Spring at The Old Forge — Cowslips, Butterflies and Wild Garlic Pesto
There is a moment every spring when the Dorset countryside just stops you in your tracks. This week, that moment arrived.
The cowslips are out in force on the downland — a golden blanket rolling across the hills that you simply can't ignore. The lambs are doing what lambs do best (mostly frolicking, occasionally causing chaos), the cows are back out grazing, and the whole landscape has that particular shade of green that only appears for a few precious weeks each year.
Butterflies on the Downs
I rode out this week past one of our favourite local spots — a sheltered, south-facing bank that butterfly enthusiasts travel miles to visit, and for very good reason. It sits within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and has been carefully protected, which means the wildflowers are extraordinary and the wildlife that depends on them thrives here.
I got chatting to a lovely group who were out with their binoculars and notebooks, eyes peeled for something special. They'd already spotted a Holly Blue and a Yellow Brimstone, and were quietly hopeful about the Glanville Fritillary — one of Britain's rarest butterflies, which emerges here in the coming weeks. The banks were full of signs of healthy caterpillars too, which is always a wonderful indication of just how biodiverse and thriving this little corner of Dorset really is.
Wild Garlic in the Bluebell Woods
We've also been foraging this week, which is one of our very favourite spring rituals. The woods around Ashmore are absolutely magical right now — bluebells as far as the eye can see, and the unmistakable garlicky scent drifting through the trees that tells you the wild garlic is ready to pick.
We came home with a good haul and spent a happy hour making pesto. It's so simple and so delicious — here's our recipe if you fancy trying it yourself.
Fontmell Down and Melbury Beacon — on Our Doorstep
If you're staying with us, all of this is right outside the door. Fontmell Down and Melbury Beacon are two of Dorset's great unsung treasures — sweeping chalk downland with views that stretch for miles across the Blackmore Vale. The walking is extraordinary and you can head straight out from the gate without getting in a car.
When you're ready for food and a drink, you don't have to go far. Breezy Ridge is a brilliant spot just over an hour's walk away, and Lore of the Sky is around forty minutes — both well worth the walk and a lovely excuse to linger on the hills a little longer.
Spring in this part of Dorset is genuinely one of the most beautiful things we know. The crowds never really arrive here, the light is wonderful, and the countryside is doing everything it possibly can to show off. Come and see it for yourself.
We'd love to have you.
