Sundon Hills to Sharpenhoe Clappers

A beautiful view of south Bedfordshire, spoilt by me. This is the beginning of a 5.5 mile walk in the Chilterns between the Sundon Hills and Sharpenhoe Clappers, considered by one left-leaning national newspaper as the best south of the Peak District.



















It isn't, but Amanda and I would do it again: high praise indeed.

We started in a field of sheep in Sundon Hills Country Park on the border of Bedfordshire and Herts, walking along a ridge which afforded the aforementioned view. Presently, we plunged into dense beech forest, tottering along the edge of a vertiginous drop into Bedfordshire. Here, Amanda balances above the precipice like a veritable mountain goat:

























Sharpenhoe Clappers, which was a settlement for Iron Age folk, marked the halfway point. Below is the view from the bottom - taken after a lunch at the Lynmore 'Country Pub'. I will let you draw your own conclusions about a hostelry which feels the need to write 'Country Pub' on its pub sign.

But please don't allow your conclusions to be coloured by the fact that I had to tell them that both their ales were off and had to settle for a bottle of Speckled Hen in the end. Quick review: Food okay, service good, view of Sharpenhoe Clappers good.



















After lunch we headed back to complete our circle. Along the side of the road, we set up this laborious visual joke for naturalists:



















(The plant is Old Man's Beard)

Visibility was poor, but it did at least make for a nice photo:



















As we walked back up into the Sundon Hills, we crossed the snow line once more:
























And as night fell, I tracked a muntjac deer through the mud while Amanda snapped haystacks.