Bank Holiday Bluebells

We had plans to walk again today and just before lunch, headed out with  sandwiches and the OS map in the direction of the Ashridge estate. As we arrived, so did a considerable amount of rain. We ate, sat in the car and after a wait concluded we didn't want to get a soaking and instead headed around to see the wonderful Bluebells at Dockey Wood. We try to get there every year at some time and with now increased protection from the National Trust, it looked great. The rain eased off and we had occasional bursts of sunlight through the clouds. It was fascinating to see how the different light changed the colour palette. More photos here.

With the rain all but stopped, we decided to walk from Dockey Wood towards Ivinghoe Beacon before turning back into the Ashridge estate. We were only about 15 minutes from the car when the rains came again in some force. After a few minutes sheltered under a tree, we put our hoods up and went for it. 10 minutes later it was gone again and as we approached the cars, the sun re-appeared and Annie spotted one patch of ground actually steaming in the sunshine (see the extra).

A lovely end to the extended weekend.