Ivinghoe Hills butterfly walk
This walk takes in the area where all the butterflies found on the Ivinghoe Hills are to be seen, including the rare Duke of Burgundy and other specialists of rough chalk downland such as chalkhill blue, dark-green fritillary and marbled white.
Discover a fantastic variety of butterflies and birds
The lower slopes hold one of the strongest colonies of Duke of Burgundy left in England. Also look out for dingy and grizzled skippers, brown argus and green hairstreaks.
Map
Start:
National Trust Steps Hill lower car park on west side of C road (Beacon Road), grid ref: SP96415
1
From the south-west corner of the grassy Steps Hill car park on the west side of the road, take the public footpath by the large brown sign marking the old military training area. Follow this recently widened path as it meanders through glades in scrubby woodland, turning right onto the bridleway before the crest of the escarpment. Follow this bridleway, through scrub and young oak woodland, passing the first gate out on to the downs on your left.
Butterflies
A general interest area, with speckled woods, gatekeepers, meadow browns, ringlets, small Essex and large skippers. Brimstones, commas and peacocks patrol in spring, and red admirals in late summer.
2
Take the second gate on your left, by another large brown sign, onto the down above Incombe Hole. You don't need to go down the steep track into the Hole. Instead, follow vague sheep tracks that run above the right-hand crest of Incombe Hole, past isolated scrub bushes. Head for the ancient earthwork (embankment and ditch system) than runs down the spur on the right side of the Combe. Follow this ditch almost to the bottom of the scarp slope, but bearing right to cut across to the vehicle track that runs along the foot of the escarpment, joining the track to the right of a cattle trough.
Butterflies
Look for dark-green fritillaries, painted ladies and small tortoiseshells on the thistle patches just inside the gate on your right. The embankment and ditch leading down the spur is a good area for grizzled and dingy skippers in spring.
3
By the fence, bear right on a chalky track that runs along the foot of the downland slope. Carry on exploring this track until you reach a rickety gate.
Butterflies
A good general area for chalk grassland butterflies and six-spot burnet moths. Look for male Duke of Burgundies in the more sheltered hollows, especially past the cattle trough.
4
After a stile by the rickety gate, turn right up a sunken track sheltered by tall bushes. Here you have an option to make a detour before turning right: carry on along this bottom of the slope path, through a shady section, with a badger's sett, into a large paddock of rough grassland and bushes. This is a good area for dark-green fritillary and chalkhill blues on the shorter turf upslope. When you are ready, retrace your steps and turn left up the sunken track.
Butterflies
The sunken track leading uphill, especially the broad open bay on the right (just past a cattle trough on the left), is good for Duke of Burgundy. The linear bay is a gathering ground for Burgundy males. Check the bushes in spring for green hairstreaks too. Further upslope, the track leads past short turf banks, just before a bend in the road. Chalk blues fly over these banks in August.
5
Just before the road bends, bear right to pick up the vehicle track that leads up the scarp slope crest southwards. You can do another detour here: cross the road carefully, follow the broad chalky path for 110yd (100m), then veer off left to explore short turf banks and gulleys, before recrossing the road and rejoining the route. On the vehicle track, ignore the footpath leading off to the right and carry on up the steep slope through open grassland.
Butterflies
A short, general interest section, with marbled whites, gatekeepers and other butterflies. The detour will reveal more chalkhill and common blues, small heath, brown argus and Duke of Burgundy.
6
Just before the track disappears into the scrub, fork left down a bumpy track that ambles through patches of hawthorn scrub. Then turn left to join a rutted track, which leads back to the car park where you began.
Butterflies and birds
The grassy, bramble-filled glades offer nectar and shelter to a great variety of butterflies, including species like peacock, red admiral and small tortoiseshell; gatekeeper, marbled white, and large skipper. This is also a good area for birds, such as the willow warbler.
End:
National Trust Steps Hill lower car park on west side of C road (Beacon Road), grid ref: SP96415
