
Getting here
Getting to the clinic from Beaulieu
Leave the village on the B3054 heading for Hythe. It’s about 4.7 miles and roughly 11 minutes by road, or 4.2 miles as the crow flies. The clinic is at 3A Ferryboat House, Pylewell Road, SO45 6AR, a short walk from Hythe Pier and around 500 metres from Hythe Marina Village. I also drive it the other way, covering pitch-side and event first aid for local clubs.
Beaulieu has very few buses to Hythe. The morebus 112 runs from Hythe to Lymington by way of the village on only a few days a week, and the open-top New Forest Tour Green Route stops at both during its summer season only. Please check the current timetable with the operator before you travel.
I see people by appointment only. Book online (opens in a new tab), send an enquiry or email mendandmovest@outlook.com.
Also close by: Buckler’s Hard, Exbury, East Boldre, Hythe, Dibden Purlieu, Lymington, Brockenhurst, Lyndhurst, Beaulieu Road, Lepe.
Postcodes covered
- SO42
- Postcode district for Beaulieu (Brockenhurst post town), also covering Brockenhurst, Denny Lodge and East Boldre
- SO42 7
- Beaulieu village centre, including the abbey, Palace House and the motor museum
Services & pricing
Prices
The same prices apply wherever you travel from.
Treatment & assessment
Rehabilitation & extras
Programme costs may vary depending on individual requirements. Please enquire for current availability and appointment location.
Price list with full detailsGood to know
Questions from Beaulieu
- I don’t drive. Can I get from Beaulieu to Hythe by bus?
- Sometimes. The morebus 112 links the village with Hythe, but it doesn’t run every day. Check the current timetable with the operator and pick an appointment time to match. If regular trips are hard to arrange, my strength and conditioning programmes work just as well online, and the first consultation is free.
- I canoe and kayak on the Beaulieu River. Can you help with sore shoulders and forearms?
- Yes. Hours of paddling on the tidal stretch below the village put repeated load through the shoulders, forearms and wrists. I’ll look at how they are moving, ease the tightness with sports massage and, if you want to go further for longer, write you a strength and conditioning programme built around your paddling.
- My knee aches after the off-road half of the Brockenhurst loop. Should I get it checked?
- If it keeps coming back or is getting worse, it’s worth it. About half of the 16.3-mile loop is off-road, and rough ground over a long ride can aggravate knees, hips and lower backs. An injury assessment aims to find out why the knee is hurting, and from there I can plan treatment and rehabilitation aimed at getting you back in the saddle.
Ready to make a start?
Book online in a couple of minutes, or send me a message if you’d like to talk it through first.