Pete's Walks - Pitstone Hill, Dagnall, Ashridge (page 2 of 3)
The bridleway was initially quite steep as it made its way through Hoo Wood (looking on the map I'm not sure if it's in Ringshall or Little Gaddesden - there is another wood of the same name a few miles away at Great Gaddesden). It soon levelled out though, and it was clearly quite an ancient route as it had worn a groove a couple of feet below the surrounding woodland. Beyond Hoo Wood, the bridleway followed some garden fences on the right for a short distance, before turning right to reach a gate on the minor road through the very long and thin village of Little Gaddesden.
The start of the steep bridleway through Hoo Wood
The bridleway through Hoo Wood
The bridleway through Hoo Wood
Instead of going through the gate, I turned sharply left, almost doubling back on myself, and followed a path through attractive meadows or pastures to Little Gaddesden church. The path continued through a sheep pasture, with a splendid view over my left shoulder towards the start of the Gade valley with the Vale of Aylesbury beyond, and then followed the left edge of a huge field of oil-seed rape to reach a very familiar major path junction on the edge of Hudnall.
The path to Little Gaddesden church
Approaching Little Gaddesden church
Looking back over Dagnall at the start of the Gade valley from near Little Gaddesden church
The path from Little Gaddesden church to Hudnall
I continued ahead through a paddock and along part of a private drive, with a small wood on my left and houses on the right. I crossed a minor road, and continued along the lane ahead of me that goes eventually to St Margaret's on the edge of Great Gaddesden (where the Buddhist monastery is). But I soon turned right, onto a short bridleway that took me to Home Farm, back in Little Gaddesden again.
The bridleway between Hudnall and Little Gaddesden
I crossed the road by the farm, and took a permissive bridleway descending through trees. I immediately spotted a couple of Fallow Deer over to my right, and when the path emerged onto the grass of the 'Golden Valley' I spotted a herd of about twenty deer a short way off. Unfortunately, they were very close to my path, so I couldn't help but disturb them as I made my way to the gothic fairytale that is Ashridge House, now a management college.
Home Farm, Little Gaddesden - quite an impressive group of buildings, obviously it must once have been the home farm supplying the nearby Ashridge House
Start of the permissive bridleway from Home Farm
Fallow Deer in the Golden Valley - some scenes from the BBC's recent Cranford were shot here
A close-up of the Fallow Deer as they make their escape into the trees
Ashridge House
I followed the roads around the front of the grand house, and set off along a track through the adjoining woods. I had several options now, but chose to take a fairly short and direct route through Ashridge. I turned left at a path crossroads, the new path soon running along the edge of a huge pasture in the middle of the woods, clearly once part of the park of Ashridge House. The actual footpath goes through the end of the pasture, but I followed the clear path just inside the trees simply because I didn't think I'd been that way before.
From near Ashridge House, looking along Prince's Riding to the Bridgewater Monument, about a mile and a quarter away
Track near Ashridge House
Huge pasture in the middle of Ashridge - going by the numerous trees dotted about, I'd guess this was once part of the park around Ashridge House