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I hadn't been looking forward to yet another trek to Kent, negotiating the Dartford Crossing yet again, but the day proved to be much better that I had anticipated. Pete accompanied me, and once the required work (which only took a couple of hours) was complete we headed off for an autumn walk round Cobham Woods, which he had surveyed many years ago, before it was acquired by the National Trust.

By the time we arrived the dark and drizzly weather had been replaced by warm autumn sunshine - the only disappointment was the lack of fungi, in the woods, probably because the soils were so dry. When Pete first visited this area of wood pasture, which has some fine old trees, it had been neglected and colonised by dense scrub and bramble. The National Trust have done an amazing job at restoring its original character, and this herd of Highland cattle are instrumental in achieving the desired mosaic of open grassland, bramble patches and veteran trees.

The National Trust have also achieved a remarkable restoration of the Darnley Mausoleum (see extra), built by the family that owned Cobham Hall, but never actually used for its intended purpose. When Pete first visited it had been heavily vandalised and was covered with graffiti - in fact it was on the brink of collapse. You can read all about its restoration here.

Our meander also took us to Plantlife's reserve at Ranscombe Farm (see extra). Although it was far too late in the year to appreciate most of the arable weeds that are the focus of this site, I was excited to find plants of Ground Pine, a very rare species that I had never seen growing in the wild in the UK.

A cup of tea and a slice of apple drizzle cake at the Shorne Country Park cafe  were just the boost we needed before setting off for home at about 4pm. Despite a small hold-up at the Dartford tunnel, the rest of the journey was uneventful and we were back by 6pm - tired but satisfied that we'd managed to have a day that combined work and fun.