Today we reprised a perennial favourite walk from Suffolk Food Hall.
This time, however, we did it in the opposite direction to usual.
This was the invite from Joyce.
"Wednesday April 30th is our lovely Bluebell walk from Suffolk Foodhall, Wherstead, Ipswich IP9 2AB. I have booked a table from 9.30am, in the restaurant (this is in the separate black barn upstairs) Nick and I are going to take advantage of the £12 breakfast menu before the walk. Do join us for breakfast or drinks if you wish then we will start our walk at 10.30am. Please bring a packed lunch although we will stop at Alton Water café. The walk is 11.5 miles. Free parking at The Suffolk Foodhall. Some of the walk is in shady woodland but come prepared for the temperature.".
This was our route today,
Here are a few of my photographs.
It was a lovely sunny day again. I didn't do the breakfast at the food hall and we all met up outside here.
This time we did it in the opposite direction to usual to get more shade when the day would be at its hottest.
The first poppies I've seen this year.
Freston woods had a profusion of wild garlic towards the bottom. Maybe I should have picked some.
As we climbed through the woods the wild garlic gave way to bluebells.
This copper beech was quite striking too.
The trees are all in leaf now.
We passed by Cutler's wood and this bluebell lined path.
We had a drink stop by Great Birch wood. We would be back here later on our figure of 8 walk.
We could see bluebells in the wood as we walked along the edge.
We walked through a field of rape. Some like it, but I find the colour garish and the smell of the flowers cloying.
We could see the bell tower of the Royal Hospital School as we passed the edge of Holbrook village.
As we crossed the dam at the end of Alton Water we had a red kite overhead.
The tower of Holbrook church peeked up over the trees.
The Aqua park apparatus was back in place on the reservoir, but it was closed, so it didn't matter that I'd forgotten to bring my swimming trunks.
We recrossed the dam. As we walked along the path beside the reservoir we heard plenty of birdsong, but no nightingales this year. I saw a whitethroat here but, to my dismay, it flew away just as I was trying to photograph it.
We had glimpses of the inviting blue water of the lake.
Alicia, Rachel and I were lagging behind a bit having stopped to enjoy the wildlife a couple of times. Nearing Great Birch wood again we spotted a herd of deer which ran off just before we entered the woods.
Into the woods and another great display of bluebells. I took Alicia and Rachel on a short detour along a path to the left to this clearing.
As we came out of the woods, we could see the others on the path ahead of us.
Behind them were the deer we had seen earlier.
We shouted and pointed as the deer ran past them, but they didn't see them...
...until they got to Cutler's wood.
The path past the wood had more bluebells.
We descended towards the Suffolk Food Hall again with lovely views of the river Orwell and passing
St. Mary's, Wherstead church.
Thanks Joyce for organising and leading us round and to the others for the additional company. You can find more details of our 11.8 mile route here on MapMyWalk (or download a GPX file here) and more of my photos here on Flickr.
Other related walks you can find on my blog include...
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