Birdlip (Barrow Wake and Crickley Hill)

View from Barrow Wake

En route for Gloucester, I set out early to fit in this walk. Being drawn from a book of pub walks, this walk begins at the well-known Air Balloon pub on the A417/A346 roundabout at Birdlip. However, to get even more out of it, I parked at the Barrow Wake viewpoint half a mile to the south and walked down past the pub. The views over Gloucester and the surrounding country are excellent.

Crossing the A417 you climb a grassy, then woody, slope called The Scrubs and arrive at Crickley Hill. You then turn right to walk along the top of the hill, the scarp of the Cotswolds, for some distance enjoying lovely views to the north west.



Eventually you hit a road and turn right up it, following it until you reach a junction with the A346. Here you climb a track along the side of South Hill and this eventually becomes a road leading back to the view point (the official route turns right part way along). South Hill had a magnificent selection of butterflies.

From: Pub Walks in Gloucestershire by Nigel Hammond (Countryside Books)

Map: Explorer 179 (Gloucester, Cheltenham and Stroud)

Rating: four stars


Sightings

The best crop of butterflies this year 13 in all: Meadow Brown, Speckled Wood, Gatekeeper, Small Heath, Ringlet, Large White, Small White, Small Skipper, Painted Lady, Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock, Common Blue and Silver Washed Fritillary.

The key lesson from these sightings was that many of the butterflies were stationary, so it was important to stand and scan the grass and bushes rather than depend on movement.

I thought I might try taking a few butterfly pictures, so here are a pair of Gatekeepers ....



... and the Silver Washed Fritillary.




Flowers of the day

This Meadow Cranesbill is pretty but widespread ...



... but this striking Pyramidal Orchid, growing on Crickley Hill, is a bit more unusual.