#smalladventures: hiking

So, the first little miniadventure was a hike today with the mister - a few hours out discovering an area of open country not far from where we live, but not somewhere I had explored before. Admittedly, only a teeny adventure by any measuring, but still, it was a chance to explore a new place, map in hand, and that is enough to make it a mini adventure by my reckoning!  We are planning some longer hikes, but this was a start. Begin small maybe but you are lapping the folks on the sofa, right? ;)

It was a really beautiful day today, the rolling landscape of the eastern reaches of the Chilterns were looking stunning.

These two handsome, and rather windswept fellas were my companions, can you tell I was enjoying myself, (not caring at all that I looked like the michelin man in a double layer of puffa jackets)?

We saw a pair of circling red kites flying over some barns and a whole pack of fox hounds on some kind of exercise, could they be beagling we wondered, (hope not), you can just make them out below?

The winter trees were looking magnificent, and this book is helping us understand more about the landscape around us.

Best of all, we bought a mini picnic of hot chocolate, pannetone and fruit and nuts, which we ate on a fallen log, feeling all was very well in our lucky corner of the world! It felt really special because 2014 had brought its fair share of heartache to our little family, and here we are here, happy and whole and feeling grateful. 

Hoping you are having a great weekend wherever you are - if you have any small adventures, hashtag 'em on instagram or twitter, (#smalladventures) and please tag me, I'd love to see what you have been up to!