An early break from work and I decided to head out and enjoy the tail-end of the beautiful weather we've experienced over the past week. The breeze was somewhat cool as I set out but covering the first two miles to Akeley at 3.5mph soon sorted that out. As soon as I got into the first field by Maids Moreton, I scoffed at my earlier questioning whether I should walk or stay home. I got about thirty metres into the field and said to myself 'As if there was ever any doubt going for a walk was a good idea!'
The route was the reverse of one I took daughter around last year and she found a four-leaf clover and I put her off walking. At 7.9 miles this was incredibly far for little legs and I really do regret dragging her round, mainly because our route should have been just over five miles and I think that'd have been fine for her.
Anyway, another profusion of buttercups, clovers and other meadow flowers marked my path. Grasses are flowering and lambs are getting big. I saw a pheasant chick almost get run over - that won't be the last run-in you have with a car, young bird - and its mother ran circles around me, mewling and chirping in warning. It was so utterly prehistoric I felt like I was witnessing a dinosaur protecting her young.
I took a nice long sit by a stream near Leckhampstead which unfortunately was directly under some buzzing power lines, but I didn't let that spoil my enjoyment of the scene, with black sheep and lambs coming to the ford to drink and me throwing buttercup flowers into the water to watch the flow.
This was a lovely walk and one of just a handful of trips I've done alone this year. Another walk follows tomorrow!
