Today was probably the first warm day of May and very timely it was too for a meeting of The Arthur Ransome Society on the beautiful Ashridge Estate.  The event was ‘Picnic, parley and patterans’ and, after the picnicking and the parleying, it was time to head into the woods where the children had laid a series of patterans for the adults to follow.

It was great fun looking out for the patterans and I particularly liked the triangular ones indicating a warning which might well have saved the gossips in the group getting bogged down in mud!

Having made it safely back to the carpark, I left my fellow adventurers and the husband and I went on to explore the beautiful Ridgeway in our own particular ways: husband painting it and me and Molly walking it! 

And it was the perfect spring day with the sun shining, a little breeze blowing and the fields full of dandelions and cowslips.

Molly adored rolling in the fields and sniffing for rabbits and I enjoyed a day away from the desk and laptop.  Back to it tomorrow, though, because I really can’t leave my hero wearing nothing but a towel for much longer!