A walk in the Chilterns

A walk in the Chilterns for Stuart's 60th birthday. Plenty of red kites about but none quite near enough in good light and I didn't feel I had a shot good enough to blip. We didn't start walking until midday and the best light was in the morning. Stuart, one of my rugby going friends, is a bit of an expert on the area and used to do guided walks. The walk took us through Hambleden, a pretty village that's been used a few times for film settings. We ended up having a sing song in a small country pub.

Pippa, our Jack Russell, gave me a fright yesterday, running off in to the woods beyond our estate. It was getting dark and I couldn't find her. I tracked her down to an area with big houses and gardens bordering the woods. I was in one back garden with the owner's permission then heard her in the neighbour's garden. I could hear she was distressed so climbed over vaulted the fence in the dark. The garden was completely enclosed and all the gates padlocked so the owners were pretty startled to find a man with a small dog knocking on their back door, insisting he wasn't a prowler and asking to be let out. I suppose it must have looked odd. Dogs - who'd have 'em?