Ashridge estate and Tring
We wondered where to go on our next trip so we checked Google and decided that the Chiltern hills looked inviting. We headed for Wendover woods to have a look 'round and possibly park overnight but we got there just as it was closing and the staff informed us that the gates would be locked and we would have to move on so we went to a car park on the top of Coombe hill where there is a monument for the war in South Africa 1899 - 1902.
The road leading to the car park for the monument was almost 45 degrees and the van, fully loaded struggled but we made it and parked in the corner facing out towards the road. Dinner and bed! There was a fair amount of to-ing and fro-ing by locals who were plainly meeting for drug drops but they weren't there long so we settled down for the night with the van ready to go at a moments notice, the usual set up when off grid. This went on for an hour or so and then it got more noisy as the young ladies started to arrive in a drunken state with their boyfriends and the screaming just got too much so we drove away and headed for Berkhamsted to find a pub car park for the night.
Berkhamsted was very busy and there were no suitable car parks for an 8 metre motorhome so we trundled off to the Tring reservoirs, a tried and tested park up that we had visited before and after paying the parking fee settled down once more and had a peaceful nights sleep.
We awoke refreshed and in tact the next morning and walked 'D' around the reservoirs, much to his disgust! We decided to stay in the area and after our walk and a bite to eat we headed for 'The Angler's retreat' for a couple of pints then back to the van for another peaceful nights sleep.
The next morning we headed for the Ashridge estate and although the big house was still closed until the end of March we thought that it would be worth taking a look anyway. The Ashridge estate has a large area for parking and was ideal for the Mac shack. It was definitely a wellies day and the paths through the woods were very boggy but the views were lovely. We stopped off at the gift shop and had a browse and checked out the strange wind mill. (video below).
The folly monument (photo below) has a stairway inside it and you can struggle to the viewing platform if you feel fit. Unfortunately this was also closed so we vowed to return when it opens to see if we can still do stairs after over a year of van life.
From here we headed for Thetford forest but decided to continue towards Cromer and travel down the coast through Suffolk and then back to Essex.