Spent
a few days staying in Northampton at the end of March. It may sound
an unlikely place for a short break but the hotel was convenient for
us and our friends and the all inclusive deal was good.
The
excellent weather helped us to enjoy our days out but I think we were
all surprised by the countryside.
We
started off with a bicycle ride around Pitsford Water. Like a lot of
other reservoirs it is suffering from the lack of rain but the cycle
ride was good and easy – a more or less level surface all the way
around
We
did two walks in our couple of days stay. The first was around Castle
Ashby. The castle is not open to the public but there is access to
the gardens and plant house.
Castle Ashby
The Plant House
Harrold-Odell
Country Park is just over the county border in Bedfordshire. It is an
area of lakes, scrub and woodland and our walk included part of the
park and Odell Great Wood.
The
warm weather brought out a few early butterflies – peacock,
brimstone and orange tip.
Two carvings in the country park
Until
visiting here I had not seen an inland breeding colony of cormorants.
They seemed to be doing well but also make a mess of the trees. It
was also the first time I had seen a heron holding its wings in an
odd way, though I have since read it is not uncommon.
My wife's closer view of the heron
We
ended our few days away with a short walk in Salcey Forest. We found
this twisted tree.
There
are photos of it on the 'net but I can't find an explanation for its
shape.
The
forest also has a elevated walk to above tree top level and a pond
with lots of toads.
