52 Walks in 2010 - Walk 17 - Bedford River Valley Park (20th June 2010)

This afternoon we made our second visit to Danish Camp at Willington in Bedfordshire. The site next to the Great River Ouse has been known as "Danish Camp" for many years. It is an English Heritage scheduled monument, believed to have been built originally by the Vikings as a place in which to live and repair their boats, in readiness for battle. It is now part of the Bedford River Valley Park and whilst Lara cycled along the cycle trails we walked behind.



Some of the trails are right by the riverside.



Of course I had a keen eye for the wild flowers growing along the way.

This bee was enjoying flitting from thistle to thistle.

As the afternoon went on it got warmer and it was really very pleasant walking (and cycling) in the sunshine.

We turned a corner and found ourselves alongside a farmer field where wheat was growing. All along the edge of the field were the most gorgeous red poppies.

On our way back to the car park we noticed a sign pointing to Willington Dovecote so we decided to do a short detour to have a look.

Willington Dovecote and Stables are owned by The National Trust.

The Dovecote and stable building stand alongside Willington church. Both buildings were built in 1541 by Sir John Gostwick, who served as Cardinal Wolsey's Master of Horse. This was a man who thought big! 1500 nesting boxes for pigeons line the walls of the cote. The cote and adjoining stable block are thought to have been built with stone from Newnham Priory. It is thought that the buildings were built to prove Sir John's status to Henry VIII who visited Willington on two occasions.

The Dovecote.

The Stables.

It is possible, by appointment, to go inside the building. We didn't but if you would like to see what the buildings are like inside and hear more about them here's a little video made in 2009 by local-news.tv.