Pete's Walks- Hudnall, Ashridge, Dagnall (page 2 of 3)
Beyond the sheep pastures the path continued along the left edge of a field for a short distance to reach the drive from Hog Hall. I turned right and followed the drive steadily downhill for a considerable distance, still with views ahead to the Dunstable and Whipsnade Downs - further on I could see over to Ivinghoe Beacon on my left. At the end of the drive I turned right to enter Dagnall.
The path as it passes Hog Hall
The drive from Hog Hall (the white mark on the hillside is the White Lion at Whipsnade Zoo)
The drive from Hog Hall
I followed the road through the village (I spotted Common Field Speedwell, and Lesser Celandine here), going straight on at a roundabout by the unusual village church and then taking a footpath on the right, running along the left edge of a field next to a bungalow and then a large farm yard on the left (this path was redirected a few years ago to avoid the farmyard). The path turned left to follow a hedgerow along another side of the farm, soon joining a track coming out of the farmyard. The footpath ended where it met a bridleway (at the left end of a hedgerow of trees), which I followed straight on across a field, soon following a hedgerow on the right.
The road through Dagnall
Dagnall Church
The path around the edge of the farm at Dagnall (the footpath was re-routed to avoid the farmyard a few years ago)
The path around the edge of the farm at Dagnall, after it turns left
The path continuing from the farm at Dagnall (it joins a bridleway at the left end of the tall hedge, in the centre of this shot)
The bridleway from Dagnall, approaching the drive to Well Farm
The bridleway next turned right along a drive (to Well Farm) for about a hundred yards, before going left and running alongside another hedge on the right. After a while, where the hedge turned right, it crossed a ploughed field and entered a very large grassy enclosure containing several horse jumps (there are sometimes Fallow Deer here, but not today).
The bridleway from Dagnall, after the drive to Well Farm
The bridleway continuing towards Hoo Wood
The bridleway approaching Hoo Wood
On the far side of this field, the bridleway then entered Hoo Wood and rose uphill quite steeply - the steep bit is fairly short but I always forget how long the uphill continues. Beyond Hoo Wood, the path ran past garden boundaries on the right, with a nice view over the valley on my left. Through a gate, the bridleway went right, along a track.
The bridleway in Hoo Wood
The bridleway in Hoo Wood
The bridleway in Hoo Wood
The bridleway continuing from Hoo Wood
The bridleway continuing from Hoo Wood