I am basically not an early bird, but when I hear a really positive forecast of a bright start, I am prepared to take a risk and get up before dawn. This makes for a long day, but does not give any guarantees.
I headed first for Marsworth Reservoir and put the 7D with 300mm onto a tripod with the Induro gimbal head and lugged this all the way to the far side reedbeds, alongside the Grand Union Canal and set myself up to wait and watch, there was a great variety of birdlife, some of it very fast, small and close, and due to the large area of reeds, a lot of activity was a good distance away, but this environment was very different from nearby Tringford. This meant the herons were landing and taking off from water as opposed to dead trees, so they looked very different.
As the sun rose the full range of Autumn colours appeared. I stayed patiently in the one spot for a couple of hours, happy with a few new and colourful images, then set off back past Bulbourne Lock, and College Lake, and just before reaching Pitstone Windmill turned off right along a road I had never travelled before. What a revelation! The rolling countryside that presented itself was magnificent, and I soon learned that this gem was far from unknown. I was in Ashridge, an area of outstanding beauty and variety. There was even a car park, close to Pitstone Hill, and this turns out to be the Ridgeway and is jumping-off point for a number of circular walks or trails.
One classic farm amidst this setting was Down Farm and atop a nearby Pitstone Hill the views on such a day were breathtaking, seeing a church spire amidst all that autumn foliage, and a hot air balloon over Mentmore Towers, and all those people enjoying the warm sunshine was a delight. When I took to the road again, I found myself in Aldbury.
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